New Guinea campaign Formed in February 1943, No. 73 Wing consisted of
No. 4 Squadron (flying
CAC Wirraways),
No. 22 Squadron (
Douglas Bostons) and
No. 30 Squadron (
Bristol Beaufighters). Based at
Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, the wing was under the control of
No. 9 Operational Group, the RAAF's "premier fighting unit" in the
South West Pacific Area (SWPA), whose purpose was to act as a mobile strike force in support of advancing Allied troops. In March 1943, No. 73 Wing's units participated in the
Battle of the Bismarck Sea, "the decisive aerial engagement" in the SWPA according to General
Douglas MacArthur, that resulted in twelve ships from a Japanese convoy being sunk. During this engagement, some of No. 22 Squadron's Bostons struck
Lae airfield to prevent Japanese fighters taking off to intercept Allied bombers, while others took part in the actual assault on the convoy; No. 30 Squadron's Beaufighters launched "withering" low-level cannon and machine-gun attacks on the Japanese ships to suppress anti-aircraft fire prior to bombing runs by USAAF
B-25 Mitchells. Flight Lieutenant
Bill Newton, one of the Boston pilots who attacked Lae, was awarded a posthumous
Victoria Cross for pressing home bombing missions against
Salamaua later that month, in spite of severe damage to his aircraft. Having earlier been led by Wing Commander
Blake Pelly, by June 1943 No. 73 Wing was under the command of Group Captain
Ian McLachlan. That month, McLachlan established his headquarters at
Goodenough Island, where the wing was reorganised as a fighter formation consisting of
No. 76 Squadron (flying
P-40 Kittyhawks),
No. 77 Squadron (Kittyhawks) and
No. 79 Squadron (
Supermarine Spitfires). As well as providing local air defence, defending the naval forces assigned to
Operation Chronicle, and fighter escort for Australian bombers, the Kittyhawks were themselves armed with
incendiary and general-purpose bombs so that they could engage in
ground-attack missions, a practice that had already been employed by Commonwealth forces in the
Mediterranean and Middle East Theatre. In August 1943, the wing transferred to
Kiriwina, while No. 9 Group's other combat formation,
No. 71 Wing, took over responsibility for Goodenough. Transport delays meant that No. 77 Squadron remained at Goodenough, however, and its place in No. 73 Wing at Kiriwina was taken by
No. 78 Squadron, which arrived from Australia in November, also equipped with Kittyhawks.
New Britain and Admiralty Islands campaigns Wing Commander
Gordon Steege assumed command of No. 73 Wing in October 1943. Minimal offensive air activity by the Japanese meant that No. 79 Squadron's Spitfires saw relatively little action, while in contrast the wing's P-40s with their ground attack capability were "fully engaged". As part of the build-up to the
Battle of Arawe in December, the Kittyhawks launched a series of attacks on the
Gasmata airfield and fuel dumps; on the day of the Allied landings, as No. 76 Squadron Kittyhawks patrolled above the beaches, the Spitfires remained at Kiriwina in case of strikes by Japanese raiders, though none came. In January 1944, the wing's Spitfires and Kittyhawks accompanied Beauforts on the two largest raids mounted by the RAAF to that time, each involving over 70 aircraft attacking enemy camps and depots at Lindenhafen,
New Britain. As part of No. 9 Group's contribution to the
Admiralty Islands campaign, No. 73 Wing took up garrison duties at
Los Negros commencing in March 1944. Its complement of combat squadrons was again Nos. 76, 77 and 79 Squadrons, supported by No. 49 Operational Base Unit,
No. 114 Mobile Fighter Sector, No. 27 Air Stores Park and No. 26 Medical Clearing Station, among other ancillaries, with total ground staff numbering approximately 900. The fighters' primary duty was providing air cover for Allied shipping; they also carried out bomber escort, ground attack and anti-shipping missions in the region. In mid-April, the wing escorted the largest Allied convoy in the South-West Pacific to that date, 80 ships carrying 30,000 personnel, from
Finschhafen to
Aitape. Completing its garrison work in the Admiralties that June, No. 73 Wing was disbanded at Los Negros on 29 August 1944. Its combat units were all eventually transferred to other formations under No. 10 Operational Group (later renamed the
Australian First Tactical Air Force). Nos. 76 and 77 Squadrons joined another Kittyhawk unit,
No. 82 Squadron, at
No. 81 Wing on
Noemfoor under Steege's command, while No. 79 Squadron was withdrawn to
Darwin in November to re-equip with new Spitfires before joining
No. 80 Wing and returning to the Pacific at
Morotai in March 1945. ==Notes==