Strana 48
F/Sgt. D. A. Smyth, No. 78 Squadron RAAF, Noemfoor Island, August 1944
No. 3 Squadron RAAF, Foiano, Jesi, October 1944
The Australian No. 78 Squadron was formed on
July 20, 1943, and in October of that year, it moved
to Kiriwina Island with its Kittyhawks as part of
No. 73 Wing. Its pilots attacked targets in New
Britain or escorted bombers. In January 1944,
the unit moved to Nazdab and in March to Cape
Gloucester in New Britain. Here, too, attacks
on ground targets formed the main combat
workload, supplemented by reconnaissance
flights. The squadron had its moment of glory
on June 3, 1944, when it attacked a formation
of Japanese aircraft over Biak and shot down
six Ki-43 Oscars and two B5N Kate torpedo
bombers, losing only one of its own aircraft. This
was followed by a move to northern New Guinea,
where No. 78 Squadron pilots took off from
Noemfoor Island for a time. In December 1944,
the squadron moved to Morotai. F/Sgt Smyth’s
aircraft had standard coloring with white paint
added to the tail surfaces and leading edges
of the wings. Unusually, the lower part of the
nose cowling was also painted white. At the
rear, white paint spread over the masking tape
to the Olive Drab color. The drawing of a naked
girl with the inscription “Watch my form!” was
supplemented by another inscription, Lucky 13.
At the beginning of the war, No. 3 Squadron
was one of 12 permanent squadrons of the
Royal Australian Air Force, and on July 24, 1940,
21 of its officers and 271 other members set
sail aboard the ship Orontes to join the fighting
in Europe under the command of S/Ldr. Ian
D. McLachlan. They arrived in the Middle East on
August 23 and then moved to Egypt, where they
exchanged their Gladiators and Lysanders for
Tomahawks, i.e. P-40B/Cs, and later for newer
Kittyhawks. This particular aircraft remained
with No. 3 Squadron for only a brief time,
as shortly after its arrival, the unit began
rearming to Mustangs. It was also one of the
few aircraft to have a stylized Southern Cross
painted on a blue background on its rudder.
KITS 08/2025
INFO Eduard48
August 2025