| No. 16 Air Observation Post Flight | |
|---|---|
.jpg) No. 16 AOP Flight groundcrew working on an aircraft prior to an artillery spotting flight in July 1945 | |
| Active | 1944–1947, 1958–1960 |
| Country | Australia |
| Branch | Royal Australian Air Force |
| Type | Army liaison |
| Engagements | World War II |
| Insignia | |
| Squadron code | NF[1] |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Reconnaissance | Auster (1944–1947, 1958–1959) Cessna 180 (1959–1960) |
No. 16 Air Observation Post Flight (No. 16 AOP Flight) was aRoyal Australian Air Force (RAAF) unit that saw action inWorld War II supportingAustralian Army operations. It was formed in October 1944 and disbanded in June 1947. The flight was reestablished in September 1958, and was disbanded again in December 1960, when its responsibilities were transferred to a joint Army-RAAF unit.
No. 16 Air Observation Post Flight was formed atLae in New Guinea on 20 October 1944. At the time it was established it had a strength of four pilots and was equipped withTaylorcraft Auster light aircraft.[2] These aircraft were among the 56 Austers that the RAAF eventually ordered. The first batch was ordered in 1944 to equip Nos. 16 and17 AOP Flights.[3] No. 16 AOP Flight was initially assigned to the headquarters of theFirst Army, and conducted a mix of training and operational flights from Lae during late 1944 and early 1945. The operational missions included flying supplies and personnel to Army units fighting the Japanese, evacuating wounded soldiers and conducting reconnaissance tasks.[2] The flight established at detachment atTadji on 30 January 1945 to support the Army's17th Brigade during theAitape–Wewak campaign.[2]
On 28 March 1945, No. 16 Flight departed forMorotai in theNetherlands East Indies with its parent unit,No. 83 (Army Cooperation) Wing, in preparation for theBorneo campaign; it arrived at Morotai on 4 April.[4][5] A detachment of the flight took part in thelanding at Tarakan on 1 May. The next day an Auster crashed while taking off from a newly constructed small airstrip within the Allied beachhead, resulting in the death of the aircraft's observer, an Army Air Liaison Officer, Lieutenant Stanley Ket.[4][6] Another No. 16 AOP Flight detachment landed onLabuan island on 10 June, and subsequently supported the9th Division throughout theBattle of North Borneo. During late June aircraft from this detachment rescued eleven downed American airmen from a valley central Borneo.[4] On 1 July the detachment at Tarakan ceased operations, and embarked to take part in thelanding at Balikpapan. From 3 July until the end of the war this detachment supported the7th Division.[7]
Following the Japanesesurrender ceremony in Tokyo Bay, No. 16 AOP Flight flew air cover overHMAS Burdekin while the official surrender ofDutch Borneo was signed on board the ship on 10 September. Other Austers from the flight escorted a Japanese aircraft to Labuan.[7] No. 16 AOP Flight was ordered to cease flying operations on 6 November 1945, and it returned to Australia by sea later that month. A nucleus from the flight arrived atRAAF Station Canberra on 3 December, and flying operations resumed there on 3 January 1946. No. 16 AOP Flight was disbanded on 23 June 1947.[7]
The flight was re-formed at Canberra on 25 September 1958 with the role of providing training to Army officers.[7] It was equipped with World War II-vintage Austers until newCessna 180 light aircraft were delivered in July 1959.[8][9] In addition to its training role, No. 16 AOP Flight was occasionally used to support theAustralian Capital Territory Police Force and conduct aerial photography for theCommonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.[7] In August 1960 it was announced that the flight would be expanded to squadron strength and also begin to operateBell 47G Sioux helicopters.[10] On 1 December 1960No. 16 Army Light Aircraft Squadron was formed as a joint Army and RAAF unit atRAAF Base Amberley in Queensland, and No. 16 AOP Flight was disbanded at Canberra on the 20th of the month.[7] This squadron was expanded to become the Army's1st Aviation Regiment in April 1966.[11]
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