, also known as No. 19 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron RAAF, was a
transport and communications unit of the
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force
The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force ( nl, Militaire Luchtvaart van het Koninklijk Nederlands-Indisch Leger, ML-KNIL) was the air arm of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) from 1939 until ...
(MK-KNIL), formed in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
during the final stages of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. The squadron was formed as a Dutch unit in late 1944 from two transport flights that had previously been based in
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 ...
and
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, and which had run supplies to joint Australian-NEI combat squadrons in the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...
and in
West Papua. Upon formation the squadron was based at
Archerfield, near Brisbane. In 1945, it was transferred to the
Royal Australian Air Force
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
(RAAF), but returned to Dutch control in 1947 and subsequently took part in operations during the
Indonesian National Revolution
The Indonesian National Revolution, or the Indonesian War of Independence, was an armed conflict and diplomatic struggle between the Republic of Indonesia and the Dutch Empire and an internal social revolution during Aftermath of WWII, postw ...
.
History
The squadron was one of four joint Australian-NEI squadrons formed during the war, and emerged from two separate transport
flights
Flight is the process by which an object moves without direct support from a surface.
Flight may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Flight'' (1929 film), an American adventure film
* ''Flight'' (2009 film), a South Korean d ...
formed in September 1944 by the ''ML-KNIL'' in Australia. These flights were NEI Transport Section, Brisbane (NEI-TSB), which was based at
RAAF Archerfield, near
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 ...
and equipped with three
Lockheed Lodestars and five
North American B-25 Mitchell
The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in e ...
s, and NEI Transport Section, Melbourne (NEI-TSM), which operated nine Lodestars and several Mitchells, and was based at
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
.
These units transported personnel and material to
No. 18 (NEI) Squadron, a joint Australian-NEI bomber squadron based at
RAAF Batchelor, Northern Territory, and
No. 120 (NEI) Squadron, a fighter unit in
Merauke
Merauke is a large town and the capital of the South Papua province, Indonesia. It is also the administrative centre of Merauke Regency in South Papua. It is considered the easternmost city in Indonesia. The town was originally called Ermasoe. It ...
(later in
Biak
Biak is an island located in Cenderawasih Bay near the northern coast of Papua (province), Papua, an Indonesian province, and is just northwest of New Guinea. Biak is the largest island in its small archipelago, and has many atolls, reefs, and c ...
),
West Papua.
In September 1944, these two flights were expanded to squadron status and designated Nos. 1 and 2 NEI Transport Squadrons. No. 1 subsequently moved to Brisbane from Melbourne and in November the two were merged at Archerfield, forming No. 1
Netherlands East Indies
The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...
(NEI) Transport Squadron, operating four
Douglas Dakotas, six Lodestars, five Mitchells and five
Lockheed Model 12a light transport aircraft. Although the squadron was not officially part of the RAAF at that time, a detachment of 50 RAAF personnel was assigned to it to help make up for personnel shortages, mainly in ground crew. In early 1945, the squadron's area of operations began expanding beyond Australia and Merauke and, as the end of the war became imminent, the Dutch authorities began considering future operations in the East Indies. On 15 August 1945, following a request from Dutch officials, the squadron was officially absorbed by the RAAF and renamed No. 19 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron. It took control of 13 Dakotas that had previously been operated by the Dutch East Indies airline
KNILM
Koninklijke Nederlandsch-Indische Luchtvaart Maatschappij (in English: Royal Dutch Indies Airways) was the airline of the former Dutch East Indies. Headquartered in Amsterdam, KNILM was ''not'' a subsidiary of the better-known KLM (Royal Dutch A ...
, while a further 17 were obtained from the US; of these, 10 were used for flying and the remainder to provide spare parts. There were also four Mitchells, and several Lockheed 12s and Lodestars. Some of the squadron's Dutch crews were transferred from the USAAF
374th Troop Carrier Group 374th may refer to:
*374th Airlift Wing, unit of the United States Air Force assigned to Fifth Air Force, stationed at Yokota Air Base, Japan
*374th Fighter Squadron or 171st Air Refueling Squadron, unit of the Michigan Air National Guard's 127th W ...
, having received training in the US following their escape from the NEI.
Following the end of World War II, the Dutch government requested that the NEI squadrons operating as part of the RAAF participate in the re-occupation of the NEI.
[ In early September 1945, despite ]South East Asia Command
South East Asia Command (SEAC) was the body set up to be in overall charge of Allies of World War II, Allied operations in the South-East Asian theatre of World War II, South-East Asian Theatre during the World War II, Second World War.
Histo ...
placing restrictions on Dutch aircraft landing in Java due to concerns about escalating tensions with Indonesian nationalists during the withdrawal of Japanese troops, the squadron began flying humanitarian assistance missions, landing at Kemajoran. RAAF staff, the majority of whom were maintenance personnel, were withdrawn from the Dutch squadrons in November 1945. Maintenance was subsequently conducted in Bundaberg
Bundaberg is a city in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia, and is the tenth largest city in the state. Bundaberg's regional area has a population of 70,921, and is a major centre of the Wide Bay–Burnett geographical region. The Bun ...
, Queensland by Australian civilian companies until May 1946. In 1946, the squadron received several Douglas C-54 Skymaster
The Douglas C-54 Skymaster is a four-engined transport aircraft used by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II and the Korean War. Like the Douglas C-47 Skytrain derived from the DC-3, the C-54 Skymaster was derived from a civilian a ...
s from the United States. Regular courier flights were later established by the squadron between Brisbane, Darwin and Batavia
Batavia may refer to:
Historical places
* Batavia (region), a land inhabited by the Batavian people during the Roman Empire, today part of the Netherlands
* Batavia, Dutch East Indies, present-day Jakarta, the former capital of the Dutch East In ...
, and these were also available to civilian passengers. Meanwhile, maintenance was increasingly completed in Batavia using contracted Australian civilian personnel.
19 Squadron remained at Archerfield and continued using Australian callsigns as it undertook operations against Indonesian nationalists during the early stages of the Indonesian National Revolution
The Indonesian National Revolution, or the Indonesian War of Independence, was an armed conflict and diplomatic struggle between the Republic of Indonesia and the Dutch Empire and an internal social revolution during Aftermath of WWII, postw ...
;[ in August 1946, it began transferring to Cililitan airfield, near Jakarta, although it continued to maintain its headquarters at Archerfield. The issue of the involvement of RAAF personnel in Dutch operations to reoccupy the NEI was politically sensitive as there was growing anti-colonial sentiment both in Australia and also in Britain and the United States. Nevertheless, the squadron operated as part of the RAAF for over a year, even when there was growing resistance in Australian society, particularly within the labour movement, to assisting the Dutch. It officially ceased to be part of the RAAF on 1 January 1947, and was transferred back to Dutch control for further service in the campaign against the nationalists. On 26 February 1947, a Dakota operated by the squadron crashed into the sea off Point Lookout, near ]Stradbroke Island
Stradbroke Island, also known as Minjerribah, was a large sand island that formed much of the eastern side of Moreton Bay near Brisbane, Queensland until the late 19th century. Today the island is split into two islands: North Stradbroke Islan ...
in Queensland, killing all six people on board.
The squadron was officially dissolved on 1 April 1948, when its aircraft were transferred to 20 Squadron ML-KNIL, a sister transport unit formed in 1946.K.W. Jonker, "North American B-25C/D and B-25J/K Mitchell: NEIAF" ''Nederlandse Modelbouw en Luchtvaartsite'', 2005–2017
Retrieved: 10 January 2023. (While some sources have described this as a "renaming" of 19 Squadron, the prior and separate existence of 20 Squadron would indicate otherwise.)
Notes
Bibliography
*
*
*
Jonker, K. W. (2005–2017). "North American B-25C/D and B-25J/K Mitchell: NEIAF", ''Nederlandse Modelbouw en Luchtvaartsite''
(web page).
*
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Further reading
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External links
*
{{List of RAAF Squadrons
19
Aviation units and formations of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Military units and formations established in 1945
Military units and formations of the Dutch East Indies in World War II