Adrian Cole (RAAF Officer) - World War II

World War II

As part of the RAAF's reorganisation following the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, No. 2 Group was formed in Sydney on 20 November, with Cole in command. He was raised to temporary air commodore in December, and took charge of Southern Area Command when it was established in the new year. In September 1941, he was sent to North Africa as Officer Commanding No. 235 Wing RAF of the Desert Air Force, where he helped establish a new anti-submarine warfare unit, No. 459 Squadron RAAF. Posted to England with Headquarters No. 11 Group in May 1942, he served as Forward Air Controller of the Dieppe Raid on 19 August, responsible for co-ordinating Allied air cover off the French coast aboard HMS Calpe. In doing so, he was seriously wounded in the jaw and upper body when German fighters strafed the ship; he required plastic surgery and spent a number of weeks recuperating. His gallantry during the action earned him the Distinguished Service Order, the announcement being published in a supplement to the London Gazette on 2 October 1942. The same month, he was made Air Officer Commanding (AOC) RAF Northern Ireland, with the acting rank of air vice marshal, though the command was described in the official history of Australia in the war as a "backwater".

In May 1943, Cole returned to Australia, taking over as AOC North-Western Area Command from Air Commodore Frank Bladin in July. Based in Darwin, Northern Territory, he was responsible for regional air defence, reconnaissance, protection of Allied shipping and, later, offensive operations in the New Guinea campaign. Cole found the command in "good shape" but considered its air defence capability inadequate, recommending augmentation by long-range fighters such as the P-38 Lightning. However, he had to make do with the three squadrons of Spitfires already on his strength, and the possibility of calling on the USAAF's Fifth Air Force for reinforcements as necessary. During August and September, he reduced regular reconnaissance missions to "increase bombing activity to the limit", following a request from General Douglas MacArthur to provide all available support for Allied assaults on Lae–Nadzab. North-Western Area B-24 Liberators, Hudsons, Beaufighters and Catalinas carried out raids to destroy Japanese bases and aircraft, and divert enemy forces from Allied columns. Through March and April 1944, Cole had thirteen squadrons under his control, and was supporting amphibious operations against Hollandia and Aitape. In May, he directed bombing from North-Western Area on Surabaya as part of Operation Transom.

Cole handed over North-Western Area to Air Commodore Alan Charlesworth in September 1944. He took up an appointment as Air Member for Personnel (AMP) in October, but was removed soon afterwards following an incident at RAAF Headquarters, Melbourne. The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal George Jones, received an anonymous letter alleging that Cole had become drunk and lost control at a mess meeting on 8 November. Investigating the matter, Jones was unable to establish whether or not Cole had been drunk but was satisfied that he had not behaved appropriately, and issued him a warning without charging or otherwise disciplining him. Under pressure from the Federal government, Jones dismissed Cole from the position of AMP and posted him to Ceylon in January 1945 as RAAF Liaison Officer to South East Asia Command. Cole served in this role until the end of the war, taking part in negotiations for the Japanese capitulation and acting as Australia's senior representative at the formal surrender ceremony in Singapore on 12 September 1945.