No. 7 Squadron was an Australian flying training squadron of World War I and medium bomber squadron of World War II. The squadron was formed in England in October 1917 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 ...

, and disbanded in early 1919. It was re-formed by the

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

on paper in June 1940, and operationally in January 1942. After seeing action during the Pacific War flying

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 p ...

and, later,

DAP Beaufort DAP or Dap may refer to: Science * DAP (gene), human gene that encodes death-associated proteins, which mediate programmed cell death * Diamidophosphate, phosphorylating compound * Diaminopimelic acid, amino acid derivative of lysine * Diami ...

bombers, the squadron was disbanded a second time in December 1945.

History

No. 7 Squadron was established during World War I, being raised as a flying training squadron of the

(AFC) at

Yatesbury Yatesbury is a village in Wiltshire, England. It is next to Cherhill, north of the A4 road between Calne and Marlborough. Yatesbury was an ancient parish and in the 19th century became a civil parish, which was absorbed by Cherhill parish in ...

, England, on 24 October 1917. Equipped with a wide range of aircraft, the squadron commenced training operations in February 1918 and was tasked to provide replacement aircrew to No. 3 Squadron until being disbanded in early 1919. Upon formation it was designated as No. 32 (Australian) (Training) Squadron, Royal Flying Corps, before adopting its AFC designation in early 1918. Its first commanding officer was Captain H.D.E. Ralfe.. During World War II, No. 7 Squadron was re-formed at RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, on 27 June 1940.. It was originally intended to equip the squadron with

aircraft, but the unit was reduced to cadre status. The squadron was re-formed in January 1942 as a Hudson operational training unit responsible for preparing aircrew for posting to other squadrons. Commanded by

John Balmer John Raeburn Balmer, (3 July 1910 – 11 May 1944) was a senior officer and bomber pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = ...

,. the squadron undertook several convoy escort flights and anti-submarine patrols along the Australian eastern seaboard. In early June, one of the squadron's aircraft located and attacked a Japanese submarine, possibly damaging it. Shortly afterwards, the majority of the squadron was absorbed into No. 1 Operational Training Unit. In August 1942, what remained of the squadron moved to

Nowra Nowra is a city in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located south-southwest of the state capital of Sydney (about as the crow flies). As of the 2021 census, Nowra has an estimated population of 22,584. Situated in t ...

, New South Wales, where it was re-equipped with

medium bombers and began training to operate in the bomber-reconnaissance role. The squadron completed its training in October and moved to Ross River near

Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...

, Queensland, where it undertook convoy escort patrols over Australia's northern waters. During these operations, the squadron's aircraft damaged another Japanese submarine, shot down two Japanese

Aichi E13A The Aichi E13A ( Allied reporting name: "Jake") was a long-range reconnaissance seaplane used by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1941 to 1945. Numerically the most important floatplane of the IJN, it could carry a crew of three and a bombl ...

"Jake" seaplanes and damaged several others.. The squadron was based at Horn Island, Queensland, from April to October 1944, when it moved to Tadji, Papua New Guinea. From November 1944 until the end of the war, the squadron flew strike missions against Japanese positions in New Guinea in support of the

Australian 6th Division The 6th Division was an infantry division of the Australian Army. It was raised briefly in 1917 during World War I, but was broken up to provide reinforcements before seeing action. It was not re-raised until the outbreak of World War II, when ...

. The squadron also participated in rescue operations for aircrew that came down behind Japanese lines. No. 7 Squadron was disbanded at Tadji on 19 December 1945. During the war, 33 personnel from the squadron were killed in action or died on active service.

Aircraft operated

The squadron operated the following aircraft: *

Airco DH.6 The Airco DH.6 was a British military trainer biplane used by the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. Known by various nicknames, including the "Clutching hand" and "Skyhook", many survived to be used as a civil light aircraft in the p ...

(October 1917 – 1918); * Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 (October 1917 – 1918); * Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 (October 1917 – 1919); *

Avro 504 The Avro 504 was a First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind tha ...

(February 1918 – 1919); * Bristol Fighter (February 1918 – 1919); *

(January 1940 – August 1942); *

(August 1942 – December 1945).

Notes

References

* *

History

Aircraft operated

Notes

References

Further reading