Category: Australia

No. 356 Squadron, RAAF, in the Cocos Islands, 1945

Liberators of No. 356 Squadron on West Island. Photo credit to Robert Livingstone whose father served as an RAAF navigator in No. 160 Squadron.
Surrounded by all the trappings of a tropical paradise, a MK VI Liberator idly awaits its next mission.
A “tropical paradise” had its limits: a soggy days days on West Island were the norm.
Armourers of 356 Sqn prep their bombs on the rain-drenched hardstand.
Although constituted late in the war, No. 356 Squadron made a name for themselves with attacks against Japanese shipping and land targets.

Flying the Consolidated Liberator B Mark VI, 356 Sqn operated from the balmy Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean. An outfit that included Canadians as well as Australians, they proved a good mixture as the squadron amply proved in combat.

The RAAF in the Philippines, 1945

Spitfire (A58-635) of No. 457 Squadron
Lineup of No. 457 Sqn aircraft. A58-642 is second from left.
“Grey Nurses” in the Philippines. Aircraft here include 626 and 634
RAAF Spitfires were more than a match for most Japanese aircraft.
No. 457 Sqn Spitfire coasts down for landing. B-24 Liberator in the background.
No. 31 Squadron Beaufighter.
Beaufighter A8-15 (“Holbrook”) of No. 31 Sqn. The cigar-chomping kid is the source of these photos; Dan Esterly, my next door neighbor.
A8-14 is prepped for another mission.
Beaufighter of No. 31 Sqn roars past USMC Corsairs, Zamboanga, Philippines.