No. 22 (City of Sydney) Squadron is a
Royal Australian Air Force
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colours =
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, anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
(RAAF) mixed Permanent and Reserve squadron that provides support for the RAAF in the
Sydney region. Formed in 1936, the squadron served in Papua New Guinea during the Second World War, and later followed the
Pacific War as far as the Philippines. Following the war, the squadron was re-formed in 1948 but was converted to a non-flying support role in mid-1960. It is currently based at
RAAF Base Richmond
RAAF Base Richmond is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base located within the City of Hawkesbury, approximately North-West of the Sydney Central Business District in New South Wales, Australia. Situated between the towns of W ...
, New South Wales.
History
No. 22 Squadron was formed on 20 April 1936 at
Richmond, New South Wales
Richmond is a town in New South Wales, in the local government area of the City of Hawkesbury. It is located 19 metres above sea level on the alluvial Hawkesbury River flats, at the foot of the Blue Mountains on the Cumberland Plain. It is abo ...
, as part of the Citizen Air Force (CAF). Equipped with
Hawker Demons and
de Haviland Gipsy Moths, two thirds of its personnel were part-time CAF members and one third belonged to the Permanent Air Force (PAF). Its first
commanding officer was Squadron Leader
D. E. L. Wilson.
[.] Allan Walters commanded the squadron in 1937–38, during which time it received a number of
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 (RCA ...
s.
[
]
Second World War
No. 22 Squadron was mobilised following the outbreak of war in September 1939 and conducted anti-submarine patrols. Its first operational mission came on 10 September when its aircraft undertook a search for a submarine that had been reported off Sydney. The sighting came to nothing. In late December 1940, the squadron replaced its Demons with CAC Wirraway
The CAC Wirraway (an Aboriginal word meaning "challenge") was a training and general purpose military aircraft manufactured in Australia by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC) between 1939 and 1946. It was an Australian development of ...
s and over the course of the next year it slowly converted completely to this type, completing this process by the time Japan entered the war in December 1941. During this time the squadron undertook anti-submarine and convoy escort tasks, but saw no action. It was also provided training support for Army anti-aircraft units, towing targets for them to shoot at.
The squadron was equipped with A-20 Boston bombers in April 1942. These aircraft had originally been intended to equip Dutch forces in East Indies
The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around ...
, but the advance of the Japanese through Java meant that the aircraft were sent to Australia instead. As a result, they arrived without the necessary spare parts, instructions and other support equipment. This caused considerable teething problems; however, even before the conversion process was over No. 22 Squadron was called upon to undertake patrols along the eastern seaboard following the Attack on Sydney Harbour
In late May and early June 1942, during World War II, Imperial Japanese Navy submarines made a series of attacks on the Australian cities of Sydney and Newcastle. On the night of 31 May – 1 June, three ''Ko-hyoteki''-class midget submarin ...
in May and June 1942. Twice during June aircraft from the squadron attacked Japanese submarines, inflicting damage but failing to sink them.[.]
It deployed to Port Moresby
(; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...
in New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
in October 1942 where it flew in support of Australian Army operations against the Japanese around Buna and Gona. Initial losses were high, partially due to malfunctioning ordnance, the premature explosion of which resulted in the loss of three aircraft in separate incidents in the space of two months.[ Operating in conjunction with the Beaufighter-equipped No. 30 Squadron RAAF, in December the squadron undertook several low-level attack missions, and also damaged a Japanese destroyer.][ In March 1943 the squadron played an important role in the ]Battle of the Bismarck Sea
The Battle of the Bismarck Sea (2–4 March 1943) took place in the South West Pacific Area (SWPA) during World War II when aircraft of the U.S. Fifth Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) attacked a Japanese convoy carrying troop ...
,[.] an air-sea battle which resulted in significant losses for the Japanese. A member of the squadron, Flight Lieutenant Bill Newton
William Ellis Newton, VC (8 June 1919 – 29 March 1943) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to a member of the British and Com ...
, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
(VC) – the Commonwealth's highest military decoration – for his actions while flying a Boston on two separate missions between 16 and 18 March 1943.
In April 1943, the squadron moved to Goodenough Island
Goodenough Island in the Solomon Sea, also known as Nidula Island, is the westernmost of the three large islands of the D'Entrecasteaux Islands in Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea. It lies to the east of mainland New Guinea and southwest ...
, remaining there until November when they moved Kiriwina. Operations during this time initially consisted of anti-shipping patrols and attacks around Cape Gloucester, before later being expanded to include photo reconnaissance missions and ground attack missions on targets throughout New Britain; a number of losses were experienced during this time.[ In March 1944, the squadron became part of No. 77 Wing, along with Nos. 30 and 31 Squadrons. In November 1944, the squadron moved once more, this time to ]Morotai Island
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 ...
.[ From here, the squadron conducted operations throughout the ]South West Pacific Area
South West Pacific Area (SWPA) was the name given to the Allied supreme military command in the South West Pacific Theatre of World War II. It was one of four major Allied commands in the Pacific War. SWPA included the Philippines, Borneo, the ...
, including targets in the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
. Later in the month, the majority of the squadron's Bostons were badly damaged or destroyed in a Japanese bombing raid. As a result, its operations were reduced until January 1945 when it was moved to Noemfoor, in present-day Indonesia, and re-equipped with Beaufighters in January 1945.[
The squadron's first operation on the new aircraft type came in mid-February when nine Beaufighters were sent to attack Tandao in the ]Celebes Sea
The Celebes Sea, (; ms, Laut Sulawesi, id, Laut Sulawesi, fil, Dagat Selebes) or Sulawesi Sea, of the western Pacific Ocean is bordered on the north by the Sulu Archipelago and Sulu Sea and Mindanao Island of the Philippines, on the east b ...
. Further low level attacks followed, during which the squadron suffered a number of losses before switching to close support operations in April as part of Operation Oboe Six, the Australian landing on Tarakan
Tarakan is an island and the largest city of the Indonesian province of North Kalimantan. The island city is located in northern Borneo, midway along the coast of the province. The city boundaries are co-extensive with the island (including a co ...
.[.] The following month, the squadron was scheduled to move to Tarakan, however, due to space and facilities suitability issues the squadron's personnel were split up at this time, with the aircraft and aircrew remaining on Morotai, while the ground crew were quartered on Tarakan. They continued to fly operations right up to the end of the war in August.[ A total of 65 men from No. 22 Squadron were killed during the war. Its members received the following decorations: one VC, one ]Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...
, 13 Distinguished Flying Crosses, two George Medal
The George Medal (GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI,''British Gallantry Medals'' (Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138 is a decoration of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, awarded for gallantry, typically by civilians, or in cir ...
s, one British Empire Medal and five Mentions in Despatches.[
]
Post-war
Following the end of hostilities, No. 22 Squadron returned to Australia at the end of 1945 and was disbanded on 15 August 1946 at Deniliquin, New South Wales
Deniliquin () is a town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia, close to the border with Victoria. It is the largest town in the Edward River Council local government area.
Deniliquin is located at the intersection of the Riverin ...
. On 19 April 1948, the squadron was reformed at Bankstown, New South Wales
Bankstown is a suburb south west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 16 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is located in the local government area of the City of Canterbury-Bankstown ...
, as part of the CAF but with a cadre of PAF members. In November the squadron was equipped with P-51 Mustangs and de Haviland Tiger Moths. Operating out of Schofields, New South Wales
Schofields is a suburb on the fringe of Sydney's urban sprawl, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Schofields is located north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the Blacktown local government area. It is part of Greater ...
, No. 22 Squadron undertook its own training and carried out various duties including air defence and naval and ground support tasks. During this time it also flew a Sikorsky S-51 Dragonfly helicopter, which it operated in the search-and-rescue role. In September 1952 it began re-equipping with de Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the RAF, after the Gloster Meteor, and the first to be powered by ...
jet fighters.[
In March 1953, the squadron relocated to ]RAAF Base Richmond
RAAF Base Richmond is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base located within the City of Hawkesbury, approximately North-West of the Sydney Central Business District in New South Wales, Australia. Situated between the towns of W ...
. In 1956, it replaced its Vampires with Gloster Meteor
The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies of World War II, Allies' only jet aircraft to engage in combat operations during the Second World War. The Meteor's development was heavily reliant on its ground-breaking turb ...
s. It also operated Winjeels in the training role. In June 1960, when CAF flying operations were ceased, the squadron was converted to a non-flying role supporting RAAF activities in the Sydney region.[
On 1 July 2010, changes to the structure of the Combat Support Group resulted in the combat support and fixed base services functions of No. 325 Expeditionary Combat Support Squadron (325 ECSS) being integrated with No. 22 Squadron's training role at Richmond and 325 ECSS being disbanded.] The squadron is currently staffed by a mix of 280 Permanent and Reserve personnel.
Battle honours
For its involvement during the Second World War, No. 22 Squadron was awarded the following battle honour
A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible.
In European military t ...
s:
* Pacific 1941–1945, New Guinea 1942–1944, Moresby 1942–1943, New Britain 1943, Markham Valley 1943–1944, Dutch New Guinea, Morotai, Borneo 1945, and Bismarck Sea.[
]
Notes
References
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Further reading
* Page, Charles (2008). ''Wings of Destiny: Wing Commander Charles Learmonth, DFC and Bar and the Air War in New Guinea.'' New South Wales: Rosenberg Publishing Pty Ltd.
*
{{List of RAAF Squadrons
22
Aircraft squadrons of the Royal Australian Air Force in World War II
Military units and formations established in 1936