page_title: Frank Lukis
hierarchical_section_title: Frank Lukis
caption_attribution_description: English: AWM caption: "1943-02-26. Twenty years in RAAF Blue - an informal shot of Group Captain F.W.F. Lukis, promoted recently to take charge of an "Aroa" from command of one of Australia's largest airforce stations. IN 1914 to 1918, he served in No. 1 Squadron of the famed Australian Flying Corp. In 1941 he completed 20 years of service in "RAAF Blue". (Negative by Copy Neg.)." N.B. Date is questionable as Lukis was supposedly Air Commodore in 1943, not Group Captain as seen here - which would make likely correct date c. 1940.
context_page_description: Air Commodore Francis William Fellowes Lukis, CBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force. A veteran of World War I, he first saw combat as a soldier in the Australian Imperial Force at Gallipoli. In 1917, Lukis transferred to the Australian Flying Corps and flew with No. 1 Squadron in the Middle East, where he was twice mentioned in despatches. A member of the Australian Air Corps following the war, he transferred to the fledgling RAAF in 1921, and became the first commanding officer of the newly re-formed No. 3 Squadron at RAAF Station Richmond, New South Wales, in 1925.
  Lukis went on to lead No. 1 Squadron in the early 1930s, and was promoted to group captain in 1938. Appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire the same year, he was in charge of RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, during the early years of World War II. He later held forward commands in the South West Pacific theatre, including Northern Area, for which he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and No. 9 Operational Group. Lukis also served on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body, as Air Member for Personnel.
context_section_description: Air Commodore Francis William Fellowes (Frank) Lukis, CBE (27 July 1896 – 18 February 1966) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). A veteran of World War I, he first saw combat as a soldier in the Australian Imperial Force at Gallipoli. In 1917, Lukis transferred to the Australian Flying Corps and flew with No. 1 Squadron in the Middle East, where he was twice mentioned in despatches. A member of the Australian Air Corps following the war, he transferred to the fledgling RAAF in 1921, and became the first commanding officer of the newly re-formed No. 3 Squadron at RAAF Station Richmond, New South Wales, in 1925.
  Lukis went on to lead No. 1 Squadron in the early 1930s, and was promoted to group captain in 1938. Appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire the same year, he was in charge of RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, during the early years of World War II. He later held forward commands in the South West Pacific theatre, including Northern Area (later North-Eastern Area), for which he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and No. 9 Operational Group (later Northern Command). Lukis also served on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body, as Air Member for Personnel. After retirement from the Air Force in 1946, he became a manager with Australian National Airways, and was active in veterans' associations. He died in 1966 at the age of sixty-nine.
caption: Group Captain Frank Lukis during World War II
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