No. 80 Squadron was a

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

(RAAF) fighter squadron that operated during World War II. The squadron was formed in September 1943 and was disbanded in July 1946 after seeing action in the

South West Pacific Theatre 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 ...

of the war.

History

No. 80 Squadron was formed at

Townsville, Queensland 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, 30 ...

, on 10 September 1943 and was equipped with

P-40 Kittyhawk The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and ...

fighter aircraft, under the command of the then temporary

Squadron Leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is als ...

Glen Cooper. It moved to Aitkenvale on 9 October and commenced flight training.RAAF Historical Section (1995), p. 76 On 13 November it became part of RAAF's main mobile unit, No. 10 Operational Group, upon its formation. This group's main role was to support the rapid advance of Allied units along the north coast of

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 ...

. Once its training was completed the squadron moved again to

Nadzab Nadzab Village is in the Markham Valley, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea on the Highlands Highway. Administratively, it is located in Gabsongkeg ward of Wampar Rural LLG. The Nadzab Airport is located East of Nadzab Village and was the site ...

on 24 February 1944. P00119

The squadron flew its first combat sorties two days after arriving in New Guinea. Its initial operations included patrols around Nadzab, escorting Allied bombers and ground attack missions against Japanese forces in and around

Alexishafen Madang (old German name: ''Friedrich-Wilhelmshafen'') is the capital of Madang Province and is a town with a population of 27,420 (in 2005) on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. It was first settled by the Germans in the 19th century. Histor ...

and

Madang Madang (old German name: ''Friedrich-Wilhelmshafen'') is the capital of Madang Province and is a town with a population of 27,420 (in 2005) on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. It was first settled by the Germans in the 19th century. Histo ...

. The squadron moved to Cape Gloucester, New Britain on 21 March to escort convoys and conduct armed reconnaissance patrols. It moved again on 29 April to Tadji on the New Guinea mainland where it flew patrols to protect the Allied landing at Hollandia. The squadron moved to Hollandia after it was secured, arriving there on 15 May. No. 80 Squadron continued to support Allied amphibious operations between May and July 1944. In May it covered the invasions

Wakde Wakde is an island group in Sarmi Regency, Papua, Indonesia, between the districts of Pantai Timur and Tor Atas. It comprises two islands, Insumuar (the larger) and Insumanai (much smaller). History Occupied by Japanese forces in April 1942, th ...

and

Biak Biak is an island located in Cenderawasih Bay near the northern coast of 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 corals. The large ...

from its base at Hollandia. This included attacking targets near the beachhead at Wakde while US troops landed.Eather (1995), p. 94 The squadron moved twice in July, arriving at Biak on 1 July and Noemfoor on 22 July. From its base at Noemfoor, No. 80 Squadron conducted ground attack operations over western New Guinea and the eastern islands of the Netherlands East Indies. These operations included attacks on Japanese watercraft and sawmills around Kokas Island and sweeps over the

Maluku Islands The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located ...

in October.RAAF Historical Section (1995), p. 77 No. 10 Group, of which No. 80 Squadron was still part, was redesignated the First Tactical Air Force on 25 October 1944. On 15 January 1945, four of No. 80 Squadron's pilots were ferrying Kittyhawks from Noemfoor to Morotai when they missed their destination and had to land on the Japanese-held

Talaud Islands The Talaud Islands ( Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Talaud'') also spelled Talaur or Talaut, are a group of islands situated about 225 miles (360 km) northeast of Sulawesi, in Indonesia, north-east of the Sangihe Islands. The Talaud Islands are als ...

, where they were captured and executed. The unit completed its move to Morotai on 21 January, where it continued to operate over the Maluku Islands. The shortage of worthwhile targets in this area caused morale to decline in No. 80 Squadron and other RAAF units in the area from the end of 1944. No. 80 Squadron was taken off operational status on 11 April 1945 to prepare for the

Borneo Campaign The Borneo campaign or Second Battle of Borneo was the last major Allied campaign in the South West Pacific Area during World War II to liberate Japanese-held British Borneo and Dutch Borneo. Designated collectively as Operation Oboe, ...

. Later that month its commander, Squadron Leader John Waddy, participated in the so-called "

Morotai Mutiny The "Morotai Mutiny" was an incident in April 1945 involving members of the Australian First Tactical Air Force based on the island of Morotai, in the Dutch East Indies. Eight senior pilots, including Australia's leading flying ace, Group Capt ...

" as a protest against what he and seven other senior pilots saw as the misuse of the First Tactical Air Force in unimportant operations. While No. 80 Squadron's ground crew landed at

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 ...

in early May, delays with repairing the island's airfield meant that the squadron's aircraft were unable to move forward until 22 July. The limited flying opportunities for the squadron's pilots in this period further reduced their morale. Once established at Tarakan, No. 80 Squadron flew close air support operations during the Battle of Balikpapan, but found few worthwhile targets. Following the Japanese surrender No. 80 Squadron flew reconnaissance patrols over Japanese-occupied areas. The amount of flying was limited from September, however. In late 1945 the squadron's personnel embarked aboard the British aircraft carrier which carried them to Sydney via

Manus Island Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth-largest island in Papua New Guinea, with an area of , measuring around . Manus Island is covered in rugged jungles w ...

. ''Glory'' arrived at Sydney on 12 December 1945 and the members of the squadron from

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

proceeded to

Deniliquin 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 Riverina ...

and the remainder were sent on leave. No. 80 Squadron's strength was rapidly decreased, and it comprised only six men by 31 December. The last personnel left the unit on 9 May 1946 and it was disbanded on 11 July that year. In February 2021 the RAAF's ''Air Force'' newspaper reported that No. 80 Squadron was to "soon" be re-raised by re-designating a unit within the Cyber and Electronic Warfare Directorate.

Notes

References

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External links

* {{List of RAAF Squadrons 80 80 80 80

History

Notes

References

Further reading

External links