Introducing Flight Lieutenant Suska Denham Flight Lieutenant Suska Denham commissioned into the Royal Australian Air Force as a direct entry through Officers’ Training School in 2017.  She joined as a Security Police Officer and completed her Initial Employment Training at the Defence Force School of Policing, Holsworthy Barracks. After posting to No. 1 Security Forces Squadron, RAAF Base Williamtown, Suska performed the role of Base Security Officer before transitioning to the Squadron...

  Introducing Wing Commander (retired) Michael (Mick) Stone.  Mick joined the Air Force as an apprentice in 1968.  He became an electrical fitter at Williamtown working on Mirage and Sabre aircraft.   In 1971, Mick went to Butterworth Malaysia working on Search and Rescue Hueys. This was his first involvement with helicopter aircrew: most were Vietnam veterans. In 1975, Mick was selected for pilot training. He was then posted to United Nations Emergency Force 2 flying helicopters on...

Introducing Group Captain Jason (Easty) Easthope, recent Chief of Staff, Air Combat Group   Easty joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force at the age of 18 and began flying jets at only 19 years of age.  In 2002 he transferred to the Royal Australian Air Force where he spent most of his time flying and instructing on the F/A-18 Classic Hornet.   Easty flew F18 Hornet-02 in a single-ship display as a celebration of and a fitting end to the aircraft’s career of more than 35 years and 408,000...

Introducing Wing Commander Don Pollock.    Don joined 41 Pilots Course, RAAF in 1961.  Previously he had been an Industrial Arts Teacher in NSW.    After graduation Don was posted to Transport Aircraft and in 1964 joined the first Air Force contingent to Vietnam on Caribous.  He has some tales to tell about those early days in Vietnam.  A lot of “by the seat of your pants get the job done”, short or almost non existent runways, plenty bullets, long hours, lots of flying, often scary, and a...

Air Commodore Chris Sawade, CSC, joined the Royal Australian Air Force in January 1974 and on graduation from pilot training he was posted to fly helicopters with No 5 Squadron.   Between 1976 and 1988, Chris completed operational and flying instructional tours throughout Australia, the South West Pacific and the Middle East, flying Huey and Squirrel helicopters and CT4 and Macchi Trainers.   In 1988, Chris was posted to No. 38 Squadron where he served as Training Flight Commander and...

Introducing Air Commodore (retired) Chris Beatty DFC. AFC.  A Notable Flying Career Chris’ flying career started when he learnt to fly light aircraft with the Air Force cadets at Parafield in 1963.   He joined the Royal Australian Air Force in 1966 graduating on No 64 Pilots.   In 1968, Chris saw a significant expansion of the Australian Forces in Vietnam which included No 9 squadron’s helicopters.  Half of his pilots course were converted onto helicopters and all posted to fly Iroquois...

Group Captain Peter  (Spike) R Davies, CSC,  Chief of Staff, Air Combat Group Peter Davies enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force in May 1988 as a direct entrant Air Defence Officer. Following Air Defence Controller Course, he served with No 3 Control and Reporting Unit  and No 114 Mobile Control and Reporting Unit before qualifying as a Fighter Combat Controller in 1992. After instructing at 3 Control and Reporting Unit, Peter was selected for Airborne Warning and Control System training...

Introducing Air Chief Marshal Sir Angus Houston AK, AFC (Retired) Air Chief Marshal Sir Angus (Allan) Houston was born in West Kilbride, a very small place to the south-west of Glasgow in Scotland overlooking the Firth of Clyde. His father was a Royal Air Force officer who was shot down at a place called Handzame in 1943. He was captured by Belgian collaborators and was handed over to the Germans. He became a prisoner of war in Stalag Luft III, “The Great Escape” camp. Sir Angus saw an...

Air Marshal (retired) Geoff Brown AO Air Marshal Geoff Brown joined the RAAF in February 1980 after completing an Engineering degree.   He graduated from No.111 Pilots' Course in 1981  and has since had many and varied flying roles. He has operated Chinooks,   been a Flying Instructor, been a member of the Roulettes aerobatic display team, operated Hornets in the roles of squadron pilot, flight commander and executive officer and Commanding Officer 3 Squadron.   He then completed F-111...

AIR VICE-MARSHAL (retired) Bob RICHARDSON AO AFC   Bob Richardson qualified as an RAAF fighter pilot in 1962, and flew Sabre aircraft with 77 Squadron in Malaysia, Singapore, and Labuan North Borneo for nearly three years during the Indonesian Confrontation crisis.   He was also attached to 79 Fighter Squadron in Thailand four times for SEATO air defence operations.   After a tour as a flying instructor, he qualified at the United Kingdom Empire Test Pilots' School in 1968, and subsequently...

Air Marshal Gavin Neil "Leo" Davies, AO, CSC is a retired Chief of the Royal Australian Air Force.     Born and raised in country Victoria, Air Marshal Leo Davies was attracted to aviation from primary school and consequently pursued the Air Force for pilot training.   He joined the RAAF in 1979, as a navigator and flew P3B and P3C Orions for six years, learning a lot about airmanship and real world maritime operations.   He then retrained as a pilot,  flying F111s of all types. He...

Air Vice Marshal DAVE ROGERS AM RAAF (Retd)   Dave Rogers from Cadet Under Officer in to Deputy Chief of the Air Staff.      In between these two events he had many different adventures from:   Flying Sabres on operational missions during Confrontation with Indonesia.   Serving in Ubon, Thailand as part of Australia's contribution to SEATO and Vietnam.   Instructing on Vampires in Perth.   Completing the first F-111 training in the USA.   Converting to the F-4E Phantom and flying the delivery...

Introducing Group Captain Terry Wilson, AM AFC   Terry grew up in the Swan Valley.  Vampires from Pearce Air Force Base constantly flew overhead and along with the prevalence of lots of material about World War II air exploits (not to mention Biggles books), Terry was bound to be very keen on all things aviation.   Terry graduated the dux of his Air Force apprentice engine fitter course in December 1960,   In 1964, Terry start his long-coveted pilot training.  He felt at home when he got to...

Introducing Warrant Officer Gerry Mapstone OAM. Gerry joined the RAAF 1966 and in 1967 became an Airfield Defence Guard and was posted to South Vietnam. On arrival in Vietnam, having previously lead an Aussie life, Gerry was told that the weather was fine and there was only light to moderate ground fire. He was given the opportunity to become an Iroquois Door Gunner with 9 Squadron.  His duties were to assist in medical evacuation, loading and unloading of stores and personnel and to protect,...

Air Commodore Nick Osborne Recent Commander Surveillance and Response Group AIR COMMODORE Nick Osborne joined the RAAF in 2002 having served 20 years in the Royal New Zealand Air Force as a pilot. While in the New Zealand Air Force he flew Skyhawk and Macchi jets and served on exchange at RAAF Pearce flying Macchi and PC-9 aircraft. During his flying career, he accumulated over 5500 hours mostly in jets. He joined the RAAF following the disbandment of the Air Combat Force in New...

Introducing AIR VICE-MARSHAL JOE ‘VINNY’ IERVASI, AM, CSC,    Air Vice Marshal Joe Iervasi completed flying training in 1989, and converted onto the FA-18 Hornet in 1991. He then, during his Air Force career as a fighter pilot, served in junior pilot roles through to Flight Commander appointments and then Commanding Officer of 3 Squadron. A notable posting was on exchange to 5 Squadron RAF flying the Tornado F3.  He deployed on Operation Deny Flight enforcing the no fly zone over...

Introducing AIR COMMODORE BENJAMIN SLEEMAN, CSC, DSM,   Deputy Air Commander Australia Ben Sleeman joined the Australian Air Force in January 1990 and after attending the Defence Force Academy proceeded to pilot training. Ben then completed fast jet training and was posted to 75 Squadron in Tindal on the F/A-18 Hornet.   In 1999 Ben completed 26 Fighter Combat Instructor Course. Ben then deployed on Operation Slipper with 3 Squadron in early 2002.  In 2003 he deployed again on Operations...

Introducing Michael Lea who is the current Collection and Content Manager at the Anzac Memorial. Michael has been a professional museum curator and collection manager for over thirty years. He has worked on numerous exhibitions and with a variety of collections in several cultural institutions including the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, Sydney, the Australiana Fund and the Anzac Memorial, Sydney. As a keen student of Australian history, he is in the final stages of writing up his PhD...

Introducing Squadron Leader (ret) Ian Woods.    Ian gained substantial experience on Caribous during his time in the Air Force.  Caribous were of the famed Wallaby Airlines operated by the Air Force during the Vietnam war and revered elsewhere as one of the best Short Take Off and Landing aircraft in history. Ian learnt not only a lot about Caribous during his time but they were the catalyst for the gaining of a bit of wisdom. From Ian:  “I flew over seven hundred hours in the first twelve...

Introducing Wing Commander (ret) Chris Mirow:       “We dropped out of the overcast at about eight hundred feet.  I glanced to my right and Fergie was nicely tucked into echelon.  I waved him out to combat and looked ahead to get my bearings.  It looked like Keddah Peak disappearing up into the clouds just up to the north and we were rapidly closing the Malaysian coast.  I was thinking that we had been well positioned by our Ground Control Intercept controller so that we could turn to join...

Introducing Squadron Leader (ret)  Peter Armstrong.  The Australian Air Force needs personnel who can adapt to whatever type of demanding operations that they are chosen for.  Peter Armstrong, and his mate Peter Bradford, who features in a fellow Podcast, represent the best in pilots who were chosen to fly many different aeroplane types and operated them in a manner that excelled. In this Podcast, listen in as Peter Armstrong describes is life flying Iroquois helicopters in Vietnam where the...

RAY SEAVER: KOREAN WAR FIGHTER PILOT   Ray was born in Forbes 1931 during the depression.   By 1950/51, Ray was working as a Cadet Engineer in the Blue Mountains Shire but found it did not suit his temperament when he saw an Air Force advert recruiting Pilots.  He joined the Air Force and was sent for Pilot Training.  In July 1952, he was awarded his Wings and was posted to Fighters learning to fly Mustangs and Vampires.   Ray was then posted to 77 Squadron, Iwakuni, Japan via Hong Kong, for...

 Introducing Squadron Leader (ret) Peter Bradford.  The Australian Air Force needs personnel who can adapt to whatever type of demanding operations that they are chosen for.  Peter Bradford, and his mate Peter Armstrong, who features in a fellow Podcast, represent the best in pilots who were chosen to fly many different aircraft types and operated them in a manner that excelled.   In this Podcast, listen in as Peter Bradford describes is life flying Iroquois helicopters in Vietnam where the...

Introducing Brad Manera, the Senior Historian and Curator of the Anzac Memorial in Hyde Park, Sydney. His career began at the Western Australian Museum and has included foundation curatorial work for the National Museum of Australia, gallery development at the Australian War Memorial and the World Heritage listing submission for the Hyde Park Barracks Museum. A keen public historian, he has led battlefield tours around the world and featured in a range of documentaries. His latest book, In...