The use of air power was an important component of the British Commonwealth’s strategy in Malaya. The rough terrain of the Malay peninsula made land operations difficult. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) contributed transport, bomber and fighter squadrons during the Malayan Emergency.
In the first years of the Malayan Emergency, the British Commonwealth forces were not ready for extensive ground operations. Furthermore, the Communist guerrillas did not have any aircraft. This meant the Commonwealth aircraft could dominate.
Australia’s first action in the Malayan Emergency was the 1950 arrival of RAAF transport and bomber squadrons.
In June 1950, 8 Dakota transport aircraft of No. 38 Transport Squadron RAAF landed in Malaya.
The squadron was first stationed east of Singapore at Changi airfield. In April 1951, it began operating from Kuala Lumpur with No. 1 Squadron Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF).
No. 38 Squadron moved back to Changi in July 1952 and returned to Australia in December 1952.
Six Lincoln bombers of No. 1 Squadron RAAF arrived in Malaya in July 1950.
The squadron was based at Tengah on the west of Singapore island. The Lincolns operated in Malaya until 1958, when they were replaced by Canberra bombers of No. 2 Squadron RAAF.
At first, the RAAF units served in Malaya as part of Britain’s Far East Air Force (FEAF). The Australian squadrons then got to have some autonomy under the command of RAAF Headquarters in Singapore.
By the late 1950s, RAAF squadrons operated from the recently rebuilt Butterworth airbase in northern Malaya. This was part of the British Commonwealth Far East Strategic Reserve (FESR).
No. 3 Squadron RAAF and No. 77 Squadron RAAF were also based at Butterworth. Both squadrons flew Sabre jet fighters.
The RAAF’s service in Malaya was the foundation of Australia’s contribution to the conflict. It was also a significant part of the wider Commonwealth effort.
The RAAF’s role in the FESR meant that even after the end of the Malayan Emergency in 1960, squadrons continued to operate out of the Butterworth air base.
Transport operations
When Cabinet committed Australian military personnel to Malaya in 1950.
The RAAF was quickest to respond because No. 38 Squadron crews had returned home from Europe in late 1949. The squadron had been part of the Berlin airlift to provide the western part of Berlin with supplies from the air. The Australian operation, codenamed ‘Pelican’, ran from September 1948 to August 1949.
No. 38 Squadron RAAF flew its first mission of the Malayan Emergency in July 1950. It involved carrying wounded Commonwealth soldiers from airstrips at Ipoh and Taiping to Kuala Lumpur.
During more than 2 years in the area, No. 38 squadron carried out a wide variety of operations, including:
- troop transportation and evacuation
- paratrooper and leaflet drops
- target marking
- meteorological observation.
After the squadron moved to Kuala Lumpur in April 1951 and began working with No. 1 Squadron RNZAF, most operations consisted of supply drops.
For a year, the 2 squadrons were both stationed at Kuala Lumpur. In this time, they dropped more than 400 tonnes of supplies to Commonwealth ground forces. Most supplies were dropped in 90 kg bags suspended from parachutes.
No. 38 Squadron also carried out cargo flights throughout the region. The crew flew as far away as Japan, Korea and Ceylon (Sri Lanka).
Offensive operations
Australian Lincoln bombers were the mainstay of the British Commonwealth bombing campaign, especially in the early years when the outcome was doubtful.
Arriving in Malaya in July 1950, one month after the Dakotas of No. 38 Squadron, the 6 Lincoln aircraft of No. 1 Squadron RAAF were the only heavy bombers in the area. It was not until 1953 that the RAAF aircraft were joined by some British Royal Air Force (RAF) Lincolns.
From 1950 to 1958, No. 1 Squadron flew 4,000 missions in Malaya, including:
- pinpoint-bombing missions
- area-bombing missions
- night harassment raids.
This last type of mission involves flying past many targets but only bombing a select few. Night harassment raids were like the RAF’s diversionary ‘siren raids’ in World War II.
Operation Termite in July 1954 was a high point of No. 1 squadron’s service in Malaya. The bombers took part in this operation against guerrilla camps in northern Malaya. It consisted of 5 Australian Lincolns and 6 Lincolns from No. 148 Squadron RAF. The Lincolns carried out a series of bombing runs and ground attacks in conjunction with paratrooper drops.
The long range and heavy payload of the Lincoln made it an effective bomber. Its relatively slow speed also proved helpful in Malaya when trying to locate jungle targets.
Although the fighting was essentially over when they arrived in 1958, the Canberra bombers of No. 2 Squadron flew some missions from Butterworth, including formation-bombing runs.
The Sabre jet fighters of No. 3 Squadron and No. 77 Squadron also flew strafing missions from Butterworth against Communist-guerrilla targets.
No. 2 Airfield Construction Squadron
Butterworth was leased from the British by the Australian Government. This was to provide a base for the RAAF component of the British Commonwealth Far East Strategic Reserve (FESR).
Butterworth had been an airfield during World War II. To accommodate modern jet aircraft, it needed major improvements. The improvements included a new 1.9 km runway, part of which ran through swamps and paddy fields.
During the Malayan Emergency, the No. 2 Airfield Construction Squadron RAAF built
- the main runway at Butterworth airfield
- the control tower
- fuel storage facilities
- hangars
- accommodation
- other infrastructure.
No. 2 Airfield Construction Squadron began work at Butterworth in late 1955. The squadron’s 300 personnel were helped by 600 Malay, Chinese and Indian labourers. Working conditions at Butterworth were difficult. The land was often waterlogged due to the monsoonal rain. Despite the environmental challenges, the airfield was completed in February 1958.
Two Royal Australian Air Force Nursing Service (RAAFNS) nurses joined an RAAF medical officer at Butterworth while it was being constructed. Senior Sister Margaret Moloney and Sister Fay Woodfine arrived in Malaya in December 1955. Initially the nurses stationed the ‘Station Sick Quarters’, which eventually turned into No. 4 RAAF Hospital, a joint hospital with British Army and RAF medical staff.
Butterworth became the RAAF’s most forward operational airbase when No. 2 Squadron arrived with its Canberra bombers in July 1958.
The RAAF continued with anti-insurgency operations along the Thai-Malay border until 1966.
Australia finally handed control of the Butterworth airbase to Malaysia in 1988.
