| No. 8 Squadron RAAF | |
|---|---|
.jpg) A No. 8 Squadron Beaufort during an attack on Wewak in 1944 | |
| Active | 1917–1919 1940–1942 1943–1946 |
| Country | Australia |
| Branch | Australian Flying Corps Royal Australian Air Force |
| Engagements | World War I World War II |
No. 8 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 theAustralian Flying Corps, and disbanded in April 1919. It was re-formed by theRoyal Australian Air Force in September 1939. After seeing action during thePacific War flyingLockheed Hudson and, later,DAF Beaufort bombers, the squadron was disbanded a second time in January 1946.
No. 8 Squadron was formed during World War I, being raised as a flying training squadron of theAustralian Flying Corps atYatesbury, England, on 25 October 1917. The squadron received its first aircraft in January 1918 and trained replacement pilots forNo. 4 Squadron until being disbanded following the conclusion of the war on 30 April 1919.[1][2] The squadron's first commanding officer was Major G.A.C. Cowper; it was initially designated as No. 33 (Australian) (Training) Squadron,Royal Flying Corps.[1]
During World War II, No. 8 Squadron was re-formed as a bomber-reconnaissance unit at RAAF Station Canberra, which was later retitled asRAAF Station Fairbairn, Canberra, on 11 September 1939.[3] Due to a shortage of other aircraft the squadron was initially equipped with ex-civilianDC-3 transport aircraft, which were used to conduct patrols off the Australian coast and for transport tasks. The squadron was re-equipped withLockheed Hudson medium bombers in May 1940 and deployed to Singapore in August.[3] It first saw action within hours of the outbreak of war in the Pacific in December 1941 when its 12 aircraft attacked Japanese shipping offMalaya.[2] The squadron suffered heavy losses from anti-aircraft fire and Japanese fighters in the first days of theMalayan Campaign, during which time it undertook bombing and reconnaissance missions. As there were no aircraft to replace its losses, the squadron was amalgamated withNo. 1 Squadron later in December.[3]
The amalgamated squadron continued operations throughout the month, before No. 8 Squadron handed its remaining Hudsons to No. 1 Squadron in January 1942 and was evacuated toPalembang inSumatra, where it received replacement Hudsons. The replacements were six aircraft fromNo. 59 Squadron RAF, as well as their crews, who had been reassigned and sent from the UK between December 1941 and January 1942. With the new force, they undertook further reconnaissance and bombing missions, during which the squadron continued to suffer heavy losses until No. 8 Squadron was disbanded atBatavia on 16 February and its personnel returned to Australia.[3]
No. 8 Squadron was reformed at RAAF Station Canberra on 12 March 1943 equipped withDAP Beaufort as a medium and torpedo bomber squadron. The squadron practiced cross-country navigation, bombing and air-to-air gunnery around Canberra, as well as torpedo training atJervis Bay, before moving toBohle River in northern Queensland in July 1943. The squadron then moved toGoodenough Island, Papua New Guinea, in September and began flying combat missions against Japanese airfields and supply dumps and shipping in theNew Britain area.[3] In December, one of the squadron's aircraft sank a 6,834 tonne Japanese ship with torpedoes in Simpson Harbour.[4] Following the isolation ofRabaul, the squadron moved to theNew Guinea mainland in April 1944 and flew strikes against Japanese positions nearWewak and anti-shipping patrols until the end of the war from bases aroundNadzab andTadji. No. 8 Squadron was disbanded at Tadji in New Guinea on 19 January 1946.[4][2]
During the war, 79 personnel from the squadron were killed in action or died on active service. Members from the squadron received the following decorations: oneOrder of the British Empire, 13Distinguished Flying Crosses and onebar, twoDistinguished Flying Medals, twoBritish Empire Medals, and sevenMentions in Despatches.[5]
After the RAAF ordered elevenBell AH-1G Cobra attack helicopters in December 1970, plans were developed to re-form No. 8 Squadron and station it atRAAF Base Townsville. The squadron would have either operated all of the helicopters, or shared them withNo. 9 Squadron. The order for Cobras was cancelled in October 1971 before any were delivered, however, and No. 8 Squadron was not reestablished.[6]
The squadron operated the following aircraft:[1][4]
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