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Overview : An overview of the history of the Australian Flying Corps. The introductory history covers the formation of the Australian Flying Corps, service in New Guinea, Mesopotamia, Palestine and France. The history also includes some of the achievers and characters of the Australian Flying Corps.
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Aircraft : A look at the aircraft the Australian Flying Corps flew, listings of the original and replica aircraft on display in Museums around Australia and New Zealand. Including colour Profiles of AFC aircraft and an area covering the modeling kits that have AFC aircraft as their subjects.
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Squadrons : Covering the squadrons and training schools of the Australian Flying Corps. The AFC had one Central Flying School and the NSW government ran a separate NSW State Aviation School. The AFC had two operational flights, the Mesopotamian Half Flight and the AN&MEF flight. In addition the Royal Australian Navy conducted aircraft trials on the Firth of Forth. There were four operations squadrons, 1 Squadron in the Palestine theatre; 2 Squadron, 3 Squadron and 4 Squadron in France. The AFC also maintained a Training Wing in England, 5(T) Squadron, 6(T) Squadron, 7(T) Squadron, 8(T) Squadron and 1 Wing.
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References : Books, Magazines, Periodicals and book reviews that pertain to the written history of the Australian Flying Corps.
Links : Links to other sites of Australian Flying Corps interest.
About : Further information about this site, including the acknowledgements, contributors and the goal of the Australian Flying Corps Website.
The old AFC Site : The new site is starting to fill out, check the updates link for the latest changes to the current site. Since there is so much information on the old site that is of use, the old AFC site is still available from this link. Thanks for your patience.
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Feature on the career of Lt Colonel Walter Oswald Watt. "Ossie" or "Toby" Watt as he was known amongst his men, was a pre-war pilot who barnstormed his way through North Africa and France
before flying with the French forces as part of the French Foreign Legion and then later transferring to the Australian Flying Corps.
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Feature on the Palestine campaign as recorded in the Kriegs-Chronik der Leipziger Neuesten Nachrichten. The newspaper in Leipzig reported a war chronicle on the German campaigns in Palestine and Egypt for 1915, 1916, 1917 and 1918. This is an important collection of communiques chronicling the German campaign in the Middle East.
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11th November 1918
On the 11th hour of the 11th day, hostilities ceased, Captain John "Jack" Wright, a flight commander with 4 Squadron AFC wrote of that moment,
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"On the morning of 11th November, 1918, I was sitting in my Snipe at 8.a.m just about to "wave the chocks away" and take off to bomb and shoot-up the busy rail junction of Ath, which was an important link in the German line of communications. Just as I was about to give the signal to the other five machines, I noticed signs of a commotion on the tarmac, a lot of waving of arms by the people there. A figure detached itself and with much furious waving of arms, came galloping out on the airfield in my direction. I waited until an orderly from the Sqd. office arrived very much out of breath, and gasped out his message, "Flight 'washed-out' Sir, Cancelled! Peace has been signed!" When he got his breath back, he gave me more details. The Armistice was to operate from 11.am, no more offensive moves were to be made."
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In Australia, the Armistice, the fallen and survivors of World War I, are remembered during one minute silence on the 11th minute of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Lest We Forget.
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