Thomas 'Tom' Tyne enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in Sydney on 13 April 1943. He joined No 82 Squadron in July, serving in Darwin, Townsville and then Noemfoor in Netherlands New Guinea, where he spent 7 months. He sailed aboard a Liberty ship to Morotai in March 1945. In April, he left the Squadron and joined No 2 Airfield Defence Squadron, where he served as an Airfield Defence Guard.
Tom participated in the Balikpapan landing. He remembered the rough seas as they navigated the Makassar Strait. They carried out an amphibious landing from barges manned by the 2/2nd Pioneer Battalion, then waded ashore, jumping over tank traps, while above them large numbers of aircraft flew in support of the operation. Over the next 3 days, they established themselves at Manggar.
During his service, Tom recalled contact with a Japanese unit at the water supply point in Manggar. The early morning action involved nine Japanese, eight of whom were killed. He recalled that a group of Commandos were bemused as they had been searching for these Japanese for some time.
Tom was struck by how well he got along with all his fellow service men. He maintained a long-term friendship with the former CO of No 82 Squadron, Mick Grace, and other former comrades.
Tom discharged on 16 January 1946. Up until 1964, he worked in the building industry. He has been a very active member of the veteran community and spent 20 years as RSL manager of the Lane Cove RSL Club.
