page_title: Brian Eaton
section_title: Squadron and wing command
hierarchical_section_title: Brian Eaton / World War II / Squadron and wing command
caption_attribution_description: Fano, Italy. 28 April 1945. The famous No. 239 (Kittyhawk fighter bombers) Wing of the Desert Air Force held a sports meeting and party to mark the third anniversary of the wing's formation. Cheery airmen surround their Commanding Officer, Group Captain Brian A. Eaton DSO DFC, RAAF, of Melbourne, Vic, as he cuts the wing's birthday cake to start off the evening's festivities.
context_page_description: Air Vice Marshal Brian Alexander Eaton, CB, CBE, DSO & Bar, DFC was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force. Born in Tasmania and raised in Victoria, he joined the RAAF in 1936 and was promoted to flight lieutenant on the outbreak of World War II. He held training positions before being posted to No. 3 Squadron at the beginning of 1943, flying P-40 Kittyhawk fighter-bombers in North Africa. Despite being shot down three times within ten days soon after arriving, Eaton quickly rose to become the unit's commanding officer, and by year's end had been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. His leadership earned him the Distinguished Service Order and Bar in 1944–45, and command of No. 239 Wing RAF in Italy, with the temporary rank of group captain. He was also awarded the US Silver Star in 1946 in recognition of his war service.
  In the decade following World War II, Eaton led No. 81 Wing in Japan, and No. 78 Wing in Malta. He commanded RAAF Base Williamtown from 1957 to 1959, after which he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
context_section_description: Despite his early setbacks in combat, Eaton soon rose to command No. 3 Squadron, taking over from Squadron Leader Bobby Gibbes on 21 April 1943. He led the unit as it relocated to Malta the following month, in preparation for the Allied invasion of Sicily. Illness forced him to hand over command in June–July, but he returned to take charge of the squadron in August as it continued to fly escort and interdiction missions in Sicily with other units of No. 239 Wing RAF. His brother Roger, a flight sergeant serving with the RAF, was killed in a Wellington bomber raid during the campaign. On 3 September, No. 3 Squadron took part in the opening day of the Allied invasion of Italy, supporting the British XIII Corps as it moved inland after landing at Calabria. Enemy air resistance remained light and worthwhile ground targets few as the campaign progressed but, on 24 October, Eaton led an attack against German shipping off the Yugoslav coast that left a merchant ship and two barges on fire. He repeated the exercise on 7 November, when the squadron scored hits on vessels in two separate raids in the harbour at Split. On 19 November, when the rest of No. 239 Wing was unable to complete any missions due to adverse weather, Eaton found a hole in the clouds and led eight Kittyhawks in a successful attack on Opi in central Italy. He was promoted to temporary wing commander on 1 December. On 14 December, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for pressing home a night attack on Axis armour at Termoli. The citation was promulgated in the London Gazette:
  One evening in October, 1943, this officer led his squadron in an attack on a strong enemy force, equipped with tanks, which were attacking our troops near Termoli. In spite of intense antiaircraft fire, Squadron Leader Eaton led his formation in at a low level and pressed home an attack which completely disrupted the enemy's forces. In this spirited action, Squadron Leader Eaton displayed inspiring leadership, great courage and tenacity.
  On 16 February 1944, the day after the contentious destruction of Monte Cassino, Eaton took No. 3 Squadron through a break in the bad weather to attack the ruined monastery, the only one of No. 239 Wing's units to successfully bomb its target that day. He handed over command of No. 3 Squadron later that month, and was transferred to No. 1 Mobile Operations Room Unit as forward air controller for the final assault on Monte Cassino. The run of luck that Eaton experienced in his first weeks of air combat in Tunisia continued on the ground in Italy. He survived three months of constant artillery fire, including an occasion when a shell exploded directly above his observation post, striking down a British officer standing next to him. He also came under machine-gun fire when he took a wrong turn one day and drove into the German lines, but again escaped unhurt. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order on 7 April, in recognition of his leadership of No. 3 Squadron in North Africa, Malta, Sicily and Italy.
  Raised to acting group captain, Eaton was given command of No. 239 Wing on 3 August 1944, taking responsibility for No. 3 Squadron and No. 450 Squadron RAAF, No. 112 Squadron and No. 260 Squadron RAF, No. 5 Squadron of the South African Air Force, and No. 250 Squadron of the Royal Rhodesian Air Force. Credited with leading "many outstanding raids", he was known to his staff as "The Boss", and often flew twice a day with a different squadron on each mission; when his superiors found out how many sorties he was personally undertaking and ordered him to cut back, he simply ceased recording his flying hours. The wing's two RAF squadrons had already re-equipped with P-51 Mustangs when Eaton took over; No. 5 converted in September and No. 3 in November. As well as supporting the Eighth Army in Italy, the Mustang units carried out missions in Yugoslavia in concert with the Balkan Air Force, prior to Axis forces surrendering on 2 May.
  Eaton was unofficially credited with shooting down as many as seven enemy aircraft during the Mediterranean campaigns, b
caption: Acting Group Captain Eaton (centre, cutting cake) and personnel of No. 239 Wing, at the formation's third anniversary celebration in Fano, Italy, 28 April 1945
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