77 Squadron converted to Gloster Meteor jets between April and July 1951, and operated primarily in the ground attack role from December that year.

36 Squadron returned to Australia in March 1955, leaving four aircraft to equip the newly formed RAAF Transport Flight (Japan), which briefly came under No.

77 (Fighter) Squadron of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) was based at Iwakuni, Japan.

It was now the largest squadron in the RAAF, comprising 299 officers and men, forty Mustangs, three CAC Wirraways, two Douglas C-47 Dakotas and two Austers.

The squadron was preparing to return to Australia when it was placed on standby for action over Korea; it began flying missions as part of the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping force a week later.

77 Squadron's commanding officer, Wing Commander Lou Spence, was killed in action on 9 September 1950, and Air Commodore Alan Charlesworth, Chief of Staff at BCOF, temporarily took charge at Iwakuni, pending the formation of an overarching organisation for support and administration at the base.

[3][6] The term "composite" referred to an RAAF formation made up of disparate operational elements, rather than one comprising a single type such as bombers or fighters.

[6] Some members of the US Far East Air Forces command favoured the establishment of a British Commonwealth Wing, to include No.

77 Squadron's tasking was controlled by the United States Fifth Air Force from the time it commenced operations in Korea, and this arrangement was not affected by the formation of No.

[11][12] It moved forward from Pohang to Yonpo, near Hamhung, in November 1950, continuing its support of UN forces as they advanced up the peninsula.

North Korea's counter-attack, augmented by Chinese forces, led to the squadron being hurriedly withdrawn to Pusan on 3 December.

91 Wing dogged the evacuation from Yonpo, which was effected through US Air Force support supplementing the efforts of RAAF Dakotas.

[14] Cresswell believed that the Iwakuni-based wing headquarters was not always in tune with frontline requirements, and he often dealt directly with Lieutenant General Sir Horace Robertson, BCOF commander and the theatre's senior Australian officer, and the RAAF's Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal Frederick Scherger.

77 Squadron's main role in the RAAF was interception, and it was expected that with the Meteor it could again focus on fighter duties.

[18] According to the official history of Australia in the Korean War, the unit proved its value diplomatically as well as operationally: having been one of the first UN squadrons to go into action, it comprised one-third of the jet fighter force in the latter part of 1951, when clashes in "MiG Alley" were at their height.

[19] However, dogfights between Meteors and MiGs that August convinced the new commanding officer, Wing Commander Gordon Steege, that the Australian jets were outmatched, and Fifth Air Force agreed to take them out of an offensive air-to-air combat role in favour of escort duties and local air defence.

91 Wing's armament officer, played a key role in developing "Flaming Onion", napalm-tipped air-to-ground rockets that were used in several operations in 1952 and 1953.

[30] One of its key functions was medical evacuation, but it was also responsible for supply drops, search and rescue, reconnaissance, and mail delivery, as well as transporting cargo, troops, and VIPs.

77 Squadron, it was not tasked by Fifth Air Force but instead operated under Australian control, which was exercised through BCOF headquarters in Japan.

The added burden of combat operations made this situation untenable after the squadron went into action in Korea, leading to the formation of No.

[37] RAAF base squadrons were responsible for administrative, logistical, medical, communications and security functions.

[37] Further problems arose following the introduction of the Meteor, as spares for the British-made jet were harder to obtain than for the American Mustang.

[42] The squadron's medical contingent was heavily engaged in the preparation and escort of injured personnel from Korea to Iwakuni and then to other destinations.

The standard RAAF working days for technicians at Iwakuni contrasted with shifts of up to sixteen hours near the front line in Korea.

[45][46] Korea was one of the coldest climates in which RAAF ground crews had ever worked; Squadron Leader Cresswell recalled seeing maintenance staff with tools frozen to their hands.

It departed for Australia in November and became operational again at RAAF Base Williamtown, New South Wales, on 4 January 1955.

[48] Its eleven-year absence from Australia, beginning in the Pacific during World War II and continuing in Japan as part of BCOF, was a record for an RAAF unit.

36 Squadron ceased flying on 13 March 1955 and returned to Australia, leaving behind three Dakotas and a Wirraway that equipped RAAF Transport Flight (Japan), formed the following day under No.

[48] Transport Flight (Japan) flew a courier service to South Korea and remained operational until 8 July 1956, when its last Dakota—the last RAAF aircraft in Japan—departed Iwakuni.