RAAF Base Wagga (formerly RAAF Base Forest Hill) is a

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

(RAAF)

military air base An air base (sometimes referred to as a military air base, military airfield, military airport, air station, naval air station, air force station, or air force base) is an aerodrome used as a military base by a military force for the operation ...

located southeast
Aeronautical Chart
of the town of

Wagga Wagga Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's ...

, in the suburb of Forest Hill,

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia. The base is home to No 31 Squadron and Ground Academy (GA), including No 1 Recruit Training Unit (1RTU), the Air Force's basic recruit training school. It is the main ground training base for RAAF Aviators of the technical, administration and logistics trades, as well as the location for initial courses for Administration and Logistics Officers. RAAF Wagga is also home to most Air Force Professional Military Education. In addition, Air Force,

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

and

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

personnel undertake technical airworthiness training at the RAAF School of Technical Training (RAAFSTT). The local

Australian Air Force Cadets The Australian Air Force Cadets (AAFC), known as the ''Air Training Corps (AIRTC)'' until 2001, is a Federal Government funded youth organisation. The parent force of the AAFC is the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Along with the Australia ...

squadron, 332 SQN, hosts weekly parades on Tuesday nights at RAAF Base Wagga, and 3 Wing Australian Air Force Cadets use RAAF Base Wagga to hold their biannual promotion courses (in January and July). Owned by the

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Governmen ...

, the base is managed by the RAAF with the exception of the airfield that is leased to the Wagga Wagga City Council. Although military aircraft still use the airfield, the airfield is now called

Wagga Wagga Airport Wagga Wagga Airport is located adjacent to RAAF Base Wagga, and southeast of Wagga Wagga in New South Wales, Australia. The airfield is an operational base, but is leased by the City of Wagga Wagga, Wagga Wagga City Council on a 30-year leas ...

History

In 1939 the

purchased the farm, ''Allonville'' and commenced building the facility. Called RAAF Base Forest Hill, the base commenced operations on and was home to the

No. 2 Flying Training School No.2 Flying Training School is a Flying Training School (FTS) of the Royal Air Force, Royal Air Force (RAF). It is part of No. 22 Group RAF, No. 22 (Training) Group that delivers glider flying training to the Royal Air Force Air Cadets. Its head ...

. Part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (or Empire Training Scheme), No. 31 Squadron flew from the base in 1942, flying

Bristol Beaufighter The Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter (often called the Beau) is a British multi-role aircraft developed during the Second World War by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It was originally conceived as a heavy fighter variant of the Bristol Beaufort ...

s and served in combat during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Following the war, the base was declared home to the Ground Training School and in May 1950 RAAF School of Technical Training was established; and subsequently renamed as RAAF Base Wagga in 1952. The School of Management and Training Technology was established in 1985, and disbanded in 2004. The School of Postgraduate Studies established in 1998. In January 1999 Ground Training Wing. was established at RAAF Base Wagga and was amalgamated with RAAF College in 2008. RAAF College was relocated to RAAF Base Wagga in 2008 after having been established in 1947 at

Point Cook Point Cook is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Wyndham local government area. Point Cook recorded a population of 66,781 at the 2021 census. Point Coo ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. The School of Administration and Logistics Training was established in 2005. The No. 1 Recruit Training Unit relocated from

RAAF Base Edinburgh RAAF Base Edinburgh is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military airbase located in Edinburgh approximately north of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia and forms part of the Edinburgh Defence Precinct. The base is primarily home to No 9 ...

to RAAF Base Wagga in 2008. In December 2009 Ground Training Wing was reestablished after splitting from RAAF College. No. 31 Squadron re-formed in July 2010 after disbanding in 1946. While no flying squadrons are based at Wagga, a number of decommissioned RAAF and Army aircraft, including a

GAF Nomad The GAF Nomad is a utility aircraft produced by the Government Aircraft Factories (GAF) of Australia in Melbourne. Supported by the Australian Government, design work began in the mid-1960s, and it made its maiden flight on 23 July 1971. Despi ...

and several

Aermacchi MB-326 The Aermacchi or Macchi MB-326 is a light military jet trainer designed in Italy. Originally conceived as a two-seat trainer, there have also been single and two-seat light attack versions produced. It is one of the most commercially successf ...

airframes have been allocated to RAAFSTT for use as ground training aids and remain on site. The unit also acquired three

Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner The Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner (previously the Swearingen Metro and later Fairchild Aerospace Metro) is a 19-seat, pressurized, twin-turboprop airliner first produced by Swearingen Aircraft and later by Fairchild Aircraft at a plant in San ...

airframes in 1999 which were found to in 2005 contain

asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...

, raising concerns about hazardous exposure by military instructors, trainees and civilian staff.

Units

The following units are located at RAAF Base Wagga:

Aircraft on display

The aircraft located next to the

RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre RAAF Wagga Heritage Centre ''(Originally known as the Wagga Wagga RAAF Museum but was officially, RAAF Museum – Wagga Annex)'' is a heritage centre located at the Wagga Wagga RAAF Base at Forest Hill located approximately east of Wagga Wagg ...

, they are not officially part of the heritage centre but are officially part of RAAF Base Wagga as

gate guardian A gate guardian or gate guard is a withdrawn piece of equipment, often an aircraft, armoured vehicle, artillery piece, or locomotive, mounted on a plinth and used as a static display near to and forming a symbolic display of "guarding" the main ...

s. *

Dassault Mirage III The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach number, Mach 2 ...

, located as a gate guardian at RAAF Base Wagga in the 1980s. * CAC Sabre *

Gloster Meteor The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies of World War II, Allies' only jet aircraft to engage in combat operations during the Second World War. The Meteor's development was heavily reliant on its ground-breaking turb ...

English Electric Canberra The English Electric Canberra is a British first-generation, jet-powered medium bomber. It was developed by English Electric during the mid- to late 1940s in response to a 1944 Air Ministry requirement for a successor to the wartime de Havil ...

, which flew during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

and located as a gate guardian at RAAF Base Wagga in the 1980s. *

General Dynamics F-111 The General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark is a retired supersonic, medium-range, multirole combat aircraft. Production variants of the F-111 had roles that included ground attack (e.g. interdiction), strategic bombing (including nuclear weapons c ...

Gate guardians

File:A3-41 Dassault Mirage III after the completion of the restoration work.jpg, A3-41

No. 77 Squadron RAAF No. 77 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) squadron headquartered at RAAF Base Williamtown, New South Wales. It is controlled by No. 81 Wing, and equipped with Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II multi-role fighters. The squadr ...

livery File:CAC Sabre - RAAF Base Wagga.jpg, CAC Sabre Mk 32 (A94-982) File:Gloster Meteor A77-871 WK791 F8 - RAAF Base Wagga (01).jpg, A77-871 (WK791) Gloster Meteor F 8 File:A84-235 Canberra Mk20 after the completion of the restoration work.jpg, A84-235

Mk 20 in No. 2 Squadron RAAF livery

References

External links

RAAF Base Wagga Magazine
website {{DEFAULTSORT:Wagga Raaf Base Royal Australian Air Force bases Airports in New South Wales Wagga Wagga 1940 establishments in Australia Military installations in New South Wales Military installations established in 1940