No. 15 Squadron RNZAF
No. 15 Squadron was a fighter squadron of the Royal New Zealand Air Force that was formed in June 1942. It served in Tonga, Guadalcanal, New Georgia, Espiritu Santo, Bougainville Island, Bougainville and Green Island, Papua New Guinea, Green Island. The squadron was equipped with Curtiss P-40, Kittyhawk and, later, F4U Corsair fighters. The squadron was disbanded in October 1945. History After being formed in June 1942, under the command of Squadron Leader A. Crighton, No. 15 Squadron was sent to Tonga later that year where it began operating the Curtiss P-40, P-40 Kittyhawk. It deployed to Kukum Field on Guadalcanal in April 1943, under the command of Squadron Leader Michael Herrick. In October 1943, the squadron formed part of a New Zealand fighter wing along with No. 18 Squadron RNZAF; in November 1943 the wing flew over 1,000 sorties in support of operations on Bougainville Island, beginning with the Landings at Cape Torokina. After periods operating from New Georgia, Espirit ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Air Force Ensign Of New Zealand
The Royal New Zealand Air Force Ensign is the official flag which is used to represent the Royal New Zealand Air Force. The ensign has a field of air force blue with the Union Jack in the canton and the Royal New Zealand Air Force's roundel in the middle of the Glossary of vexillology#Flag elements, fly. It is based on the British Royal Air Force Ensign with the letters "NZ" superimposed in white over the red central disc of the roundel. References External linksNew Zealand History - Royal New Zealand Air Force Ensign Royal New Zealand Air Force Flags of New Zealand Air Force ensigns Flags with crosses Light blue ensigns {{flag-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kukum Field
Kukum Field also known as Fighter 2 Airfield is a former World War II airfield on Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. World War II From the beginning of the Guadalcanal Campaign it was planned that the area would be developed into a major air base. In November 1942 the 6th Naval Construction Battalion began work on a fighter strip at Lunga Point. The 6th Battalion was later replaced by the First Marine Aviation Engineers who completed the coral-surfaced runway by 1 January 1943. In June–July 1943 the 46th and 61st Battalions built a second coral-surfaced by runway with shoulders, coral taxiways wide, and 121 hardstands. The 26th Battalion built a tank farm providing storage for of aviation gasoline, of motor gasoline, and of diesel oil. USAAF units based at Kukum included: *12th Fighter Squadron operating P-39s from 7 February 1943 – 19 February 1944 *68th Fighter Squadron operating P-38s and P-39s from January–December 1943 *339th Fighter Squadron operating P-38s fr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Squadrons Of The RNZAF In World War II
Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, depending on the type of aircraft and the air force, naval or army air service * Squadron (naval), a military unit of three to ten warships that may be part of a larger task group, task force, or a naval fleet; also an administrative unit for warships like submarines that usually operate alone * ''Squadron'' (TV series), a 1982 BBC television series * Squadron, Ellenoff, Plesent & Sheinfeld, a New York City law firm that practiced from 1970 to 2002 * Daniel Squadron (born November 9, 1979), former New York elected official * Squadron Supreme The Squadron Supreme is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, of which there are several notable alternate versions. The original team was created by Roy Thom ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Royal New Zealand Air Force Squadrons
Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a city * Royal, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Royal, Nebraska, a village * Royal, Franklin County, North Carolina, an unincorporated area * Royal, Utah, a ghost town * Royal, West Virginia, an unincorporated community * Royal Gorge, on the Arkansas River in Colorado * Royal Township (other) Elsewhere * Mount Royal, a hill in Montreal, Canada * Royal Canal, Dublin, Ireland * Royal National Park, New South Wales, Australia Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Royal'' (Jesse Royal album), a 2021 reggae album * ''The Royal'', a British medical drama television series * ''The Royal Magazine'', a monthly British literary magazine published between 1898 and 1939 * ''Royal'' (Indian magazine), a men's lifestyle bimonthly * Royal Te ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Official History Of New Zealand In The Second World War 1939–45
The ''Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–45'' is a 48-volume series published by the War History Branch (and its successors) of the Department of Internal Affairs which covered New Zealand involvement in the Second World War. The series was published during the period 1949 to 1986. A collection of booklets entitled ''Episodes and Studies'' were also published between 1948 and 1954. The ''Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–45'' was the largest publication project undertaken in New Zealand. Background It had long been felt in New Zealand that the four-volume 'popular' history of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, the ''Official History of New Zealand's Effort in the Great War'' which had been published a few years after the First World War ended, had not matched the standard set by the ''Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918'', edited by Charles Bean. In 1940, with a view to the production of an official ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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John Gibson (RAF Officer)
John Albert Axel Gibson, (24 August 1916 – 1 July 2000) was a Royal Air Force (RAF) officer and a flying ace of the Second World War. He was credited with the destruction of 12 enemy aircraft. Born in Brighton, the United Kingdom, Gibson moved to New Zealand with his mother after his parents divorced. In 1938, he went to England having been accepted for service with the RAF. He flew with No. 501 (County of Gloucester) Squadron during the Battle of France and the subsequent Battle of Britain. Awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in late August 1940, he spent much of 1941 as an instructor before briefly serving with No. 457 Squadron. In mid-1942, he was loaned to the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) and served with its No. 15 Squadron, including a period as its commander, during the Solomon Islands campaign in the Pacific. He was later awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his service with the squadron. He returned to Europe in 1945, serving with No. 80 Squadron. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vought F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contracts were given to Goodyear, whose Corsairs were designated FG, and Brewster, designated F3A. The Corsair was designed and operated as a carrier-based aircraft, and entered service in large numbers with the U.S. Navy in late 1944 and early 1945. It quickly became one of the most capable carrier-based fighter-bombers of World War II. Some Japanese pilots regarded it as the most formidable American fighter of World War II and its naval aviators achieved an 11:1 kill ratio. Early problems with carrier landings and logistics led to it being eclipsed as the dominant carrier-based fighter by the Grumman F6F Hellcat, powered by the same Double Wasp engine first flown on the Corsair's initial prototype in 1940. Instead, the Corsair's early deployme ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Landings At Cape Torokina
The Landings at Cape Torokina (1–3 November 1943), also known as Operation Cherryblossom, took place at the beginning of the Bougainville campaign in World War II. The amphibious landings were carried out by elements of the United States Marine Corps in November 1943 on Bougainville Island in the South Pacific, as part of Allied efforts to advance towards the main Japanese base around Rabaul under Operation Cartwheel. Coming in the wake of Allied successes at Guadalcanal and in the central Solomons, the landings were intended to secure a beachhead with the purpose of establishing several bases from which to project air and naval power closer towards Rabaul, in an effort to neutralize the large Japanese force that had been established there. In the months leading up to the operation, Japanese airpower on Bougainville was degraded by Allied air strikes, while small parties of Allied reconnaissance forces landed around Bougainville and the surrounding islands to gather intelli ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Michael Herrick
Michael James Herrick, (5 May 1921 – 16 June 1944) was a New Zealand flying ace of the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. He is credited with having shot down at least six enemy aircraft. Born in Hastings, Herrick joined the RAF in 1939. During the Battle of Britain he flew Bristol Blenheims on night operations with No. 25 Squadron, destroying three German bombers. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for his actions during the battle. In late 1941, Herrick was sent to New Zealand on secondment to the Royal New Zealand Air Force to take command of its new No. 15 Squadron. With the squadron he flew two operational tours in the Pacific, including several missions around Guadalcanal, and destroyed a number of Japanese aircraft. In 1944, having been awarded a bar to his DFC, he returned to England to resume service with the RAF and was posted to No. 305 Polish Bomber Squadron, which operated the de Havilland Mosquito fighter-bomber, as one of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Squadron Leader
Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. An air force squadron leader ranks above flight lieutenant and immediately below wing commander and it is the most junior of the senior officer ranks. The air force rank of squadron leader has a NATO ranking code of OF-3, equivalent to a lieutenant-commander in the Royal Navy or a major in the British Army or the Royal Marines. The equivalent rank in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, Women's Royal Air Force (until 1968) and Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service (until 1980) was "squadron officer". Squadron leader has also been used as a cavalry command appointment (UK) and rank (France) since ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Royal New Zealand Air Force
The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zealand elements of the British Royal Air Force, becoming an independent force in 1923, although many RNZAF aircrew continued to serve in the Royal Air Force until the end of the 1940s. The RNZAF fought in World War II, Malaya, Korean War, Vietnam and the Gulf War as well as undertaking various United Nations peacekeeping missions. From a 1945 peak of over 1,000 combat aircraft the RNZAF has shrunk to a strength of around 48 aircraft in 2022, focusing on maritime patrol and transport duties in support of the Royal New Zealand Navy and the New Zealand Army. The RNZAF's air combat capability ended in 2001, under the Fifth Labour Government with the disbanding of the A-4 Skyhawk and Aermacchi MB-339 based squadrons. The Air Force is led by an Ai ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |