Australia’s Contribution to the Airlift

The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) played a modest yet significant role in the Berlin Airlift. During this operation, the RAAF's contribution primarily involved providing personnel rather than aircraft. Approximately 170 RAAF personnel, including pilots, navigators, flight engineers, signallers, and ground staff, participated in the operation. These individuals were integrated into Royal Air Force (RAF) units directly participating in the airlift.

After training at RAF Bassingbourn in the UK, the aircrew moved to Lübeck in the British Zone of Allied-occupied Germany on 14 and 15 September. The first Australian flight into Berlin occurred on 15 September 1948, led by the unit’s commanding officer, Squadron Leader Cyril Greenwood. Over the next 11 months, the squadron conducted 2,062 flights, completing the last one on 26 August 1949. To increase the payloads of each sortie, co-pilots were removed from the crews and eventually sent back to the United Kingdom to ferry several Bristol Freighter aircraft, recently purchased by the RAAF, to Australia. Flying via the 32-kilometer-wide northern corridor to RAF Gatow, and later to the partially completed Tegel airport in November and December 1948, the squadron tallied a total of 6,041 flight hours, carrying 6,964 passengers and delivering 8,000 tonnes of supplies.

The RAAF's participation in the Berlin Airlift, while relatively small compared to the contributions of other nations, especially the United States and the United Kingdom, was a notable instance of Australia's involvement in early Cold War conflicts and humanitarian operations.