ADF-SERIALS & NZDF-SERIALS
 Australian, New Zealand & Papua New Guinea Military Aircraft Serials & History

Aircraft operated by WWII RAAF units within the RAF

 

Handley Page Hampden Mark I, AT137 'UB-T', of No 455 Squadron RAAF based at Leuchars, Fife, Scotland, in flight above clouds, May 1942.

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Under Article XV of the Empire Air Training Scheme, participating Commonwealth Nations raised squadrons for service within the RAF during WWII. These squadrons were intended to be crewed by nationals from the participating nations and equipped by the RAF, but in practice, they tended to be staffed by crews from across the Commonwealth. (See RNZAF information here).

Australia formed 17 Article XV squadrons, out of a total of 79 RAAF squadrons, during World War II. While 18 squadrons had been originally planned for service with the RAF, No. 465 Squadron was never formed.

When some Article XV squadrons and RAF units were transferred to RAAF operational control, from 1943 onwards, they retained their original numbers.

All the Australian Article XV squadrons were disbanded after the end of the war, but since 2005 four of the squadrons have been re-formed by re-designating RAAF intelligence and air traffic control units.

  
     
 

Aircraft Operated by RAAF Squadrons & Units under RAF control during WWII

  
     
 

Interestingly, many of these units also operated captured axis aircraft for evaluation or as squadron transports or hacks.

  
     
 
Aircraft History Page Image Gallery Operators Aircraft History Page Image Gallery Operators
Airspeed Oxford Oxford 3 Sqn & 456 Sqn, RAAF. Avro Anson Highlight for Album: Anson NK718 453 Sqn & 462 Sqn, RAAF
Avro 679 Manchester Avro Manchester 460 Sqn, RAAF. Avro 683 Lancaster Lancaster W4783 460 Sqn RAAF 460 Sqn, 463 Sqn & 467 Sqn, RAAF.
Boulton Paul Defiant Boulton Paul Defiant 456 Sqn, RAAF. Brewster Buffalo Brewster Buffalo 21 Sqn & 453 Sqn, RAAF.
Bristol 130 Bombay Tunisia. 1943. Maintenance section of No. 1 Air Ambulance Unit RAAF at work on the propeller of one of the Units Bristol Bombay aircraft. 1 AAU, RAAF. Bristol 149 Blenheim Bristol Blenheim V 454 Sqn, 456 Sqn & 459 Sqn, RAAF.
Bristol 156 Beaufighter Highlight for Album: Beaufighter NT947 455 Sqn & 456 Sqn, RAAF. Curtis Tomahawk Highlight for Album: 3 Squadron Curtis Tomahawk 3 Sqn, RAAF.
Curtiss Kittyhawk Kttyhawk III FG303 450 Squadron RAAF 3 Sqn & 450 Sqn, RAAF. De Havilland DH.86 DH.86A 1 AAU, RAAF.
De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito 456 Squadron De Havilland Mosquito 456 Sqn & 464 Sqn, RAAF. Fairchild 24 Argus Mk.I Fairchild Argus 451 Sqn & 454 Sqn, RAAF.
Gloster Gauntlet Gauntlet Mk.II K7843 3 Sqn, & 451 Sqn RAAF. Gloster Gladiator Gloster Gladiator Mark II N5768 3 Sqn RAAF.
Grumman G-21A Goose Gruman Goose MV993 which has been confused many times in the past with 1 AAU's HK822. 1 AAU, RAAF. Handley Page HP.52 Hampden Handley Page Hampden Mark I, AT137 'UB-T', of No 455 Squadron RAAF based at Leuchars, Fife, Scotland, in flight above clouds, May 1942. 455 Sqn, RAAF.
Handley Page 57,58,59, 61 & 63 Halifax Handley Page Halifax 460 Sqn, 462 Sqn and 466 Sqn, RAAF. Hawker Hurricane 451 Squadron Hawker Hurricane 3 Sqn, 450 Sqn and 451 Sqn, RAAF.
Hawker Typhoon

Article

 Typhoon Mk.Ib 451 Sqn, RAAF Lockheed Hudson Hudson FH314 8 Sqn, 459 Sqn and 464 Sqn, RAAF.
Lockheed Ventura 464 Squadron Lockheed Ventura 464 Sqn and 459 Sqn, RAAF. Lockheed Model 16 Lodestar Lodestar 1371 at Catania Sicily for evacuation to hospitals in North Africa via Brendan Cowan 1 AAU, RAAF.
Martin 167 Maryland Martin Maryland AR738 459 Sqn, RAAF.

May have been flown by members of 458 Sqn.

 Martin 187 Baltimore Martin Baltimore 454 and 459 Sqn, RAAF.
Miles M.14 Magister Magister Mk.I R1954 3 Sqn, 451 Sqn & 456 Sqn, RAAF. North American Mustang 3 Squadron Mustang 3 Sqn, RAAF.
North American Harvard Highlight for Album: Harvard AJ844 451 Sqn RAAF, 239 Wing RAF
(Available to 3 Sqn & 450 Sqn, RAAF).		 Short S.25 Sunderland Short Sunderland Mk III 10 Sqn & 461 Sqn, RAAF.
Short S.26 (G Class) Short S.26 10 Sqn, RAAF. Supermarine Spitfire 451 Sqn, 452 Sqn , 453 Sqn and 457 Sqn, RAAF.
Supermarine Walrus Supermarine Walrus L2312 10 Sqn, RAAF. Taylorcraft Auster Mk.III Auster III NJ902 451 Sqn, 452 Sqn , 453 Sqn and 454 Sqn, RAAF.
Vickers Wellington Wellington F of 458 Sqn 458 Sqn, 460 Sqn and 466 Sqn, RAAF. Westland Lysander Westland Lysander P9198 3 Sqn, RAAF.
 
 

RAAF Article XV Squadrons under RAF control during WWII
     
  The RAAF Article XV squadrons were (links to our squadron photo albums):  
 
 
450 Squadron, RAAF 451 Squadron, RAAF 452 Squadron, RAAF 453 Squadron, RAAF 454 Squadron, RAAF 455 Squadron, RAAF
Highlight for Album: 450 Squadron Kittyhawks Highlight for Album: 451 Squadron Spitfire RAAF 452 Squadron Highlight for Album: 453 Squadron Spitfire Highlight for Album: 454 Squadron Martin Baltimore Beaufighter TF Mark X, NE543 'UB-E', of No. 455 Squadron
456 Squadron, RAAF 457 Squadron, RAAF 458 Squadron, RAAF 459 Squadron, RAAF 460 Squadron, RAAF 461 Squadron, RAAF
Highlight for Album: 456 Squadron De Havilland Mosquito Supermarine Spitfire Mark VB, of No 457 Squadron RAAF returning to Redhill, Surrey, after a sweep over northen France, whilst another Squadron aircraft stands at its dispersal point, plugged into a trolley accumulator at readiness. Highlight for Album: 458 Squadron Vickers Wellington 459 Squadron Lancaster I LL964/AR-D2 461 Sqn Sunderland
462 Squadron, RAAF 463 Squadron, RAAF 464 Squadron, RAAF 465 Squadron 466 Squadron, RAAF 467 Squadron, RAAF
Handley Page Halifax

462 Squadron
Known Serials Page

 Lancaster RF270 Highlight for Album: 464 Squadron De Havilland Mosquito (Unit not formed) Highlight for Album: Vickers Welington A gathering of men of No 467 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force to celebrate the completion of 100 operations by the Avro Lancaster R5868/`PO-S' (S for Sugar) after its sortie on 11 - 12 May 1944 to a communications target in Belgium. Below the cockpit of the Lancaster are the emblems indicating the number of operational flights and the award of three DSOs and two DFCs to crew members
 
 
RAAF Squadrons & Units under RAF control during WWII
 
Five other RAAF squadrons plus other units were also under RAF operational control for the whole or part of the war:
 
 
1 Sqn, RAAF 3 Squadron, RAAF 8 Sqn, RAAF 10 Squadron, RAAF 21 Sqn, RAAF 1 Air Ambulance Unit, RAAF
Far East Air Force, RAF Desert Air Force, RAF Far East Air Force, RAF Coastal Command, RAF Far East Air Force, RAF Desert Air Force, RAF
Hudson A16-51 Highlight for Album: 3 Squadron Curtiss Kittyhawk Highlight for Album: 8 Squadron Hudsons Highlight for Album: Short Sunderland Brewster Buffalo De Havilland DH.86A
 
     
 

Aircraft Operated by RNZAF Squadrons and Units under RAF control during WWII

  
     

Page Authors: Darren Crick, Brendan Cowan, Martin Edwards & Tony McDonald

Page Updated 03 November 2021
     
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