No . 77 Wing RAAF No . 77 Wing was a Royal Australian Air Force ( RAAF ) wing of World War II . The unit formed part of No . 10 Operational Group ( later the Australian First Tactical Air Force ) at its establishment in November 1943 , when it comprised three squadron s equipped with Vultee Vengeance dive bombers . No . 77 Wing commenced operations in early 1944 , flying out of Nadzab , Papua New Guinea . Soon afterwards , however , the Vengeance units were withdrawn from combat and replaced with squadrons flying Douglas Bostons , Bristol Beaufighter s and Bristol Beaufort s . The wing saw action in the assaults on Noemfoor , Tarakan , and North Borneo , by which time it was an all - Beaufighter formation made up of Nos . 22 , 30 and 31 Squadrons . It was to have taken part in the Battle of Balikpapan in June 1945 , but unsuitable landing grounds meant that the Beaufighter units were withdrawn to Morotai , sitting out the remainder of the war before returning to Australia , where they disbanded in 1946 . History . No . 77 Wing formed the attack component of No . 10 Operational Group ( No . 10 OG ) , which was established on 13 November 1943 . The group was to act as a mobile strike force capable of supporting Allied ground and naval units while they advanced against the Japanese in the South West Pacific Area ( SWPA ) , as distinct from the RAAF ' s " area commands " in Northern Australia , which had a geographically based static defence function . Led by Wing Commander E . G . Fyfe , No . 77 Wing consisted of three flying squadrons operating Vultee Vengeance dive bombers , and various ancillary units . The Vengeances , which had only recently been acquired by Australia , equipped Nos . 21 , 23 and 24 Squadrons . They were to be protected on their attack missions by No . 10 OG ' s fighter component , No . 78 Wing , operating Curtiss Kittyhawks . Headquartered at Nadzab , Papua New Guinea , No . 77 Wing only became fully operational on 18 February 1944 , following the arrival of Nos . 21 and 23 Squadrons from Lowood , Queensland . However No . 24 Squadron , which was already based in the theatre of operations , was able to carry out its first sortie on 17 January , bombing targets along Shaggy Ridge in support of the Australian 7th Division . Throughout February the Vengeances , escorted by No . 78 Wing Kittyhawks , concentrated on harassing the retreating Japanese 20th Division , and attacking enemy airfields in the Madang Province . In March , a decision was made to withdraw the dive bombers from operations due to their inferiority to newer equipment . Three RAAF squadrons — No . 22 flying Douglas Bostons , No . 30 flying Bristol Beaufighter s , and one other from No . 9 Operational Group flying Bristol Beaufort s — were assigned to the wing as replacements . Operating with its new squadrons and aircraft , No . 77 Wing took part in the Battle of Noemfoor , commencing in June 1944 . Wing headquarters relocated to Noemfoor Island in July , followed by Nos . 22 and 30 Squadrons the next month . This was No . 77 Wing ' s composition on 25 October 1944 , when No . 10 OG ' s name was changed to the Australian First Tactical Air Force , ostensibly to emphasise " the formation ' s impressive size and ambitious purpose " . That month , the wing ' s aircraft were credited with sinking 24 enemy transport ships and barges in support of the Allied landings during the Battle of Leyte . In November , the wing advanced to the island of Morotai , where it attacked Japanese airfields , shipping , and infrastructure on Celebes . By the end of the year , Wing Commander Charles Read had taken over command of No . 77 Wing , and the formation ' s complement had been augmented by No . 31 Squadron , a Beaufighter unit previously based in Darwin , Northern Territory as part of North Western Area Command . No . 22 Squadron was withdrawn to Noemfoor in December to re - equip with Beaufighters ; upon its return No . 77 Wing became an all - Beaufighter formation , operating three squadrons of the type . During the first week of January 1945 , No . 77 Wing ' s aircraft undertook 142 missions against targets in Halmahera , Celebes , and Morotai . In May , the Beaufighters provided air cover during Operation Oboe One , the Battle of Tarakan . In the days leading up to Operation Oboe Six , the Battle of North Borneo , No . 77 Wing surgically attacked enemy targets at Labuan , sometimes within only 100 metres of Allied demolition teams laying charges to breach obstacles on the beach prior to the landings . Read personally led No . 31 Squadron into action during the battle on 10 June 1945 . He became the first RAAF pilot to land at the newly operational Tarakan airfield on 28 June . The following month , No . 77 Wing was to have taken part in the final Allied offensive of the Borneo Campaign , Operation Oboe Two , the Battle of Balikpapan . However Tarakan proved to be unsuitable for the Beaufighters to operate from , and they were withdrawn to Morotai , where they largely sat out the rest of the Pacific War . The squadrons subsequently returned to Australia , disbanding in July and August 1946 .