Frank Bladin
Air Vice Marshal Francis Masson (Frank) Bladin, (26 August 1898 – 2 February 1978) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Born in rural Victoria, he graduated from the Royal Military College, Duntroon, in 1920. Bladin transferred from the Army to the Air Force in 1923, and learned to fly at RAAF Point Cook, Victoria. He held training appointments before taking command of No. 1 Squadron in 1934. Quiet but authoritative, he was nicknamed "Dad" in tribute to the concern he displayed for the welfare of his personnel.Stephens, ''The Royal Australian Air Force'', pp. 145–146 Ranked wing commander at the outbreak of World War II, by September 1941 Bladin had been raised to temporary air commodore. He became Air Officer Commanding North-Western Area in March 1942, following the first Japanese air raids on Darwin, Northern Territory. Personally leading sorties against enemy territory, he earned the United States Silver Star f ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Korumburra, Victoria
Korumburra is a town in the Australian state of Victoria. It is located on the South Gippsland Highway, south-east of Melbourne, in the South Gippsland Shire local government area. At the Korumburra had an urban population of 3,639. Surrounded by rolling green hills, the town is above the sea level of coastal Inverloch, about away. History The Post Office in the area opened on 1 September 1884, and moved to the township on the railway survey line on 1 November 1889, the existing office being renamed Glentress. The railway arrived in 1891, and the now heritage listed railway station was built in 1908. Korumburra owed its early prosperity to coal mining; 2,000,000 tonnes of coal were produced by the Korumburra coalfields from 1893 to 1962. The town has also enjoyed a wave of migration of European migrants who have added to the town's growth and culture. Antonio Radovick "Father of Korumburra" was the most successful Croatian pioneer in Victoria who contributed to the sta ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Returned And Services League Of Australia
The Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) is a support organisation for people who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force. Mission The RSL's mission is to ensure that programs are in place for the well-being, care, compensation and commemoration of serving and ex-service Defence Force members and their dependants; and promote Government and community awareness of the need for a secure, stable and progressive Australia. However, even as late as the 1970s it was described as an "inherently conservative" organisation. History The League evolved out of concern for the welfare of returned servicemen from the World War I, First World War. In 1916, a conference at which representatives from Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria (Australia), Victoria were present recommended the formation of The Returned Sailors and Soldiers Imperial League of Australia (RSSILA). New South Wales was admitted to the League the following year and Western Austr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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British Commonwealth Occupation Force
The British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) was the British Commonwealth taskforce consisting of Australian, British, Indian and New Zealand military forces in occupied Japan, from 1946 until the end of occupation in 1952. At its peak, the BCOF committed about 40,000 personnel, that comprised 25% of the occupation force, which was equal to about a third of the number of US military personnel in Japan. History Background Following the dropping of atomic bombs and the entry of the Soviet Union into the war against Japan, the Japanese Empire surrendered to the Allies on 15 August 1945, with their government accepting the Potsdam Declaration. The formal surrender was signed on 2 September in Tokyo Bay. Unlike in the occupation of Germany, the Soviet Union had little to no influence over the occupation of Japan, leaving the Americans, British and Commonwealth Forces responsible for occupation duties. Whilst US forces were responsible for military government, the BCOF was ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Air Vice Marshal
Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. Air vice-marshal is a two-star rank and has a NATO ranking code of OF-7. It is equivalent to a rear-admiral in the Royal Navy or a major-general in the British Army or the Royal Marines. In other NATO forces, such as the United States Armed Forces and the Canadian Armed Forces, the equivalent two-star rank is major general. The rank of air vice-marshal is immediately senior to the rank air commodore and immediately subordinate to the rank of air marshal. Since before the Second World War it has been common for air officers commanding RAF groups to hold the rank of air vice-marshal. In small air forces such as ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mentioned In Despatches
To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of the enemy is described. In some countries, a service member's name must be mentioned in dispatches as a condition for receiving certain decorations. United Kingdom, British Empire, and Commonwealth of Nations Servicemen and women of the British Empire or the Commonwealth who are mentioned in despatches (MiD) are not awarded a medal for their actions, but receive a certificate and wear an oak leaf device on the ribbon of the appropriate campaign medal. A smaller version of the oak leaf device is attached to the ribbon when worn alone. Prior to 2014, only one device could be worn on a ribbon, irrespective of the number of times the recipient was mentioned in despatches. Where no campaign medal is awarded, the oak leaf is worn direc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sortie
A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfare. In aviation In military aviation, a sortie is a combat mission of an individual aircraft, starting when the aircraft takes off. For example, one mission involving six aircraft would tally six sorties. The sortie rate is the number of sorties that a given unit can support in a given time. In siege warfare In siege warfare, the word ''sortie'' refers specifically to a sudden issuing of troops against the enemy from a defensive position—that is, an attack launched against the besiegers by the defenders. If the sortie is through a sally port, the verb ''to sally'' may be used interchangeably with ''to sortie''. Purposes of sorties include harassment of enemy troops, destruction of siege weaponry and engineering works, joining the relief ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin ( ; Larrakia: ) is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. With an estimated population of 147,255 as of 2019, the city contains the majority of the residents of the sparsely populated Northern Territory. It is the smallest, wettest, and most northerly of the Australian capital cities and serves as the Top End's regional centre. Darwin's proximity to Southeast Asia makes the city's location a key link between Australia and countries such as Indonesia and East Timor. The Stuart Highway begins in Darwin, extends southerly across central Australia through Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, concluding in Port Augusta, South Australia. The city is built upon a low bluff overlooking Darwin Harbour. Darwin's suburbs begin at Lee Point in the north and stretch to Berrimah in the east. The Stuart Highway extends to Darwin's eastern satellite city of Palmerston and its suburbs. The Darwin region, like much of the Top End, experiences a tropical climate with a wet a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Air Raids On Australia, 1942–43
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for liquid water to exist on the Earth's surface, absorbing ultraviolet solar radiation, warming the surface through heat retention (greenhouse effect), and reducing temperature extremes between day and night (the diurnal temperature variation). By mole fraction (i.e., by number of molecules), dry air contains 78.08% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0.04% carbon dioxide, and small amounts of other gases. Air also contains a variable amount of water vapor, on average around 1% at sea level, and 0.4% over the entire atmosphere. Air composition, temperature, and atmospheric pressure vary with altitude. Within the atmosphere, air suitable for use in photosynthesis by terrestrial plants and breathing of terrestrial animals is found only in E ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Wing Commander (rank)
Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical British influence, including many Commonwealth countries but not including Canada (since Unification) and South Africa. It is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. It ranks immediately above squadron leader and immediately below group captain. It has a NATO ranking code of OF-4. It is equivalent to commander in the Royal and United States Navies, as well as to lieutenant colonel in the British Army, the Royal Marines, and the United States Army, Air Force and Marine Corps. The equivalent rank in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force and the Women's Royal Air Force (until 1968) and in Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service (until 1980) ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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RAAF Williams
RAAF Williams is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base set across two locations, at Point Cook and Laverton, located approximately south-west of the Melbourne central business district in Victoria, Australia. Both establishments previously existed as separate RAAF Bases (RAAF Base Point Cook and RAAF Base Laverton) until 1989 when they were amalgamated to form RAAF Williams. The name was chosen in honour of Air Marshal Sir Richard Williams, the 'father' of the RAAF. RAAF Williams, Point Cook is the birthplace of the Royal Australian Air Force and is the oldest continually operating military airfield in the world. Since 1994 RAAF Williams (Point Cook) has been the home of RMIT Flight Training. RAAF Base Point Cook The land area at Point Cook was purchased by the Australian Government in 1912 with the vision to form what would become the Australian Flying Corps. Due to the success of the AFC in the First World War, the AFC became a separate service, now know ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |