No. 2 Squadron RAAF
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No. 2 Squadron is a
Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
(RAAF) squadron that operates from
RAAF Base Williamtown RAAF Base Williamtown is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base located north of the coastal city of Newcastle ( by road) in the local government area of Port Stephens, in New South Wales, Australia. The base serves as the h ...
, near
Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...
. From its formation in 1916 as part of the
Australian Flying Corps The Australian Flying Corps (AFC) was the branch of the Australian Army responsible for operating aircraft during World War I, and the forerunner of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The AFC was established in 1912, though it was not until ...
, it has flown a variety of aircraft types including
fighters Fighter(s) or The Fighter(s) may refer to: Combat and warfare * Combatant, an individual legally entitled to engage in hostilities during an international armed conflict * Fighter aircraft, a warplane designed to destroy or damage enemy warplan ...
,
bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...
s, and Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C). During World War I, the squadron operated on the
Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
conducting fighter sweeps and ground-attack missions. It was disbanded in mid-1919, following the end of hostilities. The squadron was briefly re-raised in 1922 as part of the newly independent RAAF, but was disbanded after only a couple of months and not reformed until 1937. It saw action as a bomber unit in the
South West Pacific theatre of World War II The South West Pacific theatre, during World War II, was a major theatre of the war between the Allies and the Axis. It included the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies (except for Sumatra), Borneo, Australia and its mandate Territory of ...
and, equipped with
English Electric Canberra The English Electric Canberra is a British first-generation, jet-powered medium bomber. It was developed by English Electric during the mid- to late 1940s in response to a 1944 Air Ministry requirement for a successor to the wartime de Havil ...
jets, in the
Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War was a guerrilla war fought in British Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and the military forces o ...
and the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
. The squadron was again disbanded in 1982, following the retirement of the Canberra. It was re-formed in 2000 to operate the
Boeing 737 AEW&C The Boeing 737 AEW&C is a twin-engine airborne early warning and control aircraft based on the Boeing 737 Next Generation design. It is lighter than the 707-based Boeing E-3 Sentry, and has a fixed, active electronically scanned array radar ant ...
"Wedgetail". One of the six Boeing 737s was deployed to the Middle East in September 2014, as part of Australia's contribution to the military coalition against ISIS.


History


World War I

On 20 September 1916, No. 2 Squadron was established as a unit of the
Australian Flying Corps The Australian Flying Corps (AFC) was the branch of the Australian Army responsible for operating aircraft during World War I, and the forerunner of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The AFC was established in 1912, though it was not until ...
(AFC) at Kantara, Egypt, drawing personnel mainly from
Australian Light Horse Australian Light Horse were mounted troops with characteristics of both cavalry and mounted infantry, who served in the Second Boer War and World War I. During the inter-war years, a number of regiments were raised as part of Australia's part-ti ...
units of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF). Shortly after forming, under the command of Major
Oswald Watt Walter Oswald Watt, (11 February 1878 – 21 May 1921) was an Australian aviator and businessman. The son of a Scottish-Australian merchant and politician, he was born in England and moved to Sydney when he was one year old, returnin ...
, the unit was transferred to the United Kingdom to complete training, arriving at
Harlaxton Harlaxton is a village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies on the edge of the Vale of Belvoir and just off the A607, south-west from Grantham and north-east from Melton Mowbray. History Ae ...
on 30 January 1917. Between February and September 1917, the squadron undertook training with
Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...
units before being equipped with
Airco DH.5 The Airco DH.5 was a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft. It was designed and manufactured at British aviation company Airco. Development was led by aircraft designer Geoffrey de Havilland as a replacement for the obs ...
fighters. To differentiate the squadron from the British
No. 2 Squadron RFC Number 2 Squadron, also known as No. II (Army Co-operation) Squadron, is the most senior squadron of the Royal Air Force. It is currently equipped with the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray, since reforming there on 12 January ...
, it was known to the British military as "No. 68 Squadron RFC". This terminology was never accepted by the AIF who continued to use the AFC designation regardless, and by January 1918 the British designation was officially discontinued. In late September 1917, the squadron flew its aircraft across the
English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
, landing in St Omer without incident or loss – and after overnighting there it moved to
Baizieux Baizieux () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Situated northeast of Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Pari ...
. Assigned to the 13th Army Wing, RFC, it undertook its first combat operations on the
Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
a month later. Its first major action came during the Battle of Cambrai in November and December when it was heavily involved as a low-level ground attack unit, attacking German trenches, but suffering heavy casualties in doing so. On 22 November, the squadron shot down its first German aircraft in air-to-air combat during a chance encounter on a ground attack sortie. After this, several more German aircraft were shot down by the squadron's pilots before the squadron was withdrawn from operations in December to re-equip with
Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 is a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. It was developed at the Royal Aircraft Factory by a team consisting of Henry Folland, John Kenworthy and Major Frank Goodden. It was one of the fast ...
a fighters. In January 1918, the squadron moved to Savy, and the following month gained its first victories with the new aircraft type. During early 1918, the Germans launched a major offensive on the Western Front after the collapse of Russia allowed them to increase their forces in the west. Falling initially against the British southern flank, the offensive pushed the Allies back significantly, and the squadron was forced to withdraw to airfields further back from the front as German forces advanced steadily: on 2 April it moved from Savy to Bertangles, on 4 April to La Bellevue and then on 4 June to Fouquerolles, remaining there until 21 June when it moved to Liettres to support the French during the Marne offensive. During this time, the squadron was attached to the
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
's Nos 10, 22, 51 and (finally) 80 wings. Despite the moves, the squadron maintained a high operational tempo, becoming involved in heavy air-to-air combat during fighter sweeps, and also being used to attack advancing German ground forces (see image left). After the German offensive was finally halted, the Allies launched their own offensive in August around
Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...
after which the squadron was employed to attack German airfields, and as the Germans were forced back, attacking withdrawing German troops on the ground. Throughout October, in an effort to keep up with the advance, the squadron moved three times and by the time the armistice was signed in November it was based at Pont-a-Marq. Following the conclusion of hostilities, the squadron was withdrawn to the United Kingdom in March 1919 as the demobilisation process began. On 6 May its personnel embarked on the transport ''Kaisar-i-Hind'' for repatriation back to Australia, at which time the squadron was disbanded. During the war, No. 2 Squadron produced 18
flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
s, including Francis Ryan Smith,
Roy Cecil Phillipps Roy Cecil Phillipps, MC & Bar, DFC (1 March 1892 – 21 May 1941) was an Australian fighter ace of World War I. He achieved fifteen victories in aerial combat, four of them in a single action on 12 June 1918. A grazier ...
(the squadron's highest scorer),
Roby Lewis Manuel Roby Lewis Manuel, with Bar, (7 October 1895 – 18 October 1975) was an Australian flying ace of the First World War credited with 12 official aerial victories. He led the Anzac Day flyby in London in 1919. When World War II erupted, Manuel joi ...
, Henry Garnet Forrest, Adrian Cole,
Eric Douglas Cummings Captain Eric Douglas Cummings (13 April 1896 – 27 October 1979) was an Australian World War I flying ace credited with nine aerial victories while flying for the Australian Flying Corps. Postwar, he was an integral part of fund-raising camp ...
,
Richard Watson Howard Captain Richard Watson Howard (9 October 1896 – 22 March 1918) was a World War I flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact ...
, Frank Alberry, Ernest Edgar Davies, and
James Wellwood James Joseph Wellwood (15 October 1892 – 25 October 1984) was an Australian flying ace of the First World War credited with seven aerial victories. After the war, he went on to a long career as an agriculturalist. Early life James Joseph Wel ...
. The squadron's total score was 94 aircraft shot down, 73 out of control and 18 driven down. Its casualties amounted to 25 personnel killed and eight wounded.


World War II

In 1922, No. 2 Squadron was briefly re-formed as part of the newly independent
Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
at
Point Cook Point Cook is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Wyndham local government area. Point Cook recorded a population of 66,781 at the 2021 census. Point Cook ...
, Victoria, but it never progressed beyond a
cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...
unit and was disbanded a few months later. It was re-formed again on 3 May 1937 at Laverton. Following the outbreak of World War II, under the command of Squadron Leader
Alan Charlesworth Air Vice Marshal Alan Moorehouse Charlesworth, CBE, AFC (17 September 1903 – 21 September 1978) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Born in Tasmania, he graduated from the Royal Military College, ...
, the squadron began maritime patrol and convoy escort operations off the Australian eastern seaboard, operating
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 ...
s, before being re-equipped with
Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson is a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built by the American Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. It was initially put into service by the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and prim ...
s in May and June 1940. Wing Commander
Frank Headlam Air Vice Marshal Frank Headlam, (15 July 1914 – 23 December 1976) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Born and educated in Tasmania, he joined the RAAF as an air cadet in January 1934. He specialised i ...
took over command of the squadron in April 1941, and in early December 1941, shortly before Japan's entry into the war, the squadron moved to
Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin ( ; Larrakia: ) is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. With an estimated population of 147,255 as of 2019, the city contains the majority of the residents of the sparsely populated Northern Territory. It is the smalle ...
where it maintained its maritime role and deployed detachments to the islands to Australia's north, including
Ambon Ambon may refer to: Places * Ambon Island, an island in Indonesia ** Ambon, Maluku, a city on Ambon Island, the capital of Maluku province ** Governorate of Ambon, a colony of the Dutch East India Company from 1605 to 1796 * Ambon, Morbihan, a c ...
in the
Dutch 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 ...
. After the outbreak of the
Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...
, the squadron mounted reconnaissance and bombing missions against Japanese forces, focusing on Japanese shipping. Success came early with a Japanese vessel being heavily damaged on 8 December, although heavy losses also came early on. In early 1942, the squadron's detachments were withdrawn back to Australia as Japanese forces advanced south, attacking the squadron's forward bases. Wing Commander
Tich McFarlane Group Captain Archibald Bertram "Tich" McFarlane CBE DFC (4 June 1916 – 19 August 2001) was an Australian public servant and Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) officer. He commanded No. 2 Squadron RAAF during part of World War II. He later serv ...
took over command of the unit in April. The squadron continued operations after its return to Australia, maintaining an intense bombing campaign against Japanese shipping and installations on islands including
Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is East Timor–Indonesia border, divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western p ...
and Ambon from May to October during which 13 crews were killed. For its service, the squadron was awarded a US Presidential Unit Citation. Throughout 1942–1943, the squadron continued operations with its Hudsons against the Japanese in the East Indies and conducted aerial resupply for elements of
Sparrow Force Sparrow Force was a detachment based on the 2/40th Australian Infantry Battalion and other Dutch, British, US and Australian 8th Division units during World War II. The force was formed to defend the island of Timor from invasion by the Empire ...
that were fighting on Timor. Late in 1943, the squadron began training on the
Bristol Beaufort The Bristol Beaufort (manufacturer designation Type 152) is a British twin-engined torpedo bomber designed by the Bristol Aeroplane Company, and developed from experience gained designing and building the earlier Blenheim light bomber. At l ...
, completing its conversion in January 1944. The squadron operated the type only briefly, alongside a small number of remaining Hudsons before converting to the
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 ...
in May. After being withdrawn from operations briefly, it recommenced combat missions in late June, focusing on anti-shipping strikes, but also attacking Japanese airfields. Late in the war, No. 2 Squadron moved to
Balikpapan Balikpapan is a seaport city in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Located on the east coast of the island of Borneo, the city is the financial center of Kalimantan. Balikpapan is the city with the largest economy in Kalimantan with an estimated 2 ...
in
Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...
where it was used to drop supplies to Allied troops in Japanese prisoner-of-war camps before undertaking transportation duties following the end of hostilities. The squadron returned to Australia in mid-December 1945 and was disbanded in May 1946 at Laverton. Casualties during the war amounted to 176 killed.


Post-World War II

In the post-World War II period, the squadron was reformed briefly as a communications squadron based at
Mallala, South Australia Mallala is a locality in the Australian state of South Australia about north of the state capital of Adelaide. The name is thought to be derived from the Kaurna word ''madlala'' or ''madlola'', meaning "place of the ground frog". At the 2016 ce ...
, in June 1947 before a reorganisation early the following year saw it redesignated as No. 34 Squadron, while the previously existing No. 21 Squadron, equipped with
Avro Lincoln The Avro Type 694 Lincoln is a British four-engined heavy bomber, which first flew on 9 June 1944. Developed from the Avro Lancaster, the first Lincoln variants were initially known as the Lancaster IV and V; these were renamed Lincoln I and ...
s at
RAAF Base 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 ...
, became No. 2 Squadron. In 1953, the squadron was re-equipped with GAF Canberras, which it later operated from
RAAF Butterworth RMAF Butterworth ( ms, TUDM Butterworth) is an active Military airbase, Air Force Station of the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) situated from Butterworth, Penang, Butterworth in Penang, Malaysia. It is currently home to the ''Headquarters In ...
during the
Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War was a guerrilla war fought in British Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and the military forces o ...
, after deploying there in 1958 to relieve the Lincoln-equipped
No. 1 Squadron RAAF , colors= , colors_label= , march= , mascot= , battles=World War IWorld War II Malayan Emergency , anniversaries= , decorations= , battle_honours= Egypt 1915–1917 Palestine 1917–1918 Malaya 1948–1960 , commander1= Richard Williams (1917 ...
. During the emergency, the squadron undertook airstrikes against communist forces and after the conflict ended, it remained in Malaysia throughout the early 1960s during
Confrontation Confrontation is an element of conflict wherein parties confront one another, directly engaging one another in the course of a dispute between them. A confrontation can be at any scale, between any number of people, between entire nations or cult ...
, before despatching eight Canberras to South Vietnam in April 1967 as part of Australia's commitment to the Vietnam War. Based at
Phan Rang Air Base Phan Rang Air Base (also called Thành Sơn Air Base) is a Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) ''(Khong Quan Nhan Dan Viet Nam)'' military airfield in Vietnam. It is located north-northwest of Phan Rang – Tháp Chàm in Ninh Thuận Provi ...
in Ninh Thuan province, the unit became part of the United States Air Force 35th Tactical Fighter Wing (35 TFW) and between April 1967 and June 1971, the Canberras flew approximately 12,000 sorties. Although the squadron initially undertook high-level night-time attacks, the majority of its operations were low-level daylight attacks; and according to historian Steve Eather the squadron achieved a high success rate, accounting for 16 percent of 35 TFW's assessed bomb damage despite flying only five percent of its missions, while maintaining a 97–98 percent serviceability rate. It dropped 76,389 bombs and was credited with 786 enemy personnel confirmed killed and a further 3,390 estimated killed; with 8,637 structures, 15,568 bunkers, 1,267 sampans and 74 bridges destroyed. An aircraft from the squadron responded to a distress call on 24 April 1969 and, against operational orders, bombed a site in Cambodia (the
Fishhook A fish hook or fishhook, formerly also called angle (from Old English ''angol'' and Proto-Germanic ''*angulaz''), is a hook used to catch fish either by piercing and embedding onto the inside of the fish mouth (angling) or, more rarely, by impa ...
) where US special forces were pinned down. Two crew members were killed, two squadron members died of disease, and three from accidents during the war, and two Canberras were shot down in 1970 and 1971. One was brought down by a
surface-to-air missile A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-aircraft syst ...
from which the crewmen – one of whom was the squadron commander, Wing Commander Frank Downing – safely ejected and were rescued via helicopter, and another was lost during a bombing run near the
Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
border. The crew of the latter aircraft, Flying Officer Michael Herbert and Pilot Officer Robert Carver, were not recovered during the war and were posted as "missing in action"; however the wreckage of their Canberra was finally located in April 2009 and their remains returned to Australia. The squadron was awarded the
Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation The Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross also known as the Vietnamese Gallantry Cross or Vietnam Cross of Gallantry ( vi, Anh-Dũng Bội-Tinh) is a military decoration of the former Government of South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam). The medal ...
and a United States Air Force Outstanding Unit Commendation for its service in Vietnam. During the deployment, the squadron's aircraft used the callsign "Magpie" in recognition of the squadron's emblem. The squadron returned to Australia in 1971, having been deployed overseas for a total of 13 years. After Vietnam, No. 2 Squadron was based at Amberley, west of
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 ...
, Queensland. It briefly returned to bombing role in training, but in the later years of the Canberra bomber's RAAF operations, it was predominately used for target towing in support of the RAAF's fleet of
Dassault Mirage III The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach 2 in horizonta ...
fighters and survey photography to support the aerial mapping of Australia and other locations including
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
,
Irian Jaya 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 Torres ...
and the Cocos and
Christmas Island Christmas Island, officially the Territory of Christmas Island, is an Australian external territory comprising the island of the same name. It is located in the Indian Ocean, around south of Java and Sumatra and around north-west of the ...
s. Eventually, the squadron's Canberra bombers were retired from service and in late July 1982 the squadron was disbanded. The squadron was re-formed in January 2000 to operate Boeing 737 Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) aircraft procured as part of ''Project Wedgetail'', out of
RAAF Base Williamtown RAAF Base Williamtown is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base located north of the coastal city of Newcastle ( by road) in the local government area of Port Stephens, in New South Wales, Australia. The base serves as the h ...
and
RAAF Base Tindal RAAF Base Tindal is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base and civil aviation airfield located east southeast of the town of Katherine, Northern Territory in Australia. The base is currently home to No. 75 Squadron and a nu ...
. On 26 November 2009, the RAAF accepted the first two of six Boeing 737s, and by the end of 2010, the squadron had begun training. In 2011, after a period of conversion training for its crews, it took part in
Exercise Talisman Sabre Exercise Talisman Sabre (also formerly spelled Talisman Saber, the US English alternative title) is a biennial, multinational military exercise led by Australia and the United States. Talisman Sabre involves joint exercises performed by the Austr ...
with US and Australian forces. The squadron forms part of the Surveillance & Response Group's No. 42 Wing, which is responsible for the RAAF's AEW&C capability. On 14 September 2014, the Federal government committed to deploying one of the squadron's Boeing 737s to
Al Minhad Air Base Al Minhad Air Base ( ar, قاعدة المنهاد الجوية, , also just Minhad Air Base) is a military installation in the United Arab Emirates. The base is located approximately south of Dubai and is operated by the United Arab Emirates Air ...
in the United Arab Emirates, as part of a
coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...
to combat
Islamic State An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...
forces in Iraq. The aircraft began undertaking missions in Iraq on 1 October.


Equipment

, - , D.H.5 , UK , biplane , fighter , 1916 , 1917 , 80 , first Australian fighter , - , S.E.5a , UK , biplane , fighter , 1918 , 1919 , , , - ,
Anson Anson may refer to: People * Anson (name), a give name and surname ** Anson family, a British aristocratic family with the surname Place names ;United States * Anson, Indiana * Anson, Kansas * Anson, Maine ** Anson (CDP), Maine * Anson, Missouri * ...
, UK , prop , maritime patrol , 1937 , 1940 , , , - ,
Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Henry Hudson, English explorer * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...
, USA , prop , patrol bomber , 1940 , 1943 , , , - ,
Beaufort Beaufort may refer to: People and titles * Beaufort (surname) * House of Beaufort, English nobility * Duke of Beaufort (England), a title in the peerage of England * Duke of Beaufort (France), a title in the French nobility Places Polar regions ...
, UK , prop , torpedo bomber , 1943 , 1944 , , , - ,
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 ...
, USA , prop , bomber , 1944 , 1946 , , , - ,
Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln ...
, UK , prop , heavy bomber , 1947 , 1953 , , , - ,
Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
, AUS , jet , bomber , 1953 , 1982 , , , - , E-7A Wedgetail , USA , jet , AEW&C , 2009 , Active , ,


Notes


References

* * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * {{Military units and formations of the Royal Australian Air Force 2 2 2 2 1916 establishments in Australia Cold War history of Australia 068 Squadron Military units and formations established in 1916 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919 Military units and formations established in 1922 Military units and formations disestablished in 1922 Military units and formations established in 1937 Military units and formations disestablished in 1982 Military units and formations established in 2000