 .   Headlam was given command of No. 2 Squadron at Laverton on 15 April 1941 , and raised to wing commander on 1 July . Equipped with Lockheed Hudsons , the squadron mainly conducted maritime patrols in southern waters until 5 December , when four of its aircraft were ordered to Darwin , Northern Territory , in response to fears of Japanese aggression in the Pacific . On 7 December , this detachment established itself at Penfui , near Koepang in Dutch Timor , while No. 2 Squadron 's eight remaining Hudsons were stationed at Darwin on standby . The following day , aware that Australia was now at war in the Pacific , one of the Penfui @-@ based Hudsons attacked the Japanese pearler Nanyo Maru , which was suspected of being a radio ship , and forced it aground . By 12 December , Headlam had transferred to Penfui as commanding officer of the base , as well as No. 2 Squadron .   During January 1942 , No. 2 Squadron 's aircraft were dispersed at Penfui , Boeroe Island , and Darwin . The Penfui detachment attacked Japanese shipping taking part in the invasion of Celebes . Two Hudsons shot down or damaged three Japanese floatplanes that attacked them as they were bombing a transport ship on 11 January ; the next day both Hudsons were themselves shot down by Mitsubishi Zeros . Penfui was bombed by the Japanese for the first time on 26 January 1942 , and attacked regularly thereafter , damaging some aircraft . The intact Hudsons were withdrawn to Darwin but Headlam and his staff remained at Penfui to enable the base to be used by aircraft during reconnaissance missions from Australia . On 18 February , Headlam was ordered to evacuate all his personnel except a small party to demolish the airfield with assistance from Sparrow Force . He returned to Darwin the following day , just as the city experienced its first raid by the Japanese . Four of No. 2 Squadron 's Hudsons were destroyed in the attack ; the remainder were relocated to Daly Waters , where they continued to carry out reconnaissance and bombing missions against Japanese targets in Timor .   Headlam remained in Darwin as Controller of Operations at Headquarters North @-@ Western Area Command until 12 May 1942 , when he was posted to Nhill , Victoria , as commanding officer of No. 2 Air Navigation School , operating Ansons . No. 97 ( Reserve ) Squadron was formed from the school 's personnel in June . On 20 July 1943 , Headlam took command of No. 2 Air Observer School ( AOS ) , also operating Ansons , at Mount Gambier , South Australia . He was promoted to group captain on 1 December 1943 , and was appointed the inaugural commanding officer of No. 3 AOS , operating Ansons and Fairey Battles out of Port Pirie , on 9 December . After handing over command of No. 3 AOS , he commenced studies at RAAF Staff School in Mount Martha , Victoria , on 2 October 1944 . He was appointed senior administrative staff officer at North @-@ Western Area Command on 12 January 1945 .   = = Post @-@ war career = =   Headlam became Officer Commanding North @-@ Western Area in January 1946 . Posted to Britain at the end of the year , he attended the Royal Air Force Staff College , Andover , and served with RAAF Overseas Headquarters , London . On his return to Australia , in November 1947 , he became Director of Training at RAAF Headquarters . In November 1950 , Headlam was appointed to take over command of No. 90 ( Composite ) Wing from Group Captain Paddy Heffernan . Headquartered at RAF Changi , Singapore , No. 90 Wing controlled RAAF units operating during the Malayan Emergency : No. 1 ( Bomber ) Squadron , flying Avro Lincolns , and No. 38 ( Transport ) Squadron , flying Douglas C @-@ 47 Dakotas . The Lincolns conducted area bombing missions over communist @-@ held territory , as well as strikes against pinpoint targets . The Dakotas were tasked with courier flights , VIP transport and medical evacuations across South East Asia , and in Malaya with airlifting troops and cargo , dropping supplies to friendly forces and despatching propaganda leaflets . Headlam was slightly injured on 20 December , when a No. 38 Squadron Dakota he was co @-@ piloting on a supply drop crash @-@ landed at Kampong Aur in Pahang , following engine failure . In August 1951 he was named commander of RAF Tengah , Singapore , in addition to his post as commanding officer of No. 90 Wing . Headlam handed over command of No. 90 Wing in December 1951 .   On 19 February 1952 , Headlam became senior air staff officer ( SASO ) at Eastern Area Command in Penrith , New South Wales . During his term as SASO , the RAAF began re @-@ equipping with English Electric Canberra jet bombers and CAC Sabre jet
Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠHead lam Ġwas Ġgiven Ġcommand Ġof ĠNo . Ġ2 ĠSquadron Ġat ĠLa ver ton Ġon Ġ15 ĠApril Ġ1941 Ġ, Ġand Ġraised Ġto Ġwing Ġcommander Ġon Ġ1 ĠJuly Ġ. ĠEqu ipped Ġwith ĠLockheed ĠHud s ons Ġ, Ġthe Ġsquadron Ġmainly Ġconducted Ġmaritime Ġpatrols Ġin Ġsouthern Ġwaters Ġuntil Ġ5 ĠDecember Ġ, Ġwhen Ġfour Ġof Ġits Ġaircraft Ġwere Ġordered Ġto ĠDarwin Ġ, ĠNorthern ĠTerritory Ġ, Ġin Ġresponse Ġto Ġfears Ġof ĠJapanese Ġaggression Ġin Ġthe ĠPacific Ġ. ĠOn Ġ7 ĠDecember Ġ, Ġthis Ġdetachment Ġestablished Ġitself Ġat ĠPen f ui Ġ, Ġnear ĠKo ep ang Ġin ĠDutch ĠTim or Ġ, Ġwhile ĠNo . Ġ2 ĠSquadron Ġ' s Ġeight Ġremaining ĠHud s ons Ġwere Ġstationed Ġat ĠDarwin Ġon Ġstandby Ġ. ĠThe Ġfollowing Ġday Ġ, Ġaware Ġthat ĠAustralia Ġwas Ġnow Ġat Ġwar Ġin Ġthe ĠPacific Ġ, Ġone Ġof Ġthe ĠPen f ui Ġ@ - @ Ġbased ĠHud s ons Ġattacked Ġthe ĠJapanese Ġpear ler ĠN any o ĠMar u Ġ, Ġwhich Ġwas Ġsuspected Ġof Ġbeing Ġa Ġradio Ġship Ġ, Ġand Ġforced Ġit Ġag round Ġ. ĠBy Ġ12 ĠDecember Ġ, ĠHead lam Ġhad Ġtransferred Ġto ĠPen f ui Ġas Ġcommanding Ġofficer Ġof Ġthe Ġbase Ġ, Ġas Ġwell Ġas ĠNo . Ġ2 ĠSquadron Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠDuring ĠJanuary Ġ1942 Ġ, ĠNo . Ġ2 ĠSquadron Ġ' s Ġaircraft Ġwere Ġdispersed Ġat ĠPen f ui Ġ, ĠBo er oe ĠIsland Ġ, Ġand ĠDarwin Ġ. ĠThe ĠPen f ui Ġdetachment Ġattacked ĠJapanese Ġshipping Ġtaking Ġpart Ġin Ġthe Ġinvasion Ġof ĠCele bes Ġ. ĠTwo ĠHud s ons Ġshot Ġdown Ġor Ġdamaged Ġthree ĠJapanese Ġfloat planes Ġthat Ġattacked Ġthem Ġas Ġthey Ġwere Ġbombing Ġa Ġtransport Ġship Ġon Ġ11 ĠJanuary Ġ; Ġthe Ġnext Ġday Ġboth ĠHud s ons Ġwere Ġthemselves Ġshot Ġdown Ġby ĠMits ub ishi ĠZ eros Ġ. ĠPen f ui Ġwas Ġbombed Ġby Ġthe ĠJapanese Ġfor Ġthe Ġfirst Ġtime Ġon Ġ26 ĠJanuary Ġ1942 Ġ, Ġand Ġattacked Ġregularly Ġthereafter Ġ, Ġdamaging Ġsome Ġaircraft Ġ. ĠThe Ġintact ĠHud s ons Ġwere Ġwithdrawn Ġto ĠDarwin Ġbut ĠHead lam Ġand Ġhis Ġstaff Ġremained Ġat ĠPen f ui Ġto Ġenable Ġthe Ġbase Ġto Ġbe Ġused Ġby Ġaircraft Ġduring Ġreconnaissance Ġmissions Ġfrom ĠAustralia Ġ. ĠOn Ġ18 ĠFebruary Ġ, ĠHead lam Ġwas Ġordered Ġto Ġevacuate Ġall Ġhis Ġpersonnel Ġexcept Ġa Ġsmall Ġparty Ġto Ġdemol ish Ġthe Ġair field Ġwith Ġassistance Ġfrom ĠSparrow ĠForce Ġ. ĠHe Ġreturned Ġto ĠDarwin Ġthe Ġfollowing Ġday Ġ, Ġjust Ġas Ġthe Ġcity Ġexperienced Ġits Ġfirst Ġraid Ġby Ġthe ĠJapanese Ġ. ĠFour Ġof ĠNo . Ġ2 ĠSquadron Ġ' s ĠHud s ons Ġwere Ġdestroyed Ġin Ġthe Ġattack Ġ; Ġthe Ġremainder Ġwere Ġrelocated Ġto ĠDaly ĠWaters Ġ, Ġwhere Ġthey Ġcontinued Ġto Ġcarry Ġout Ġreconnaissance Ġand Ġbombing Ġmissions Ġagainst ĠJapanese Ġtargets Ġin ĠTim or Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠHead lam Ġremained Ġin ĠDarwin Ġas ĠController Ġof ĠOperations Ġat ĠHeadquarters ĠNorth Ġ@ - @ ĠWestern ĠArea ĠCommand Ġuntil Ġ12 ĠMay Ġ1942 Ġ, Ġwhen Ġhe Ġwas Ġposted Ġto ĠN hill Ġ, ĠVictoria Ġ, Ġas Ġcommanding Ġofficer Ġof ĠNo . Ġ2 ĠAir ĠNavigation ĠSchool Ġ, Ġoperating ĠAns ons Ġ. ĠNo . Ġ97 Ġ( ĠReserve Ġ) ĠSquadron Ġwas Ġformed Ġfrom Ġthe Ġschool Ġ' s Ġpersonnel Ġin ĠJune Ġ. ĠOn Ġ20 ĠJuly Ġ1943 Ġ, ĠHead lam Ġtook Ġcommand Ġof ĠNo . Ġ2 ĠAir ĠObserver ĠSchool Ġ( ĠA OS Ġ) Ġ, Ġalso Ġoperating ĠAns ons Ġ, Ġat ĠMount ĠGamb ier Ġ, ĠSouth ĠAustralia Ġ. ĠHe Ġwas Ġpromoted Ġto Ġgroup Ġcaptain Ġon Ġ1 ĠDecember Ġ1943 Ġ, Ġand Ġwas Ġappointed Ġthe Ġinaugural Ġcommanding Ġofficer Ġof ĠNo . Ġ3 ĠA OS Ġ, Ġoperating ĠAns ons Ġand ĠF aire y ĠBattles Ġout Ġof ĠPort ĠPir ie Ġ, Ġon Ġ9 ĠDecember Ġ. ĠAfter Ġhanding Ġover Ġcommand Ġof ĠNo . Ġ3 ĠA OS Ġ, Ġhe Ġcommenced Ġstudies Ġat ĠR AAF ĠStaff ĠSchool Ġin ĠMount ĠMartha Ġ, ĠVictoria Ġ, Ġon Ġ2 ĠOctober Ġ1944 Ġ. ĠHe Ġwas Ġappointed Ġsenior Ġadministrative Ġstaff Ġofficer Ġat ĠNorth Ġ@ - @ ĠWestern ĠArea ĠCommand Ġon Ġ12 ĠJanuary Ġ1945 Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠPost Ġ@ - @ Ġwar Ġcareer Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠHead lam Ġbecame ĠOfficer ĠCommand ing ĠNorth Ġ@ - @ ĠWestern ĠArea Ġin ĠJanuary Ġ1946 Ġ. ĠPosted Ġto ĠBritain Ġat Ġthe Ġend Ġof Ġthe Ġyear Ġ, Ġhe Ġattended Ġthe ĠRoyal ĠAir ĠForce ĠStaff ĠCollege Ġ, ĠAnd over Ġ, Ġand Ġserved Ġwith ĠR AAF ĠOverse as ĠHeadquarters Ġ, ĠLondon Ġ. ĠOn Ġhis Ġreturn Ġto ĠAustralia Ġ, Ġin ĠNovember Ġ1947 Ġ, Ġhe Ġbecame ĠDirector Ġof ĠTraining Ġat ĠR AAF ĠHeadquarters Ġ. ĠIn ĠNovember Ġ1950 Ġ, ĠHead lam Ġwas Ġappointed Ġto Ġtake Ġover Ġcommand Ġof ĠNo . Ġ90 Ġ( ĠComposite Ġ) ĠWing Ġfrom ĠGroup ĠCaptain ĠP addy ĠHe ff ern an Ġ. ĠHead quartered Ġat ĠRAF ĠChang i Ġ, ĠSingapore Ġ, ĠNo . Ġ90 ĠWing Ġcontrolled ĠR AAF Ġunits Ġoperating Ġduring Ġthe ĠMal ayan ĠEmergency Ġ: ĠNo . Ġ1 Ġ( ĠBomber Ġ) ĠSquadron Ġ, Ġflying ĠAv ro ĠL inc ol ns Ġ, Ġand ĠNo . Ġ38 Ġ( ĠTransport Ġ) ĠSquadron Ġ, Ġflying ĠDouglas ĠC Ġ@ - @ Ġ47 ĠDak ot as Ġ. ĠThe ĠL inc ol ns Ġconducted Ġarea Ġbombing Ġmissions Ġover Ġcommunist Ġ@ - @ Ġheld Ġterritory Ġ, Ġas Ġwell Ġas Ġstrikes Ġagainst Ġpinpoint Ġtargets Ġ. ĠThe ĠDak ot as Ġwere Ġtasked Ġwith Ġcourier Ġflights Ġ, ĠVIP Ġtransport Ġand Ġmedical Ġevac uations Ġacross ĠSouth ĠEast ĠAsia Ġ, Ġand Ġin ĠMal aya Ġwith Ġair lifting Ġtroops Ġand Ġcargo Ġ, Ġdropping Ġsupplies Ġto Ġfriendly Ġforces Ġand Ġdesp atching Ġpropaganda Ġleaflets Ġ. ĠHead lam Ġwas Ġslightly Ġinjured Ġon Ġ20 ĠDecember Ġ, Ġwhen Ġa ĠNo . Ġ38 ĠSquadron ĠDakota Ġhe Ġwas Ġco Ġ@ - @ Ġpilot ing Ġon Ġa Ġsupply Ġdrop Ġcrash Ġ@ - @ Ġlanded Ġat ĠKamp ong ĠAur Ġin ĠP ah ang Ġ, Ġfollowing Ġengine Ġfailure Ġ. ĠIn ĠAugust Ġ1951 Ġhe Ġwas Ġnamed Ġcommander Ġof ĠRAF ĠT eng ah Ġ, ĠSingapore Ġ, Ġin Ġaddition Ġto Ġhis Ġpost Ġas Ġcommanding Ġofficer Ġof ĠNo . Ġ90 ĠWing Ġ. ĠHead lam Ġhanded Ġover Ġcommand Ġof ĠNo . Ġ90 ĠWing Ġin ĠDecember Ġ1951 Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠOn Ġ19 ĠFebruary Ġ1952 Ġ, ĠHead lam Ġbecame Ġsenior Ġair Ġstaff Ġofficer Ġ( ĠSAS O Ġ) Ġat ĠEastern ĠArea ĠCommand Ġin ĠPen r ith Ġ, ĠNew ĠSouth ĠWales Ġ. ĠDuring Ġhis Ġterm Ġas ĠSAS O Ġ, Ġthe ĠR AAF Ġbegan Ġre Ġ@ - @ Ġequ ipping Ġwith ĠEnglish ĠElectric ĠCanberra Ġjet Ġbombers Ġand ĠC AC ĠSab re Ġjet