No. 1 Wing was an Australian Flying Corps (AFC) and Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) wing active during World War I and World War II. The wing was established on 1 September 1917 as the 1st Training Wing and commanded the AFC's pilot training squadrons in England until April 1919, when it was disbanded. It was reformed on 7 October 1942 as a fighter unit comprising two Australian and one British flying squadrons equipped with Supermarine Spitfire aircraft, and a mobile fighter sector headquarters. The wing provided air defence to Darwin and several other key Allied bases in northern Australia until the end of the war, and was again disbanded in October 1945.
During its first months at Darwin, No. 1 Wing intercepted several of the air raids conducted against Northern Australia by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force and Imperial Japanese Navy. Although the wing was hampered by mechanical problems with its Spitfires and suffered heavy losses in some engagements, it eventually downed more Japanese aircraft than it lost in combat. After the final Japanese air raid on northern Australia in November 1943, No. 1 Wing saw little combat, which led to its personnel suffering from low morale. The wing's two Australian flying squadrons were replaced with British units in July 1944, and subsequent proposals to move these squadrons to more active areas were not successful.
World War I
The 1st Training Wing was formed at Minchinhampton, England on 1 September 1917. It commanded No. 5, No. 6, No. 7 and No. 8 Squadrons of the AFC.Lax (2000), p. 29 The wing's role was to train replacement pilots for the four operational AFC squadrons in Palestine and France.Garrison (1999), p. 12 Each of the training squadrons provided replacements to a specific operational squadron; No. 5 trained pilots for No.1 Squadron, No. 6 supported No. 2 Squadron, No. 7 was aligned with No. 3 Squadron and No. 8 supported No. 4 Squadron.Eather (1995), pp. 14–16 By the time Lieutenant-Colonel Oswald Watt was appointed to command the wing in February 1918, its headquarters had moved to Tetbury. In keeping with their varied responsibilities, the 1st Training Wing's squadrons operated a wide variety of aircraft and most were split between several bases. From the spring of 1918 No. 5 and No. 6 Squadrons were stationed at Minchinhampton Airfield while No. 7 and No. 8 Squadrons were at Leighterton Airfield. Both facilities had been purpose-built for the AFC over the autumn and winter of 1917/1918.Goodland and Vaughan (1992), pp. 6–7 As of April 1918 the wing's units were manned by approximately 1000 personnel, making it the largest single body of Australian airmen anywhere in the world at that time. Watt proposed moving the 1st Training Wing to France, but this did not eventuate.
Following the war the 1st Training Wing continued to conduct pilot training courses in England. This activity was undertaken to strengthen the AFC and keep pilots and ground crew occupied until they were repatriated to Australia.Goodland and Vaughan (1992), pp. 74 and 107 Most of the wing's personnel were given leave in April 1919 and several of its pilots took part in a fly-past over London on Anzac Day.Goodland and Vaughan (1992), p. 113 The four training squadrons were disbanded on 6 May 1919, the day the wing left Minchinhampton to begin the journey back to Australia.Lax (2000), p. 40Goodland and Vaughan (1992), p. 115 The last entry in the 1st Training Wing's war diary had been made in April that year. Watt placed a strong emphasis on safety, but the 1st Training Wing's trainee pilots inevitably suffered flying accidents, resulting in at least 17 fatalities between 1917 and 1919. At least 15 other members of the wing died from disease or were killed in accidents on the ground.Goodland and Vaughan (1992), pp. 74 and 99
In 1919 the AFC was disbanded and succeeded by the Australian Air Corps, which was in turn replaced with an independent Australian Air Force on 31 March 1921 (the "Royal" prefix was added in August).Parnell and Lynch (1976), pp. 41–42Stephens (2006), pp. 26–31 The first proposal for the RAAF's force structure considered by the Australian Air Board included two fighter wings, designated No. 1 Wing and No. 2 Wing, each comprising two fighter squadrons. In July 1920 the Air Council, which oversaw the Air Board, approved the establishment of a base at Laverton, Victoria, to house No. 1 Wing and its component squadrons (No. 1 and No. 2 Squadrons) as well as No. 1 Aircraft Depot.Parnell and Lynch (1976), pp. 42–43 No. 1 and No. 2 Squadrons were formed in January 1922, but in July that year No. 2 Squadron was disbanded and No. 1 Squadron reduced to a cadre.RAAF Historical Section (1995) Volume 2, pp. 1–2 and 7–8 The RAAF's proposed force structure was subsequently amended in 1924 so as not to include any fighter squadrons or wing headquarters.Parnell and Lynch (1976), p. 44
World War II
Reestablishment
On 20 September 1939 the Australian War Cabinet approved the formation of a RAAF Expeditionary Force for overseas service which would have included a wing designated No. 1 Fighter Wing as well as two wings of bombers. Under the approved structure for the Expeditionary Force, No. 1 Fighter Wing was to command No.7 and No. 15 Squadrons. This plan proved short-lived as on 20 October the Government announced that the formation of the Expeditionary Force would not proceed, with the Empire Air Training Scheme instead being the RAAF's main contribution to overseas campaigns.Clark (2009), pp. 5–6
At the outbreak of the Pacific War in December 1941 the RAAF did not possess any modern fighters in or near Australia. Following the Bombing of Darwin on 19 February 1942, which caused heavy damage to the military installations at the town and ships in its harbour, the Australian Government began to urgently look for fighter aircraft. As the Australian aviation industry was not capable of producing fighter aircraft at the time, the government sought assistance from Britain and the United States. Britain was initially unable to allocate fighters to Australia due to its heavy commitments in the North African Campaign and elsewhere. The US Government responded by providing the RAAF with what became a steady flow of P-40 Kittyhawk aircraft.Wilson (1988), p. 29
Japanese air units attacked the Darwin area multiple times during 1942. The P-40 equipped United States Army Air Forces' (USAAF) 49th Fighter Group was deployed to Darwin following the 19 February raid, and its first squadron became operational there in mid-March. The group's three squadrons were ready for operations in late April, and subsequently intercepted all Japanese daylight raids on the area. The 49th Fighter Group began to withdraw from Darwin in August 1942 and was replaced by two Australian P-40 squadrons; No. 77 Squadron arrived in August and No. 76 Squadron in October. During its time at Darwin the 49th Fighter Group shot down 79 Japanese aircraft and lost 21 P-40s.Clayton (1986), pp. 42–43 As well as bombing targets near Darwin, Japanese air units also occasionally struck other small Australian towns, attacked shipping sailing off the north coast and flew reconnaissance sorties over Allied bases.Clayton (1986), pp. 35–37
In May 1942 the Australian Minister for External Affairs H.V. "Doc" Evatt travelled to the United States and Britain to seek additional aircraft for the RAAF. Evatt first visited the United States, where the government agreed to increase the number of aircraft it would provide to Australia. He then travelled to London and met with Prime Minister Winston Churchill. In this meeting, Evatt requested that Britain provide an aircraft carrier to serve with the Royal Australian Navy, and an allocation of Spitfire fighters for the RAAF. Evatt had not received advice from the RAAF on the Spitfire's suitability for Australian conditions, and appears to have assumed that it would perform as well in Australia as it had in Europe. While Britain could not spare an aircraft carrier, after several days of discussions Churchill agreed on 28 May to send three fully equipped Spitfire squadrons to Australia.Gillison (1962), pp. 563–564Weston (2013), p. 7 The squadrons selected were No. 452 Squadron RAAF, No. 457 Squadron RAAF and No. 54 Squadron RAF, all of which had seen combat over Europe against the Luftwaffe. Under the agreement each squadron would be initially equipped with 16 Spitfires and a further 15 aircraft would be sent to Australia each month as replacements.Gillison (1962), p. 650 Churchill's role in sending Spitfire units to Australia led to No. 1 Wing often being referred to as the "Churchill Wing".Thomas (2009), p. 6
Delays in shipping Spitfires to Australia disrupted No. 1 Wing's formation. In late June 1942 the British Government diverted all but six of the initial 48 aircraft to Egypt to reinforce the three RAF Spitfire squadrons there after the German victory in the Battle of Gazala; most of these aircraft were allocated to No. 92 Squadron RAF with the remainder forming a reserve to replace future losses.Price (1997), pp. 63 and 69 The Australian Government protested against this action, but reluctantly accepted it after Churchill refused to counteract the diversion.Day (1992), pp. 9–11 During the same period, the men of the three Spitfire squadrons sailed from Liverpool on board the MV Stirling Castle on 21 June and disembarked at Melbourne with the six remaining Spitfires on 13 August.RAAF Historical Section (1995), p. 121Alexander (2006), pp. 102–104Price (1997), p. 69 A shipment of 43 Spitfires left England on 4 August and arrived in Australia in late October, and further deliveries continued to be made until June 1945.
The deployment of Spitfires to Australia was kept secret so that the Japanese were not alerted to their presence, and the Australian Government directed that the aircraft be referred to as Capstans (after the brand of cigarettes) and their Merlin engines as Marvels.Alexander (2006), pp. 102–103 General Douglas MacArthur, the commander of Allied forces in the South West Pacific Area, agreed that the Australian Government could choose when to announce the presence of the Spitfires, but warned against exaggerating the impact they were likely to have.Powell (1988), p. 183
No. 1 Wing was formed at RAAF Station Richmond on 7 October 1942.Alexander (2006), p. 102 Its initial commander was Group Captain Allan Walters and the wing leader was Wing Commander Clive Caldwell, Australia's top-scoring flying ace of the war. At this time the RAAF had received 71 tropicalised variants of the Spitfire Vc and another 33 were en route to Australia.Gillison (1962), p. 651 These aircraft differed from the standard Spitfire Vc in that they were optimised for use in desert and tropical areas and had been fitted with a Vokes air filter beneath their nose to reduce the amount of sand and dust which entered the engine; Caldwell believed that this modification reduced the Spitfires' performance.Alexander (2006), pp. 103–104 As well as the three Spitfire squadrons, No. 1 Wing also included No. 10 Mobile Fighter Sector Headquarters.Gillison (1962), p. 651Helson (1997), p. 167 Many of the squadrons' most experienced pilots were posted to other units before they departed Britain, and only 37 of the 95 pilots in the wing as at May 1943 had previously seen combat.Alexander (2006), p. 126