No. 102 Squadron was a

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

(RAAF)

heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually bombs) and longest range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy bombers have therefore usually been among the larges ...

squadron of World War II. The squadron was only active for less than nine months before being disbanded. No. 102 Squadron was formed at Cecil Plains, Queensland on 31 May 1945. The Squadron's

B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...

bombers arrived in July. While the Squadron began training on these aircraft, the war ended before it reached operational status. Following the end of the war the squadron operated in the transport role until December 1945. No. 102 Squadron was disbanded on 19 March 1946.

History

No. 102 Squadron was formed at Cecil Plains, Queensland, on 30 May 1945 as one of the seven RAAF operational squadrons equipped with B-24 Liberator heavy bombers. The squadron's first commanding officer was Squadron Leader John Dennett. The squadron's first draft of 220 airmen arrived on 22 June, and the unit had a strength of 600 personnel on 1 July. No. 102 Squadron's first B-24s were delivered on 4 July, with further heavy bombers and a single

Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engined, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) a ...

trainer being delivered on the 8th of the month; the Anson was later replaced by a

de Havilland Tiger Moth The de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s British biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other operators as a primary trainer aircraft. ...

. Following the delivery of its B-24s, No. 102 Squadron began an intensive training program; however, the war ended before this was completed. The unit began practising formation flying in early August, and on the 16th of the month nine of its B-24s flew in formation over

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

to mark

Victory in the Pacific Day Victory over Japan Day (also known as V-J Day, Victory in the Pacific Day, or V-P Day) is the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered in World War II, in effect bringing the war to an end. The term has been applied to both of the days on ...

. From September to the late December 1945, No. 102 Squadron aircraft operated out of

RAAF Station Amberley RAAF Base Amberley is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military airbase located southwest of Ipswich, Queensland in Australia and southwest of Brisbane CBD. It is currently home to No. 1 Squadron (operating the F/A-18F Super Hornet), N ...

, from where they flew supplies to Australian forces in

Morotai Morotai Island ( id, Pulau Morotai) is an island in the Halmahera group of eastern Indonesia's Maluku Islands (Moluccas). It is one of Indonesia's northernmost islands. Morotai is a rugged, forested island lying to the north of Halmahera. It ha ...

Finschhafen Finschhafen is a town east of Lae on the Huon Peninsula in Morobe Province of Papua New Guinea. The town is commonly misspelt as Finschafen or Finschaven. During World War II, the town was also referred to as Fitch Haven in the logs of some U.S ...

in New Guinea and Bougainville and returned with demobilised personnel. Two officers from the squadron were also assigned to No. 82 Wing's headquarters on Morotai from September to assist with planning air evacuation flights. No. 102 Squadron's flying program tapered off during December 1945, and ended on the 20th of the month. The squadron began to disband in early January 1946, and it was gradually reduced in size. No. 102 Squadron was disbanded at Cecil Plains on 19 March 1946. The unit did not suffer any flying accidents during its brief existence.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * {{List of RAAF Squadrons

102 102 may refer to: * 102 (number), the number * AD 102, a year in the 2nd century AD * 102 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC * 102 (ambulance service), an emergency medical transport service in Uttar Pradesh, India * 102 (Clyde) Field Squadron, Royal ...

Military units and formations established in 1945 Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 1946 disestablishments in Australia

History

See also

References

Notes

Bibliography