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No. 80 Wing - First Tactical Air ForcePrint Page Print this page

12-January-2016
12-January-2016

Photographs supplied by Glen Yeomans

The plaque commemorates those who served No. 80 Wing First Tactical Air Force Royal Australian Air Force (R.A.A.F.) between 1944 and 1945.

The plaque location is indicated by the red poppy in the second image. 

No. 80 Wing was formed on 15 May 1944 and eventually comprised three Squadrons equipped with Spitfire fighter aircraft. The wing's headquarters was absorbed into the newly formed No. 11 Group on 30 July 1945.

The wing was established to provide fighter protection for an Allied offensive from Darwin in northern Australia into the eastern Netherlands East Indies (NEI). This operation was effectively cancelled in June 1944, however, leaving No. 80 Wing without a clear mission.

The unit remained at Darwin until it moved to Morotai in the NEI between December 1944 and March 1945. 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, where they were captured and executed.

From May 1945 to the end of the war two of No. 80 Wing's squadrons participated in the Borneo Campaign.

 

 

 

 

Location

Address:Fairbairn & Limestone Avenues, Eastern Precinct, Australian War Memorial, Campbell, 2612
State:ACT
Area:AUS
GPS Coordinates:Lat: -35.281059
Long: 149.148949
Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.
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Details

Monument Type:Plaque
Monument Theme:Conflict
Sub-Theme:WW2
Actual Event Start Date:25 -October-1944
Actual Event End Date:11-April-1945
Link:http://www.dva.gov.au/consultation-…

Dedication

Actual Monument Dedication Date:Friday 29th November, 2013
Front Inscription

No.80 Wing
First Tactical Air Force, RAAF

1944 - 1945

Darwin, Momote, Morotai, Tarakan, Labuan, Sepinnggang

In memory of all who served in the Squadrons and supporting units, and those who perished

Lest We Forget

 

Source: DVA, MA
Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au