Against Four Enemies: The wartime flying career of Group Captain Alan Rawlinson DFC* RAAF

by Lex McAulay

  The air forces had one main task on 25 November – attack the Axis ground columns pushing east.

  Alan Rawlinson took ‘Woof’ Arthur and went to find the enemy. They were close, only about 20 miles (30km away, and though Rawlinson could see a large force, in the dim light it was difficult to identify them. Rawlinson went low to check and was shot at by a number of weapons, so he returned to base and reported, but as the headquarters still did not believe the force seen was enemy, Rawlinson took off again, with Arthur, and went back. He told Arthur to have a look, to confirm. Arthur also was fired on by what seemed to be every weapon available, took five hits in the wing, they again returned to base and this time it was accepted that the distant force was enemy.

  An air strike was ordered and 112 Squadron from the Wing went first and strafed some enemy without loss, but when 3 Squadron followed two Tomahawks were shot down, one crash-landed and one returned damaged.

  Attacking beside Rawlinson, Flying Officer Bothwell was hit and crashed into a German tank; Flight Lieutenant Manford was shot down but reached 451 Squadron and escaped with them ahead of the enemy. Flying Officer Jewell also force-landed, was captured and, amazingly, asked the way to Sidi Omar. He gave wrong directions which resulted in a meeting with New Zealanders, the Germans fled, Jewell escaped and was brought back with the Kiwis, now in possession of a great story for the Mess and post-war reunions.

  A later wing sweep had better results, when both squadrons, led by Peter Jeffrey, went to the Sidi Rezegh area in the afternoon and met about seventy Axis aircraft. There was a top cover of Bf109s and G50s, above CR42, Ju87s, Ju88s and Bf110s. 112 Squadron claimed two destroyed and two probables for one loss, while 3 Squadron claimed seven, one probable and eight damaged, for the loss of Flying Officer Bruce Evans, killed.

  Claims were for Bf110s, G50s and two Fieseler Fi156 Storch liaison aircraft. The Bf110s scattered, making it easier for the Tomahawks, who shot down four and damaged others. The hapless Fi156 were shot down by Rex Wilson, despite intermittent gun problems, while flying people to the funeral of one of the JG27 pilots killed earlier. The pilot and passengers related how they were strafed after landing.

  Next day, in Tobruk, Sergeant Alan Cameron was told by Army sources that twelve aircraft were seen to crash during the combat. The Fi156s were attacked low down and some distance away, so the claims by 112 and 3 Squadron were accurate.

  The land fighting dominated events on 26 November, with the Germans pushing east, and aircraft taking off ahead of the advancing enemy.

  3 Squadron lost Sergeant Geoffrey Hiller, shot down by Hauptmann Redlich of I/JG27 when six Bf109s engaged during a two-squadron sweep over Sidi Rezegh. Hiller was captured.

  Hiller baled out and Alan Cameron saw a Bf109 apparently preparing to attack him, so dived and forced the 109 away. Cameron circled the parachute until Hiller was on the ground, but he then was attacked by six 109s, of which he hit one, and eventually dodged into cloud. He landed in Tobruk and was told the Army had seen Hiller’s parachute, and later a second. This confirmed Cameron’s battle with the 109s.

  Unfortunately Hiller was wounded, captured and died a few days later.

  The relief of Tobruk was made next day, when the New Zealanders reached them. The German armour withdrew to the west. 3 Squadron did not have contact with the enemy.

  The squadron escorted Blenheims next day, 28 November, on a raid against German forces but had no contact. There was little air activity over the battle area. 29 November also was relatively quiet.

  30 November 1941

  3 Squadron, with 112, flew a sweep early in the morning and came upon what was estimated to be fifty enemy about to attack the New Zealand troops. The fifteen Ju87s were lowest, at about 6,000 feet, with the Italians above and five 109s as top cover over them. The Tomahawks attacked and claimed fifteen destroyed, fifteen damaged and the Ju87s jettisoned their bombs, so making their sorties useless.

  Alan Rawlinson claimed a MC200 destroyed, Tom Trimble two MC200 destroyed and three Ju87s damaged, Bobby Gibbs a G50 destroyed, Wal Mailey two MC200 destroyed and three Ju87s damaged, Sergeant Scott a Ju87 and a G50 destroyed and a Ju87 damaged, Alan Cameron a G50 and four Ju87s damaged, Sergeant Wilson a MC200, Ju87 and a Bf109 damaged. Wilf Arthur claimed four destroyed – two Ju87s, a G50 and a MC200.

  Alan Rawlinson came up behind a Macchi and fired at close range, saw pieces fly off, then both 0.50-calibres stopped. Rawlinson had slowed down to stay behind the Macchi, and re-loaded the heavy machineguns, but only one worked, while all four .30-calibres in the wings fired normally. Rawlinson left the Macchi diving steeply at 1,500 feet and thought the pilot was killed.

  These claims, of twelve destroyed, brought the squadron score to 106 destroyed. Rawlinson had flown in the first combat on 19 November 1940, and now in the action in which ‘100 destroyed’ was reached.

  Alan Cameron was shot down by Oberfeldwebel Otto Schulz, of II/JG27, but Cameron baled out and was picked up by Peter Jeffrey, who threw away his parachute. Cameron squeezed his big body into the cockpit and Jeffrey flew back to base. Cameron later said it was ‘the best ride I ever had.’

  Peter Jeffrey was recorded as ‘landed sitting well up in the cockpit’.

  Schulz also shot down Pilot Officer Neville Duke, of 112 Squadron, and made sure of the victory by his usual strafing of the aircraft on the ground. Duke later became one of the top-scoring RAF pilots in the theatre and post-war the well-known test pilot for Hawker, with the jet fighter Hawker Hunter.

  3 Squadron was the first in the theatre to reach 100 destroyed and congratulations came from higher headquarters. In that from Air Vice Marshal Coningham was the news that the squadron would be first to receive the Kittyhawk.

  The squadron was stood down from operations on 1 December, with only nine aircraft capable of operational flying. Next day, Jeffry and Rawlinson flew to Cairo to look for more pilots. They found that recent replacements had been sent to 71 O.T.U. but had not completed the program due to illness. The next batch of new pilots were taken onto the squadron without having them go to O.T.U.

  When the pair flew back to the Desert, Jeffrey brought the first Kittyhawk. Training continued as did repair of the Tomahawks. Operations re-commenced on 8 December.

  At LG122 a white-painted air ambulance, clearly marked, was attacked by five Bf110s from III/ZG26, and shot down, though the crew survived with wounds. This was filmed by a war correspondent. The 110s were attacked by South African and RAF fighters and lost three destroyed.

  To HQ Middle East

  Alan Rawlinson handed over the squadron on 12 December to Squadron Leader D.R. ‘Dixie’ Chapman. According to his RAAF file, Rawlinson was posted to the headquarters on 23 November, and a month later, on 26 December, to the Air Firing and Fighting School. However, as shown, he led the squadron on operations during the last week of November and claimed a victory of the last day of that month.

  His time at the school was brief, two months, before he embarked for Australia. He had relinquished the rank of Squadron Leader and reverted to Flight Lieutenant, with a DFC and Bar.

  Return to Australia

  Alan Rawlinson arrived back in Australia on 28 March 1942. The war situation was not good. In North Africa General Rommel seemed able to trounce any British commander; Malta was besieged; the U-boats were sinking ships far faster than they could be built; RAF Bomber Command was incapable of inflicting serious damage; the Japanese had struck Pearl Harbor, bombed Darwin, captured Rabaul and Singapore and seemed unstoppable.

  Australia did not have a single fighter squadron, no modern fighters and only a handful of bombers made by adapting airliners – the Lockheed Hudson.

  2 Operational

  Training Unit

  Rawlinson was posted to 2 (Fighter) O.T.U. on 28 March 1942 and remained there until 21 September, while re-promoted to Squadron Leader on 1 April. He was the first commanding officer and 2 O.T.U. was the first such unit raised in Australia. 2 O.T.U. grew from a Wirraway flight
of 1 O.T.U., at West Sale, Victoria, sent to form a fighter training unit, originally at Port Pirie.

  The first aircraft arrived on 6 April, and consisted of seventeen Wirraways and two Fairey Battles, with Rawlinson as commanding officer. On 27 April Peter Jeffrey arrived to take command and on 14 May the unit moved to Mildura, with Alan Rawlinson becoming Chief Flying Instructor (CFI); next day the first course began training.

  The first lessons were planned outside on a black-board and lesson plans were written by Rawlinson and others sitting on the bare floor boards of the newly erected huts; no furniture had arrived.

  The first Kittyhawks arrived on 17 May. Peter Jeffrey was told he could have them if he could fly them from the place where they were assembled, at Geelong. He took four pilots and did so. The four were all Desert veterans – Jeffrey, Rawlinson, Arthur, Wally Jewell and Tom Trimble.

  Both Jeffrey and Rawlinson had become fed up with the training system which delivered pilots with little flying experience on training aircraft to operational squadrons in the expectation that the new men would be brought to operational standard while the squadron was busy flying sorties. They set about making a positive change, with the Desert veterans keen to assist.

  Air Force HQ

  In early June Rawlinson was posted to RAAF headquarters in Melbourne on attachment for two days, but on 21 September was moved permanently from Mildura to the office of Chief of Air Staff (CAS) as an assistant. Rawlinson found that only one other officer there had war service in the present war, as a bomber pilot.

  The RAAF during 1942-45 was hindered by the implacable enmity between the two most senior officers, George Jones as CAS and William ‘Bill’ Bostock as head of RAAF Operational Command. Jones used his position to deny Bostock’s squadrons vital equipment and necessary support, to the detriment of operational efficiency. This sad situation has been recounted in other publications. It was to the advantage of the US air commander, General George Kenney, who used it to relegate the RAAF to secondary roles.

  79 Squadron

  Rawlinson was in his office when the Deputy CAS, John McCauley, came to his door and asked if Rawlinson would like to command a squadron of Spitfires to be raised in Australia.

  This was a great opportunity and Rawlinson accepted at once. As he recalled, after having struggled in second-rate aircraft against better-equipped enemy in the Desert, the chance to fly a good fighter was irresistible.

  The US air commander, Kenney, asked for a fighter squadron to defend the air bases in the north from which he soon would launch attacks on the major Japanese base at Rabaul. The RAAF accepted and formed a new squadron of Spitfires.

  The squadron was given the number 79, and was the only Spitfire squadron raised in Australia. All the others that flew here were raised in the UK. The history of the squadron 1943-45 has been told in ‘Southern Cross Spitfires’, by this author, from Banner Books and is available on disc or at Amazon-Kindle.

  Alan Rawlinson’s wife, Thora, was an officer in the WAAAF and was able to ensure the squadron was very well supplied with those items in the supply system over which she had some control. However, the feud between Jones and Bostock meant the squadron was not provided with basic necessary items such as starter trolley carts, jacks for lifting the aircraft to perform undercarriage checks, and many other things.

  The squadron formed quickly and departed for the war zone in only a few weeks. There was one fatality in training, when Sergeant ‘Blue’ Roxburgh crashed near Bacchus Marsh after what seemed to be oxygen problems during a climb to high altitude.

  Another fatality occurred at Townsville on the flight to New Guinea. One of the flight commanders was Paul Brennan, a 10-victory ace from the intense fighting over Malta in 1942. For some reason that was never explained, in the landing pattern, Brennan suddenly cut across the formation of strung-out Spitfires and landed in front of another aircraft. Unable to see what was in front of him due to the nose-high attitude of the Spitfire, the following pilot ran up onto Brennan’s fighter, and he died of injuries inflicted by the propellor.

  The squadron landed at Milne Bay, where all were regaled by tales of those present during the fighting there when, for the first time, a Japanese landing force had been repulsed – no matter what the new arrivals had experienced elsewhere, it was nothing to the Milne Bay action: ‘You shoulda been here for the Do!’

  Alan Rawlinson, squadron commander,

  Goodenough Island, 1943

  (AWM PO2874.069)

  79 Squadron first was based on Goodenough Island, then moved to Kiriwina. The expected Japanese retaliation for the Rabaul raids did not come about, and the RAAF pilots watched in frustration as the US P-38 Lockheed Lightning squadrons landed to re-fuel on the way to the target and returned doing victory rolls and then recount tales of the combats.

  The range of the Spitfire kept it out of these long-range operations, a short-coming of the fighter as it was never intended to do more than defend Britain against enemy bombers. The Americans were polite but somewhat condescending towards the squadron.

  After a while, Rawlinson told one of his pilots to take up a Spitfire and perform aerobatics to show the Americans what a Spitfire could do. This was seen as a challenge and at least one, and perhaps two, P-38s took off to dog-fight the Spitfire.

  The result was a clear triumph for the Spitfire, which ended the display by flying around the circuit upside down, then lowering the undercarriage as it rolled upright, with the wheels touching down at the exact right moment as the aircraft assumed landing position.

  All this was witnessed by the assembled pilots and ground crews, but, sadly, no photos seem to have been taken. Reportedly, one P-38 was flown by a squadron commander, who so over-stressed his aircraft that wrinkles appeared in the wings and the fighter was left at Kiriwina.

  But, apart from intermittent small night raids, there was no prospect of combat for the Spitfires. Eventually they took part in escorts for RAAF bombers attacking targets in New Britain, and strafed the greenery below.

  There were only a few combats by the Spitfires, one being the perfect interception of a lone Japanese who would speed in, drop a bomb and speed away. But this was rare. One sortie flown by Rawlinson in a Spitfire was to look for a submarine. He thought that this was a ‘different sort of war’ in which he was in a modern fighter looking for a boat that went under water.

  Rawlinson relinquished command of 79 Squadron on 7 November, expecting to go to the Darwin area, where the other Spitfire squadrons had been in action. But he was retained in the Kiriwina area by the local RAAF air commander, at 73 Wing headquarters.

  Rawlinson had been promoted to Temporary Wing Commander on 1 August, but his substantive rank still was Flying Officer. This promotion was ‘officially’ promulgated on 24 February 1944.

  Staff Training

  Rawlinson then was posted for training in higher staff matters, and attended RAAF Staff College at Mount Martha, Victoria, from 4 January 1944 to 24 March, on No.2 War Staff Course.

  Parachute Training Unit

  Rawlinson’s health had been affected during his time in the New Guinea region and he was down-graded medically from being fit for operational flying. His next posting was to the parachute school – perhaps a link to his training just before the war began.

  This allowed him to expand the number of aircraft types he flew, to include the C-47 transport.

  On 9 April 1945, Rawlinson was assessed for a confidential report by Wing Commander Ian Rose, at No.2 Group HQ. His appearance and bearing was ‘distinctly favourable’, he was consistently temperate, adaptable and quick in grasping questions and new ideas, had superior ability in expressing himself, was wholesomely self-confident and decisive, resourceful in solving problems and overcoming difficulties, fairly well-balanced and cool-headed, was industrious and vigourous willing to do more than the average amount of work, was completely dependable for the performance of duties, promoted harmony and good-will, was skilful in directing others, inspired conf
idence commanded respect, was ‘superior’ in proficiency and outstanding in administrative ability, with sound Service knowledge.

  Rose added that Rawlinson was

  ‘an outstanding officer who is particularly keen and adaptable. Joined the service as a cadet in 1938, completed extended tour in the Western Desert, finishing as CO No. 3 Sqn RAAF, completed second tour in New Guinea as fighter C.O. Medically unfit for some time, he has been CO PTU for over 12 months and has carried out his duties very satisfactorily, although the unique appointment calls for considerable resource and initiative.’

  In June 1945, Rawlinson compiled the mandatory report on flying activities. He had a total of 1,205 hours, with 1,115.05 as pilot by day, 16.10 hours at night, and 73.46 as co-pilot. He had flown, as pilot or second pilot, twenty-eight different types of aircraft, single-engine and twin-engine.

  The types with most flying were the P-40 Tomahawk or Kittyhawk, 193.50 hours; Spitfire V or VIII with 86.30 hours, Hurricane with 85 hours, and the Gladiator or Gauntlet, with 137.35 hours.

  Overseas Again