RAAF Station Tocumwal
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RAAF Station Tocumwal () was a major
Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...
base during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.


History

Located near the town of
Tocumwal, New South Wales Tocumwal ( ) is a town in the southern Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Berrigan Shire local government area. The town, north of the city of Melbourne, lies on the northern bank of the Murray River, which forms the border w ...
the base was established in early 1942 to provide a secure base for
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber Fixed-wing aircraft, aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually Aerial bomb, bombs) and longest range (aeronautics), range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy ...
units. While the USAAF does not appear to have used the base, it was heavily used by the RAAF and, from 1944, was home to the RAAF's heavy bomber support and operational conversion units including No. 7 Operational Training Unit. While RAAF Station Tocumwal was closed following World War II the airfield remains in use and is a renowned
gliding Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sports, air sport in which pilots fly glider aircraft, unpowered aircraft known as Glider (sailplane), gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmospher ...
site. In the immediate post-WW2 era Tocumwal was used as the RAAF's main aircraft storage and disposal base. Many hundreds of Australian military aircraft made their last flights being ferried to Tocumwal, where they were sold to scrap metal dealers and melted down to ingots in smelters set up on the airfield. 200 houses from the base were relocated to
Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
in the 1940s to address a housing shortage. The vast majority were relocated to a small precinct in the suburb of
O'Connor O'Connor or O'Conor may refer to: People * O'Connor or O'Conor, an Irish clan * O'Connor Sligo, a royal dynasty ruling the northern part of the Kingdom of Connacht * O'Connor (surname), including a list of people with the surname Places * Burdett ...
, and in 2004 were added to the ACT Heritage Register.


Notes


References

* Michael V. Nelmes (1994). ''Tocumwal to Tarakan. Australians and the Consolidated B-24 Liberator''. Banner Books, Canberra.


External links


RAAF Tocumwal: a pictorial review

/small> – compiled by Geoff Goodall
Tocumwal Tocumwal ( ) is a town in the southern Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Berrigan Shire Local government in Australia, local government area. The town, north of the city of Melbourne, lies on the northern bank of the Murray ...
Riverina {{mil-aviation-stub