No. 20 Squadron was a
squadron of the
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 Zeal ...
. It was first established at as an army co-operation unit, serving in this role between 1942 and 1943. In January 1944, the squadron was reformed as a fighter unit at equipped with
P-40 Kittyhawks. It later flew
F4U-1 Corsair fighter bombers
A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, wh ...
.
History
No. 20 Squadron originally raised as an army co-operation squadron in 1942, based at
Onerahl from August 1942 until July 1943.
After being re-raised as a fighter unit in January 1944, the squadron was deployed to
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. I ...
on
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the se ...
from April to May 1944 and then to
Piva Airfield
Piva Airfield is a former World War II airfield on Bougainville Island in the Solomon Islands archipelago.
History
World War II
The 3rd Marine Division landed on Bougainville on 1 November 1943 at the start of the Bougainville Campaign, esta ...
on
Bougainville from May to June 1944. The squadron deployed to
Palikulo Bay Airfield
Palikulo Bay Airfield or Bomber Field #1 is a former World War II airfield on the island of Espiritu Santo in the New Hebrides Islands at the Espiritu Santo Naval Base.
History
World War II
The 7th Naval Construction Battalion arrived on Santo ...
on
Espiritu Santo from August to September 1944 and then returned to Guadalcanal from September to October 1944.
[ The squadron deployed to Green Island on 26 October 1944 assuming responsibility for local patrols and ]Dumbo
''Dumbo'' is a 1941 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The fourth Disney animated feature film, it is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and Harold Pearl, ...
escort.[ The squadron returned to Santo in January 1945, then deployed to Bougainville until April 1945 and ]Jacquinot Bay
Jacquinot Bay is a bay in East New Britain Province, south-eastern New Britain, Papua New Guinea, at . It is near the mountain where twenty-eight people died when a Royal Australian Air Force plane crashed in November 1945. To its west is the Gas ...
from May to August 1945.[
]
Commanding officers
*Squadron Leader S. R. Duncan: January–July 1944;
*Squadron Leader G. M. Robertson: July–November 1944;
*Squadron Leader L. R. Reynolds: December 1944–September 1945.[
]
References
{{List of RNZAF Squadrons
20
Squadrons of the RNZAF in World War II
Military units and formations established in 1941
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945