Australian Flying Corps

On 30 December 1911, the Commonwealth Gazette announced that the Australian military would seek the "...appointment of two competent Mechanists [sic] and Aviators", adding that the government would "accept no liability for accidents".[1] On 3 July 1912, the first "flying machines" were ordered: two Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 two seat tractor biplanes and two British-built Deperdussin single seat tractor monoplanes. Soon afterward, two pilots were appointed: Henry Petre (6 August) and Eric Harrison (11 August).[1]

On 22 September 1912, the Minister of Defence, Senator George Pearce, officially approved formation of an Australian military air arm.[2] Petre rejected a suggestion by Captain Oswald Watt that a Central Flying School be established in Canberra, near the Royal Military College, Duntroon, because it was too high above sea level.[1] Petre instead recommended several sites in Victoria and one of these was chosen, at Point Cook, Victoria, on 22 October 1912.[1][3] Two days later, on 24 October 1912, the government authorised the raising of a single squadron.[4] Upon establishment the squadron would be equipped with four aircraft and manned by "...four officers, seven warrant officers and sergeants, and 32 mechanics" who would be drawn from volunteers already serving in the Citizen Forces.[4]

On 7 March 1913, the government officially announced formation of the Central Flying School (CFS) and the "Australian Aviation Corps".[2][1] According to the Australian War Memorial, the name "Australian Flying Corps does not appear to have been promulgated officially but seems to have been derived from the term Australian Aviation Corps. The first mention of an Australian Flying Corps appears in Military Orders of 1914."[2] Flying training did not begin immediately, though, and it was not until 1914, that the first class of pilots were accepted.[5] No. 1 Flight of the Australian Flying Corps was raised in the 3rd Military District on 14 July 1914.[6]

In March 1914, a staff officer, Major Edgar Reynolds, was officially appointed General Staff Officer in charge of a branch covering "intelligence, censorship, and aviation" within the Army's Department of Military Operations.[7][8] Following the outbreak of World War I and the expansion of the Army, aviation later became a separate branch commanded by Reynolds. However, during the war, AFC operational units were attached and subordinate to Australian ground forces and/or British ground and air commands. Reynolds' role was mostly administrative rather than one that involved operational command.[9][Note 1]

Serny, France, November 1918. A score board recording the claims for enemy aircraft destroyed by No. 80 Wing RAF from July–November 1918, including Nos. 2 and 4 Squadron AFC.

The corps remained small throughout the war, and opportunities to serve in its ranks were limited. A total of 880 officers and 2,840 other ranks served in the AFC,[Note 2] of whom only 410 served as pilots and 153 served as observers.[31] A further 200 men served as aircrew in the British flying services – the RFC or the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) – including men such as Charles Kingsford Smith and Bert Hinkler, both of whom would have a significant impact upon aviation in Australia after the war.[32][30] Casualties included 175 dead, 111 wounded, 6 gassed and 40 captured.[33] The majority of these casualties were suffered on the Western Front where 78 Australians were killed, 68 were wounded and 33 became prisoners of war.[21] This represented a casualty rate of 44 percent, which was only marginally lower than most Australian infantry battalions that fought in the trenches, who averaged a casualty rate of around 50 percent.[34] Molkentin attributes the high loss rate in part to the policy of not issuing pilots with parachutes, as well as the fact that the bulk of patrols were conducted over enemy lines, both of which were in keeping with British policy.[35]

Pilots from the AFC's four operational squadrons claimed to have destroyed or driven down 527 enemy aircraft,[34] and the corps produced 57 flying aces.[36] The highest-scoring AFC pilot was Harry Cobby, who was credited with 29 aerial victories. Other leading aces included Roy King (26), Edgar McCloughry (21), Francis Smith (16), and Roy Phillipps (15).[37] Robert Little and Roderic (Stan) Dallas, the highest-scoring Australian aces of the war, credited with 47 and 39 victories respectively, became aces while serving with the RNAS.[32] Other Australian aces who served in British units included Jerry Pentland (23), Richard Minifie (21), Edgar Johnston (20), Andrew Cowper (19), Cedric Howell (19), Fred Holliday (17), and Allan Hepburn (16).[37] A number of officers obtained appointment in senior command roles, with two commanding wings and nine commanding squadrons. One member of the AFC was awarded the Victoria Cross and another 40 received the Distinguished Flying Cross, including two who received the awarded three times.[36]

The Australian Flying Corps operated a range of aircraft types. These types were mainly of British origin, although a number of French aircraft were also obtained. Over this period aircraft technology progressed rapidly and designs included relatively fragile and rudimentary types to more advanced single-engined biplanes, as well as one twin-engined bomber.[38] The roles performed by these aircraft evolved during the war and included reconnaissance, observation for artillery, aerial bombing and ground attack, patrolling, and the resupply of ground troops on the battlefield by airdrop.[36]

The AFC conducted both pilot and mechanic training in Australia at the Central Flying School, which was established at Point Cook, but this was limited in duration due to embarkation schedules,[40] which meant that further training was required overseas before aircrew were posted to operational squadrons.[41] The first course began on 17 August 1914 and lasted three months; two instructors, Henry Petre and Eric Harrison, who had been recruited from the United Kingdom in 1912 to establish the corps,[42] trained the first batch of Australian aircrew.[43] In the end, a total of eight flying training courses were completed at the Central Flying School during the war, with the final course commencing in June 1917. The first six courses consisted only of officers, but the last two, both conducted in early and mid-1917 included a number of non-commissioned officers. These courses varied in size from four on the first course, to eight on the next three, 16 on the fifth, 24 on the sixth, 31 on the seventh and 17 on the last one. There was limited wastage on the early courses, with all trainees successfully completing the first six courses, but final two courses run in 1917 suffered heavily from limited resources and bad weather, which resulted in less than half the students graduating.[40] To complement the aviators trained by the CFS, the New South Wales government established its own aviation school at Clarendon, at what later became RAAF Base Richmond, which trained pilots, observers and mechanics. A total of 50 pilots graduated from the school,[41] the majority of its graduates went on to serve in the British flying services, although some served in the AFC.[44]

In early 1917, the AFC began training pilots, observers and mechanics in the United Kingdom.[45] Aircrew were selected from volunteers from other arms such as the infantry, light horse, engineers or artillery, many of whom had previously served at the front,[46] who reverted to the rank of cadet and undertook a six-week foundation course at the two Schools of Military Aeronautics in Reading or Oxford. After this, those who passed graduated to flight training at one of the four AFC training squadrons: Nos. 5, 6, 7 and 8, which were based at Minchinhampton and Leighterton in Gloucestershire.[28][45]

Flight training in the UK consisted of a total of three hours dual instruction followed by up to a further 20 hours solo flying – although some pilots, including the AFC's highest-scoring ace, Harry Cobby, received less[44] – after which a pilot had to prove his ability to undertake aerial bombing, photography, formation flying, signalling, dog-fighting and artillery observation.[47] Elementary training was undertaken on types such as Shorthorns, Avro 504s and Pups, followed by operational training on Scouts, Camels and RE8s.[28] Upon completion, pilots received their commission and their "wings", and were allocated to the different squadrons based on their aptitude during training: the best were usually sent to scout squadrons, while the others were sent to two-seaters.[45][48]

Initially, the AFC raised its ground staff from volunteer soldiers and civilians who had previous experience or who were trade trained, and when the first AFC squadron was formed these personnel were provided with very limited training that was focused mainly upon basic military skills.[44] As the war progressed, a comprehensive training program was established in which mechanics were trained in nine different trades: welders, blacksmiths, coppersmiths, engine fitters, general fitters, riggers, electricians, magneto-repairers, and machinists. Training was delivered by eight technical sections at Halton Camp.[49] The length of training within each section varied, but was generally between eight to 12 weeks; the more complex trades such as engine fitter required trainees to undertake multiple training courses across a number of sections. General fitters had the longest training requirements, receiving 32 weeks of instruction.[50]

Following the armistice that came into effect on 11 November 1918, the AIF returned to Australia in stages, some elements performing reconstruction and military occupation duties in Europe. No. 4 Squadron AFC took part in the occupation of Germany, the only Australian unit to do so; it operated as part of the British Army of Occupation around Cologne between December 1918 and March 1919 before transferring its aircraft to the British and returning to Australia along with the other three squadrons.[17] Reynolds was succeeded by Colonel Richard Williams in 1919.[51]

Most units of the AFC were disbanded during 1919. The AFC was succeeded by the Australian Air Corps, which was itself succeeded by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in 1921.[17] Many former members of the AFC such as Cobby, McNamara, Williams, Lawrence Wackett, and Henry Wrigley, went on to play founding roles in the fledgling RAAF.[44][52] Others, such as John Wright, who served with No. 4 Squadron on the Western Front before commanding the 2/15th Field Regiment in Malaya during the fighting against the Japanese in World War II, returned to a ground role.[52][53]

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• Warfare in a New Dimension: The Australian Flying Corps in the First World War