page_title: No. 36 Squadron RAAF
section_title: Berlin Airlift and Korean War
hierarchical_section_title: No. 36 Squadron RAAF / History / Berlin Airlift and Korean War
caption_attribution_description: Seoul (Yong Dong P'ho), South Korea. The scene on the tarmac at Seoul as the first group of prisoners of war to be released following the signing of the cease fire in the Korean War board the No. 36 Squadron RAAF aircraft for the flight to Japan and freedom.
context_page_description: No. 36 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force strategic transport squadron. It operates Boeing C-17 Globemaster III heavy airlifters from RAAF Base Amberley, Queensland. The squadron has seen active service flying transport aircraft during World War II, the Korean War, the Indonesia–Malaysia Konfrontasi, the Vietnam War, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It has also supported Australian humanitarian and peacekeeping operations around the world, including Somalia, Cambodia, East Timor and Indonesia.
  The squadron was formed at RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, in March 1942, and equipped with Douglas DC-2s, among other aircraft. Later in the war it began operating Douglas C-47 Dakotas. From 1946 to 1953 it was controlled by No. 86 Wing, which was based in New South Wales at RAAF Station Schofields and, later, RAAF Station Richmond. In 1953 it was re-formed at Iwakuni, Japan, as part of No. 91 Wing. It returned to Australia and the aegis of No. 86 Wing in 1955. The squadron began re-equipping with Lockheed C-130 Hercules at Richmond in 1958, becoming the first non-US operator of the type. Over the next half-century it flew two models of Hercules, the C-130A and C-130H.
context_section_description: On 19 August 1946, No. 36 Squadron transferred to RAAF Station Schofields, New South Wales, where it came under the control of No. 86 (Transport) Wing along with Nos. 37 and 38 Squadrons, also operating Dakotas, and No. 486 (Maintenance) Squadron. No. 486 Squadron provided day-to-day servicing for each of the flying squadrons, deeper maintenance being handled by No. 2 Aircraft Depot, based at the nearby RAAF Station Richmond. Courier flights to Japan continued until December 1947, a 21,000 km (13,000-mile) round trip from Schofields. On 25 August 1948, twenty staff from No. 36 Squadron joined five crews from No. 38 Squadron to take part in the Berlin Airlift, a commitment that lasted almost a year. The Australians delivered over 16,000,000 pounds (7,300,000 kg) of supplies, and over 7,000 passengers. In the absence of these crews, Nos. 36 and 38 Squadron operations were amalgamated, flying hours being recorded under the latter's auspices. During June 1949, No. 36 Squadron and the other extant components of No. 86 Wing, Nos. 38 and 486 Squadrons, relocated from Schofields to Richmond.
  Nos. 36 and 38 Squadrons began to operate separately again in June 1950, following the return of crews from Berlin and No. 38 Squadron's departure for service in the Malayan Emergency. No. 36 Squadron assumed control of the Governor-General's Flight in October 1950. On 21 November 1952, the squadron was awarded the Duke of Gloucester Cup for its proficiency. The return of No. 38 Squadron from Malaya in December stripped No. 36 Squadron of crews to ensure an even distribution of personnel among the two units. This led to No. 36 Squadron again merging with No. 38 Squadron. The former disbanded at Richmond on 9 March 1953, re-forming the next day from No. 30 Transport Unit at Iwakuni, Japan. Here it was part of No. 91 (Composite) Wing, which controlled the RAAF's units during the Korean War and its immediate aftermath. Its complement included eight Dakotas and one CAC Wirraway. In July and August, the squadron evacuated over 900 Commonwealth prisoners of war. It departed Japan on 13 March 1955, having carried over 42,000 passengers and 6,000,000 pounds (2,700,000 kg) of cargo, and was re-established on 1 May at RAAF Base Canberra, where No. 86 Wing had transferred the previous year.
caption: Former prisoners of war board a Dakota of No. 36 Squadron in Seoul, South Korea, August 1953
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