The RAAF is one of the oldest air forces of the world. In March 1914 the Australian Flying Corps was established. The first unit however was not formed until August 1914. During that month the Central Flying School saw the light of day at Point Cook and up until 1994 this was the principle aviation school of the RAAF. Many squadrons saw action in Europe during the First World War. Four squadrons were used to fight the Germans in Egypt (1sq and 2sq) and France (2sq after it's Egypt adventure, 3sq and 4sq). In 1919 all four units were disbanded again.
On March 31st, 1921 the Australian Air Force was established as independent part of the Australian defence. In June of the same year King George V awarded the title "Royal" to this organisation and since than it is known as the Royal Australian Air Force. During these early days the (R)AAF had more aircraft on strength than personnel! The 151 officers and troops were able to utilize 157 aircraft. Reason for this was the large surplus of aircraft after the First World War. In 1923 the RAAF expanded further and started flight operations at RAAF Laverton and RAAF Richmond.
The crisis during the 1930s resulted in slow growth of the RAAF. Little money was available to replace the mostly obsolete aircraft. When Japan attacked Pearl Harbour the RAAF consisted out of 21 squadrons operating a total of 246 aircraft. Of these only 164 could be called operational fighters or bombers and again, most of them were obsolete. As with the Americans and British fighting forces, the RAAF expanded enormously during the initial years of the Second World War. In 1945 the Air Force was at its largest with a staggering 5,000 aircraft in service. Even though the RAAF decreased in size after 1945, there was little room for rest. The men and women from Down Under were deployed during the Berlin crisis (1948-1949), Malaya civil wars (1950-1958), Korean war (1950-1953), Thai communist clashes (early '60s), Vietnam (1964-1972), the Gulf war (1990-1991) and more recently during Operation Iraqi Freedom (2002). During the last operation, 14 F/A-18A Hornets of 75 sq were deployed under coded-name Operation Falconer to Al Udeid, Qatar. Support was given by three C-130H/J's of 36/37 sqn and the B707 tanker aircraft. Two AP-3C Orions were also deployed. The AAAVN was involved with a couple of CH-47D Chinooks based at Azraq in Jordan while the RAN had a Sea King Mk50 helicopter at the LPA-51 HMAS Kanimbla.
Over the last couple of years the order of battle is quite stable. The only major change took place end 1989/early 1990 when all helicopters were transferred to the Australian Army Aviation Corps. To be able to defend Australia against foreign attacks the RAAF opened several so called bare bases. During the '90s the last one was opened along the northern coast. These bases consist out of a runway, taxi-ways and a limited number of shelters and buildings. Usually no aircraft can be found here except during exercises. On a regular basis the RAAF front line squadrons deploy to the bare bases for weapons training and war games.
Current Situation
Modernisation programs of the RAAF are indicated as "Project Air". Currently several of these projects are underway. Some focus on software or equipment updates for existing aircraft and helicopters. But others have the sole purpose of introducing new types into service. Examples are the recent of the C-130J Hercules, the order for 6 Boeing 737-7ES Wedgetail AEW&C platforms and the order for 5 Airbus A330MRTT aerial tanker platforms to be delivered in 2008 - 2009.
The current back bone of the RAAF fighter force are the F/A-18 Hornet. The F-111 was retired in 2010 and will be replaced by the JSF in the future.The F/A-18 Hornet is an important part of the RAAF structure. Three fighter squadrons and one OCU are equipped with this capable fighter. The order for 57 F/A-18A and 18 F/A-18B Hornets was placed in October 1981 after almost ten years of research and tenders. The first three Hornets were handed over to the RAAF on May 17th, 1985. Most of the Hornets were either assembled or completely built locally by Government Aircraft Factory (later renamed into Aerospace Technologies of Australia). In 1990 an upgrade program was launched to enable the F/A-18 Hornet to serve well into the 21st century.
Roundel rules
When the Royal Australian Air Force was formed it adopted the existing red, white and blue Roundel of the (British) Royal Air Force to identify its aircraft. However, during World War II, the inner red circle was removed after a No. 11 Squadron Catalina was mistaken for a Japanese aircraft by a US Navy Wildcat. The current version of the RAAF Roundel was formally adopted on 2 July 1956. The Roundel exists of a white inner circle with a red kangaroo in motion surrounded by a royal blue circle. The kangaroo always faces left, except when used on aircraft or vehicles, when the kangaroo should always face the front.
Lease Aircraft
All three services use small numbers of leased aircraft ranging from S-76A+ rescue helicopters for the RAAF, to fixed wing liaisons aircraft like the Be-300 and Dhc-6 for the AAAVN and support aircraft like the Learjets for the RAN. In the future more of these lease aircraft can be expected to replace military registered and operated aircraft in support and training roles.
Serial System
The Australians use a very clear serial system. Each type is allocated with a number with the prefix "A". Individual numbers are than allocated to each aircraft. These individual numbers can be in sequel like with the F/A-18 Hornet (A21-1, A21-2, A21-3 etc.). A second possibility is that the individual number is based on the construction number. And finally it can also be based on a former serial like with the P-3 Orion (A9-201, A9-291, A9-292 etc.). Currently the RAAF is using it's third serie of allocations.