Australian War Memorial Logo
Search
  • Online Shop Use this login for Shop items, and image, film, sound reproductions
    Cart  |  Log In
  • Collection Open Information Close Information
    • Official Histories & Unit Diaries
    • Understanding the Collection
    • Research at the Memorial
    • Donating to the Collection
    • National Collection Loans
    • Projects
  • People
  • Visit
  • Commemorate Open Information Close Information
    • Last Post Ceremony
    • Honour Rolls
    • Anzac Day
    • Remembrance Day
    • Customs & Ceremony
    • Speeches
  • Learn Open Information Close Information
    • Schools & Teachers
    • Memorial Articles
    • Encyclopedia
    • Understanding Military Structure
    • Podcasts
    • Glossary
    • Wartime Magazine
  • Get Involved Open Information Close Information
    • Donations & Bequests
    • Corporate Partnership
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Volunteer at the Memorial
    • Friends of the Memorial
    • eMemorial Newsletter
    • Grants, Scholarships & Residencies
    • Research Papers
  • Shop Open Information Close Information
    • Help and Information
    • Lone Pine Seedlings
    • Images, film and sound

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Memorial Articles
  3. RAAF Centenary
  4. Explore the Collection

Main navigation

  • Our People
  • Our Work
  • Our Organisation
  • Media Centre
  • Memorial Articles
    • Australians and Peacekeeping
    • Australians at war
    • Gulf War 1990-1991
    • Journal of the Australian War Memorial
    • Korean War 1950 - 1953
    • NAIDOC Week
    • RAAF Centenary
    • Victory in the Pacific Day
  • Speeches

Explore the Collection

To mark the centenary of the Royal Australian Air Force the Memorial will be sharing stories, photos and information about Australian service in the sky. These collection items highlight the contributions and experiences of our RAAF members, past and present.

 

afc

The RAAF in Art

ONLINE EXHIBITION

To commemorate the centenary of the establishment of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), we are showcasing some of the highlights of the Memorial’s art collection. Thousands of RAAF-related artworks trace the history of Australian military aviation.

This online exhibition, presented gradually throughout March, will illustrate the history of the RAAF, starting with Australian Flying Corps (AFC). 

Explore the online exhibition

Capturing the RAAF through time

IMAGES FROM THE COLLECTION

Collection Item C8450

Accession Number: 024673

Bomb armourers of the Royal Australian Air Force serving with No.450 Squadron, Royal Air Force, riding on the "Bomb Train" being drawn to the places for loading. 1 August 1942

Collection Item C258309

Accession Number: 136860

Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) trainee telegraphists practise morse code at a RAAF radio school at Toorak, Melbourne, VIC. 25 September 1942.

Collection Item C46895

Accession Number: 070122

A CA27 Sabre Mk.32 A96-994 aircraft of the Royal Australian Air Force flying over Melbourne Cricket Ground. 1959.

Collection Item C37258

Accession Number: JK0093

Flying Officer Les Reading, RAAF Pilot with No. 77 Squadron climbs from his aircraft after returning from a mission over North Korea. Kimpo, South Korea. 1951

Collection Item C286011

Accession Number: NWA0408

A staff member plotting aircraft positions on a map in the Operations Room of a RAAF base in the North-West Area. Darwin, NT. March 1945.

Collection Item C303581

Accession Number: MEA0587

Portrait of Air Vice Marshal H. N. Wrigley, Air Officer Commanding, RAAF Overseas Headquarters. Agnone, Sicily, Italy. c. September 1943.

Collection Item C38037

Accession Number: A04219

A formation of de Havilland DH9 RAAF aircraft. Serial A6-21 on the aircraft in the foreground. c 1921-1929

Collection Item C1201117

Accession Number: P05729.778

A Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) C-130 Hercules lands at Tarin Kowt Airfield. 26 March 2007

Collection Item C270865

Accession Number: SUK10443

Sergeant D. G. Highman, a member of the RAAF on his way to air-firing practice. England. C. 1942

Collection Item C266242

Accession Number: 138940

Two members of the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) putting an Aileron control rod to a Gipsy Moth aircraft at a RAAF station. Melbourne, VIC. May 1943

Collection Item C49562

Accession Number: 060729

A RAAF Boomerang fighter aircraft which landed with its wheels up at No. 59 Operation Base Unit, RAAF. Millungimbi, NT. November 1943

Collection Item C195348

Accession Number: P01403.006

The S-70B Seahawk helicopter 874 (N24-005) from HMAS Adelaide approaching stores which had been delivered to Diego Garcia by RAAF C130. 31 August 1990.

Collection Item C36570

Accession Number: VN/67/0130/29

In the tape-recording centre at Phan Rang Air Base, Vietnam is (left to right) RAAF men Leading Aircraftman (LAC) Peter Herbert and LAC Kevin Conner. The No 2 (Canberra) Squadron airmen are clerks in the Operations Room. 1967

Collection Item C1186626

Accession Number: P04669.351

RAAF supplying water to diggers in the field. c 1967

Collection Item C42821

Accession Number: JK0228

Corporal K Sumner, RAAF Engine Fitter, works on the starboard engine of a Douglas C47 Dakota aircraft of No. 30 Communications Unit. Iwakuni, Japan. 1952 

Collection Item C303913

Accession Number: MEA0788

RAAF members of No. 3 (Kittyhawk) Squadron RAAF, examine a (red) parachute the Germans used to drop supplies to ground forces in isolated areas. Italy. 1943.

Collection Item C302899

Accession Number: MEA0376

Warrant Officer Douglas Short, No. 3 (Kittyhawk) Squadron RAAF, of Barmera, SA (left), shows the fitter of his aircraft the damage caused by German anti-aircraft guns to the leading edge of his aircraft. This damage was received during a strafing raid with No. 3 Squadron RAAF over the Catania area. Sicily, Italy. 1943

Collection Item C57170

Accession Number: JK0966

RAAF Nursing Sister Helen Blair tends to a group of prisoners of war during a flight from Korea to Japan. Iwakuni, Japan. 6 August 1953. 

Collection Item C56389

Accession Number: SUK10628

A Beaufighter Mark II aircraft of No 456 Squadron RAAF at Valley airfield. Left to right; Leading Aircraftman (LAC) Abbot, Sergeant Pilot Stevens, LAC Molloy, LAC Gibson, Corporal (CPL) Cooper, CPL Thomas. March 1942

Collection Item C391423

Accession Number: P03184.011

A RAAF flight engineer sitting on the steps of a RAAF C130 (number 77) aircraft prior to its departure from RAAF Base Darwin to transport supplies to the International Force for East Timor (Interfet) in Dili. Darwin, NT. 9 November 1999

nose art

War Paint: Australian Nose Art over Korea

ONLINE EXHIBITION

During the Korean War, No. 77 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) had a diverse range of nose art on their Mustangs and Meteor aircraft.  From rank emblems and names applied in cursive red font to more ornate artworks including cartoons and sporting emblems, the unit continued the tradition of applying nose art to wartime Australian military aircraft.

Explore

RAAF Heraldry

ITEMS FROM THE COLLECTION

Collection Item C323997

Accession Number: REL25415.001

Worn by Pilot Officer Francis Jeffrey 'Honk' Kevin, RAAF, who flew Hurricane 2D and Thunderbolt P-47D aircraft in Burma with 258 Squadron RAF from 1942-1945.

Collection Item C116490

Accession Number: REL/12811

Sweetheart brooch with a gold painted RAAF eagle and crown set into a perspex disk. The back of the disk has been painted cream. The pin from the brooch has broken off. The paint in the back of the disk is cracked in places and has broken away from the back of the crown.

Collection Item C1117816

Accession Number: REL33804

Standard issue United States Air Force 'Operational Navigation Chart' map made from paper. This map was carried by 43754 Flying Officer (FO) Brian Geoffrey Young on the majority of his flight missions with 35 Squadron RAAF during the Vietnam War.

Collection Item C119699

Accession Number: REL/21130

Brass button with RAF crown and eagle motif. The back of the button unscrews to reveal a small glass faced compass with floating needle. These concealed compasses were carried as an aid to escape in the event of the wearer being shot down over enemy territory.

Collection Item C993985

Accession Number: REL30189

Pair of rubber soled black leather flying boots. The upper neck of each boot features an adjustment strap which is fastened by means of a plated steel buckle. The inside upper portion of each boot is lined with white lambs wool. Inside each boot is a pair of leather pull tabs. 

Collection Item C1219024

Accession Number: REL37872

Souvenir printed handkerchief with lace edge. The centre of the handkerchief is black, with a border of Tudor roses, Scottish thistles and green shamrocks. At each corner is a badge representing Britain and the Commonwealth: the Australian Rising Sun badge; the Canadian General Service badge; the badge of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force; and a naval badge.

Collection Item C157602

Accession Number: REL/17907.003

The US designed B-8 flying goggles, introduced in 1943, were one of the most successful eyewear designs of the Second World War. 

Collection Item C1191767

Accession Number: REL35849

Woven cloth patch of 75 Squadron, RAAF. Circular woven cloth patch. Within a black border, is a black and white magpie over a disruptive camouflage background of grey, brown and green. To the left of the magpie's head is the number, '75'.

Last updated: 15 March 2021

Explore the Collection

Explore the Collection

Our collection contains a wealth of material to help you research and find your connection with the wartime experiences of the brave men and women who served in Australia’s military forces.

Find out more
The Donations and bequests

Donations & Bequests

Your generous donation will be used to ensure the memory of our Defence Forces and what they have done for us, and what they continue to do for our freedom remains – today and into the future.

Find out more
The placesofpride

Places of Pride

Places of Pride, the National Register of War Memorials, is a new initiative designed to record the locations and photographs of every publicly accessible memorial across Australia.

Find out more
Visit the Australian War Memorial

Visit the Australian War Memorial

The Australian War Memorial is open for visitors as we work to expand our galleries. All visitors require a free timed ticket to enter the Memorial Galleries and attend the Last Post Ceremony.

Find out more
Canberra Highlands in Grayscale

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF
TRADITIONAL CUSTODIANS

The Australian War Memorial acknowledges the traditional custodians of country throughout Australia. We recognise their continuing connection to land, sea and waters. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
Location map of The Australian War Memorial
The Australian War Memorial building

The Australian War Memorial

Treloar Crescent
Campbell ACT 2612
Australia
View on Google Maps (opens in new window)
Google Map data ©2023 Google
Australian War Memorial Logo
  • Go to AWM Facebook
  • Go to AWM Twitter
  • Go to AWM Trip Advisor
  • Go to AWM Instagram
  • Go to AWM Youtube

Footer

  • Memorial Articles
  • About
  • Contact
  • Media
  • Wartime Magazine
  • Donate Today

The Australian War Memorial

Treloar Crescent

Campbell ACT 2612

Australia

 

Opening Hours

10 am to 5 pm daily (except Christmas Day)

 

In preparation for the daily Last Post Ceremony,

galleries are progressively closed from 4 pm.

 

Public entrance via Fairbairn Avenue, Campbell ACT 2612

Book your ticket to visit: awm.gov.au/visit

 


Please enter a valid email address

Legal

  • Copyright
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility
  • Freedom of information

Copyright 2023 Australian War Memorial, Canberra. All rights reserved