RAAF Base Amberley

The need for a RAAF base in Brisbane was identified in the 1930s. 882 acres (357 ha) of land ca 8km south-west of the city of Ipswich was gazetted for defence purposes on 12 December 1938. The land was called Jeebropilly by the original land-owners of the Jagera, the Yuggera and Ugarapul clans.^[5] The name Jeebropilly denotes the flood plain that the region is.^[6]

The base was initially planned to house a general purpose squadron with 300 officers and men. At the outbreak of World War II the handful of brick buildings were still incomplete and many extra buildings were constructed quickly using wood and fibro. The base opened in June 1940 with the first unit based there being No. 24 Squadron. From May 1942 the base changed roles from flying operations to mainly assembly and repair of aircraft.^[5]

First troops airlifted into combat

The base was a major United States Army Air Forces base during 1942 and 1943. In September 1942, General Douglas MacArthur and Field Marshal Sir Thomas Blamey, Australian commander of New Guinea Force, decided the key to defending Australia was in New Guinea. The US 32nd Infantry Division had arrived in Australia in April 1942, spent several weeks building its first camp, was transported to a new camp in July, and nearly one third of its troops had been in boot camp only five months previously. The division had less than two months of jungle warfare training and was far short of completing the year of division-level training required by Army doctrine. Nonetheless U.S. officers decided it was the most combat-ready unit in Australia.^[7][8]

On 13 September 1942, MacArthur ordered parts of the 32nd Division to Papua New Guinea. Because the situation was critical and time was short, 5th Air Force commander General George Kenney suggested that he could transport the first regiment by air. This had never been attempted before, so Company E, 126th IR, was used to test the concept. At dawn on 15 September 1942, the unit was flown 1,293 miles (2,081 km) from Amberley Field to Port Moresby. The remainder of the 126th IR boarded ships for Port Moresby beginning on 18 September from Brisbane. The 128th IR was from Townsville, Australia to Port Moresby on the same day.^[9] The 126th IR were the first troops to be airlifted into combat.^[10]

Known Fifth Air Force units assigned to "Amberley Field" were:

The US facilities were transferred to Australia in 1947.^[11] After the war it became the base for the RAAF's heavy bombers operated by No. 1, No. 2 and No. 6 squadrons. The reserve No. 23 (City of Brisbane) Squadron relocated from RAAF Station Archerfield to Amberley in 1955.

In 1965, the US extended a "Joint Research Program for Measuring the Physical Effects of Disturbances in the Atmosphere or in Space with particular emphasis on their effect on Radio Communications" from RAAF Base Pearce to the base at Amberley.^[12]

The current layout of the aerodrome consists of two runways, 3km and 1.5km long.^[13]

The following units are based at RAAF Base Amberley:^{[14][15][16][3]}

• United States Army Air Forces in Australia (World War II)
• List of airports in Queensland
• List of Royal Australian Air Force installations

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

• Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
• Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969]. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-405-12194-6. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.

• Media related to RAAF Base Amberley at Wikimedia Commons
• RAAF Base Amberley on the Australian Air Force website