THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN AIR FORCE—RAAF 1912 - 2025 (AI STUDY GUIDES)
LINK: FREE SUBSTACK MAGAZINE JB-GPT's AI TUTOR MILITARY HISTORY
Resources
Thesee AIs are asked to prioritise the following resources for reference material:
LIST OF RAAF HISTORY AI STUDY GUIDES
These posts were created using a set of Artificial Intelligence instructions, Generative Pre-Trained Transformers (GPTs), that use as their primary source the Australian War Memorial’s (AWM) digitised collections (https://www.awm.gov.au). When a theme or topic is selected, the system maps it to relevant AWM Official History chapters, unit diaries, and series records—anchored to stable RCDIG/C-numbers—and builds Key Points, each with a link to the supporting chapter. Recommended further reading is drawn from a selected bibliography (https://www.ai-tutor-military-history.com/bibliography-jbgpt-ai). The result is a post that may be useful for self-directed study and allows the framing of further questions on the topic.
RAAF EARLY DAYS
- 1912 Oct: AFC Formation....Formation of Australian Army Flying Corps
- 1912 July: Petre and Harrison—Founders of Australian Military Aviation
- 1914 Apr: WWI—AFC OPS...From Point Cook to the Western Front: Birth of Australian Military Aviation
- 1915 Jul: WWI—Mesopotamia AFC OPS...The Australian Flying Corps in Mesopotamia and the Middle East
- 1917 July: WW1—HAMEL AFC OPS...The AFC at the Battle of Hamel
- 1918 Nov: WWI—Armistice and Legacy: The AFC’s Wartime Achievements
- 1918–21: RAAF’s Founding Paradox
- 1921 Mar: Sir Richard Williams and Formation of the RAAF
- 1923-24: Imperial Conference on Defence Coordination
- 1928 May: Interwar—Pioneering Air Routes and the Empire Air Mail Scheme
- 1934 Feb: Interwar—Defending the North: Darwin and Early Air Defence Plans
- 1935-42: Failure to Develop an Australian Fighter Capablity
- 1937 May: Replacement of Sir Richard Williams as CAS.
RAAF WW2
- 1939-45: RAAF. Overview WW2
- 1939 Sep: WW2—Mobilising for War: RAAF at the Outbreak of WW2
- 1940 Aug: WW2—Empire Air Training Scheme: Australia’s Flying Contribution
- 1940 Aug: WW2—Fairbairn Air Crash Kills Key Australian Ministers and Generals
- 1940 Sep: WW2—Australians Serving in the RAF during the Battle of Britain
- 1941-45: WW2—General Blamey and His Influence on RAAF Operations
- 1941-45: WW2—RAAF contribution to RAF Bomber Command
- 1941-45: WW2—460 SQN Example of RAAF Bomber Command SQN
- 1941-45: WW2—Women’s Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF)
- 1941 Jan: WW2—Desert War: Australians over North Africa and the Mediterranean
- 1941 Dec: WW2—Pearl Harbor and the RAAF’s First Pacific Battles
- 1941-42: WW2—RAAF Wirraways at Rabaul Outclassed in Combat
- 1941-42: WW2—Defence of Port Moresby
- 1942-45: WW2—Bostock and Jones: a Study in Political and Military Incompetence
- 1942-45: WW2—Centralisation of Command Under USAAF
- 1942-45: WW2—General George Kenney
- 1942-45: WW2—Partners Working with the USA
- 1942–43: WW2—The Richmond–Canberra Air Defence Debate
- 1942 Feb: WW2—Darwin Bombed: The RAAF’s Defence of Northern Australia
- 1942-July/Nov: WW2—RAAF Providing Support for Army Kokoda Track Campaign
- 1942 July: WW2—RAAF Fuel Supply Established for New Guinea Campaign
- 1942 Aug: WW2—RAAF Support Battle for Milne Bay.
- 1942 Nov: WW2—FSGT Middleton VC: The RAAF’s First Victoria Cross
- 1942 Nov: WW2—Failure to Intercept Japanese Convoy (Preliminary to Battle of the Bismark Sea)
- 1943 Mar: WW2—RAAF Battle of the Bismarck Sea
- 1943 Aug: WW2—Attacking Japanese Strongholds
- 1943 Sep: WW2—RAAF Maintainer Training Expanded in New Guinea
- 1944 Jun: WW2—Catalinas and Liberators: Long-Range Strikes in the Pacific
- 1945 May: WW2—RAAF Morotai Mutiny and Command Crisis
- 1945 May: WW2—Victory Flights: RAAF’s Final Missions Over Borneo
THE COLD WAR ERA
- 1946–1951: RAAF Introduces Gloster Meteor & De Haviland Vampire.
- 1950: Korean War Deployed with WW2 Mustang Aircraft
- 1950 Jun: Korean War—Into the Jet Age: 77 Squadron’s Mustangs in Korea
- 1950 Nov: The Formation of the Womens Royal Australian Air Force (WRAAF)
- 1951 Nov: Korean War—Meteor versus MiG: RAAF Jet Combat in Korea
- 1952 Mar: RAAF Post-War Maintenance Training System
- 1952-63: Woomera and the British Nuclear Testing Program
- 1953–54: Withdrawal from Korea and Strategic Lessons
- 1954 Aug: CAC Sabre Inroduction—RAAF
- 1958 Mar: Lockheed C-130 Hercules Introduction—RAAF
- 1962 Aug: RAAF Vampire “Red Sales” Aerobatic Team Crash, Australia
- 1964 May: Modernises Maintenance Training System—RAAF
- 1964 Dec: Dassault Mirage III Introduction—RAAF
- 1965 Feb: Cold War—Confrontation: RAAF Operations in Borneo and Malaysia
- 1966-71 Vietnam War (The RAAF’s Involvement)
- 1966 May: Vietnam War—Canberras Over Phuoc Tuy: Bombing Missions in Vietnam
- 1973 June: RAAF Introduces General Dynamics F-111C
- 1974 June: RAAF Restructures Maintenance Training System
- 1974-2000: RAAF Deseal/Reseal an Institutional Failure
- 1976: Tange Reforms and Creation of the ADF
- 1980–1990: Cold War—Bare Bases and Northern Australia Defence Posture
F/A 18 HORNET ERA
- 1985 May: RAAF Introduces McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet
- 1988 June: RAAF Recruits First Women Pilots—Breaking Barriers in Military Aviation
- 1987 Mar:The Defence of Australia White Paper (Dibb Review)
- 1989 Feb: 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐦𝐲
- 1989 Aug: Intellectual Air Power Development Formation Air Power Studies Centre
- 1990 Nov: Gulf War—F/A-18 Hornets in Operation Desert Shield
- 1991 Mar: Gulf War—Operation Desert Storm: RAAF Air-to-Air Combat
- 1991 Oct: RAAF Boeing 707 Tanker Crash—A Crisis in Safety Management
- 1992 Nov: Ending the ADF Ban on Homosexual and Lesbian Service
- 1994 Aug: RAAF Reform of Maintenance Training in the Nineties
- 1998 June: RAAF Embraces Combined Air and Manoeuvre Doctrine
- 1999 Oct: Peacekeeping—East Timor: Airlift and Support Operations
- 2001 Sep: RAAF and the War on Terror Operation Enduring Freedom
- 2003 Feb: RAAF Maintenance Training System Adapted for Modern Platforms
- 2003 Mar: Iraq War—Hornets Over Iraq: RAAF in Operation Falconer
- 2003 Mar: RAAF Modernises with AP-3C Orion Upgrades (Surveillance/Reconnaissance)
- 2003 Apr: Jindalee Over-the-Horizon Rader (JORN)
- 2004 Oct: Formation of JOC as RAAF Commits to Joint Operations Concepts
- 2006 Dec: RAAF Introduces Boeing C-17 Globemaster III
- 2008 Aug: Afghanistan—Close Air Support and ISR: RAAF in Operation Slipper
- 2011 Apr: RAAF Skype Incident—Catalyst for Reform in ADF Treatment of Women
- 2011 Sep: RAAF Maintenance Training Enhanced for Joint Operations
- 2014 Oct: Middle East—Strikes Against ISIS: Operation Okra Begins
THE F-35 ERA
- 2015 Jan: Fighter-Aircraft Generations—what the labels mean
- 2015 Feb: Jericho RAAF Temporarily Designations Itself as a Fifth Generation Air Force
- 2016–17: Plan Jericho Implementation Phase
- 2017 Dec: First Female RAAF Fighter Pilots Graduate
- 2018 Dec: RAAF Introduces Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II
- 2020 Mar: Humanitarian—RAAF Disaster Relief Operations in the Pacific
- 2021 Mar: Centenary—100 Years of the RAAF: Heritage and Modern Air Power
- 2021 Nov: RAAF Maintenance Training System Advances in the 2020s
- 2023 Apr: Overview of Defence White Papers and implications for the RAAF
- 2023 Apr: Defence directed to abandon White Paper Model and provide a National Defence Strategy every two years
- 2023 May: Integration of Ghost Bat into IOC and Air Combat Capability Planning
- 2023 Interim Defence Strategic Review
- 2023 Oct: RAAF Deploys E‑7A Wedgetail to Europe in Support of Ukraine (Operation Kudu)
- 2024 Apr: National Defence Strategy
- 2025 Oct: Aeroskills Training Packages and Air Force
- 2025 Oct: RAAF Undergoes Fleet Modernisation Across ISR and Combat Domains
- 2025: The RAAF as an independent strategic air force.
Overviews as at Oct 2025
SOURCES: This AI was directed to use the following resources when developing Study Guides. It is now able to access official histories that have been made available online.
HIGHEST PRIORITY SOURCE
All answers must include at least, if possible, three references from the Official histories, as per URLS.
Australian Official Histories
(Series 3 – Air):
Gillison, D. (1962). Royal Australian Air Force 1939–1942 (Series 3 – Air, Vol. I). Canberra: AWM.
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417319
Odgers, G. (1968). Air War Against Japan 1943–1945 (Series 3 – Air, Vol. II). Canberra: AWM.
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417320
Herington, J. (1954). Air War Against Germany and Italy 1939–1943 (Series 3 – Air, Vol. III). Canberra: AWM.
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417321
Herington, J. (1963). Air Power Over Europe 1944–1945 (Series 3 – Air, Vol. IV). Canberra: AWM.
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417322
Series 4 – Civil
Hasluck, P. Vol I – The Government and the People, 1939–1941 (1952). AWM Civil Series. https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417302
Hasluck, P. Vol II – The Government and the People, 1942–1945 (1970). AWM Civil Series. https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417302
Butlin, S.J. & Schedvin, C.B. Vol III – War Economy, 1939–1942 (1955). AWM Civil Series. https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417302
Butlin, S.J. & Schedvin, C.B. Vol IV – War Economy, 1942–1945 (1977). AWM Civil Series. https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417302
Mellor, D.P. Vol V – The Role of Science and Industry (1958). AWM Civil Series. https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1417302
SECOND PRIORITY SOURCE
UK Official Histories – RAF (HMSO series)
RAF Vol I – The Fight at Odds (Richards, 1953). UK RAF Official History.
RAF Vol II – The Fight Avails (Richards & Saunders, 1954). UK RAF Official History.
RAF Vol III – The Fight is Won (Saunders, 1954). UK RAF Official History.
Strategic Air Offensive Vol I – Preparation (Webster & Frankland, 1961). UK RAF Official History.
Strategic Air Offensive Vol II – Endeavour (Webster & Frankland, 1961). UK RAF Official History.
Strategic Air Offensive Vol III – Victory (Webster & Frankland, 1961). UK RAF Official History.
THIRD PRIORITY SOURCE
US Official Histories (Craven & Cate, Army Air Forces in World War II)
Vol I – Plans & Early Operations, 1939–42 (1948). USAAF Official History.
Vol II – Europe: Torch to Pointblank, 1942–43 (1949). USAAF Official History.
Vol III – Europe: Argument to V-E Day, 1944–45 (1951). USAAF Official History.
Vol IV – Pacific: Guadalcanal to Saipan, 1942–44 (1950). USAAF Official History.
Vol V – Pacific: Matterhorn to Nagasaki, 1944–45 (1953). USAAF Official History.
Vol VI – Men and Planes (1955). USAAF Official History.
Vol VII – Services Around the World (1958). USAAF Official History.
FOURTH PRIORITY SOURCE
- RAAF Air Power Manual ED7
FIFTH PRIORITY SOURCE
USE BOOKS FROM THE FOLLOWING ONLINE BIBLIOGRAPHY
https://www.jb-gpt-prompts.com/jb-gpts-military-references
https://sites.google.com/view/prompt-references
*(Both links identical. Two provided to ensure access.)*
SIXTH PRIORITY SOURCE
WWW (use only reputable academic/government sources you can open).