Page 38 - Australian Defence Magazine November 2021

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Gradual expansion followed in the 1920s with the establishment of new bases and the introduction of new aircraft. But with the 1930s came the Great Depression and severe cost cutting, and in the early part of the decade the very future of the RAAF was in doubt.
Sense eventually prevailed and some ex-
pansion occurred mid-decade. By the time
the war against Germany began in Septem-
ber 1939 the RAAF had 310 officers and
3,179 other ranks in 12 squadrons based at
six airfields. Aircraft strength was 246 of which just 164 were operational types. Despite the modest expansion program of the mid and late 1930s, the RAAF’s frontline aircraft were at best obsolescent with modern combat types lacking.
That situation was helped to some extent with orders for Lockheed Hudson medium bombers and Short Sunderland flying boats, while local manufacture of the Wirraway gen- eral purpose trainer and Tiger Moth basic trainer was in hand. Lacking was any sort of modern fighter.
In 1939 the chances of Australia itself being attacked seemed remote, but when Japan entered the war in late 1941 and directly threatened, defensive capability was found lacking. At the time of Japan’s attack on Pearl Har- bour on 7 December 1941 the RAAF had 177 aircraft on first line strength (plus four squadrons in Malaya under RAF control) with another 306 in reserve.
Only two squadrons were equipped with anything even
faintly resembling a modern fighter - the unsuccessful Brewster Buffalo - and they were in Malaya about to be all but wiped out by the advancing Japanese.
Of the front-line aircraft available to the 17 RAAF home squadrons (three of which were in New Guinea) 101 were Wirraways, 53 were Hudsons, 12 were Catalina flying boats and 11 were Seagull amphibians. The reserve force comprised Fairey Battle single-engined light bombers, Avro An- sons and more Wirraways.
COMING OF AGE
The RAAF underwent massive expansion in World War II. By its end the RAAF was the fourth largest air force in the world, after the US, Britain and the Soviet Union with no fewer than 75 operational squadrons, 17 of which fought their war entirely in the northern hemisphere against Ger- many and Italy.
Of these, 15 were established as Australian squadrons under RAF control using increasing proportions of Aus- tralians who had trained under the Empire Air Training Scheme, a massive Commonwealth undertaking designed to provide 50,000 trained aircrew annually.
Australia’s contribution was the training of 27,387 air- crew as well as providing elementary training for an ad- ditional 10,351 pilots, navigators and wireless-air gunners. To meet this need, large numbers of Tiger Moths and Wir-
ABOVE LEFT: The RAAF’s predecessor, the Australian Flying Corps (AFC) was controlled by the Army and the only Commonwealth air arm to see active service in WWI. Here, No 1 Squadron AFC personnel parade in Palestine in early 1918 with commanding officer Major Richard Williams.
ABOVE: The Hawker Demon fi hter-bomber and army co- operation aircraft was the RAAF’s only ‘combat’ aircraft in the mid-late 1930s with 64 operated from 1935.
LEFT: The privately-owned Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC) was established in 1936 by a group of Australian industrialists who were concerned about the growing threat of war and the nation’s lack of preparedness for it.
“DESPITE THE MODEST EXPANSION PROGRAM OF THE MID AND LATE 1930S, THE RAAF'S FRONTLINE AIRCRAFT WERE AT BEST OBSOLESCENT WITH MODERN COMBAT TYPES LACKING”
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