No. 113 Air-Sea Rescue Flight was a Royal Australian Air Force

Royal Australian Air Force

The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...

 unit of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The Flight was formed at Cairns, Queensland

Cairns, Queensland

Cairns is a regional city in Far North Queensland, Australia, founded 1876. The city was named after William Wellington Cairns, then-current Governor of Queensland. It was formed to serve miners heading for the Hodgkinson River goldfield, but experienced a decline when an easier route was...

 on 10 January 1945 and was equipped with PBY Catalina

PBY Catalina

The Consolidated PBY Catalina was an American flying boat of the 1930s and 1940s produced by Consolidated Aircraft. It was one of the most widely used multi-role aircraft of World War II. PBYs served with every branch of the United States Armed Forces and in the air forces and navies of many other...

s for air-sea rescue

Air-sea rescue

Air-sea rescue is the coordinated search and rescue of the survivors of emergency water landings as well as people who have survived the loss of their sea-going vessel. ASR can involve a wide variety of resources including seaplanes, helicopters, submarines, rescue boats and ships...

 operations. The Flight conducted its first operational missions in February, providing support for Allied air strikes and making supply drops. The flight departed Australia for Morotai

Morotai

Morotai Island Regency is a regency of North Maluku province, Indonesia, located on Morotai Island. The population was 54,876 in 2007.-History:...

 in the Netherlands East Indies in late February, and became operational there in early March. From Morotai the Flight continued in its rescue and transport roles and also began flying missions behind Japanese lines in support of the Allied Intelligence Bureau

Allied Intelligence Bureau

The Allied Intelligence Bureau was an joint United States, Australian, Dutch and British intelligence and special operations agency during World War II. It was responsible for operating parties of spies and commandos behind Japanese lines in order to collect intelligence and conduct guerrilla...

 (AIB).

In the months after the end of the war No. 113 Air-Sea Rescue Flight transported Australian prisoners of war home to Australia and performed other tasks to support Australian units in Borneo

Borneo

Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....

. The Flight returned to Australia in January 1946 and was disbanded at RAAF Base Rathmines

RAAF Base Rathmines

RAAF Base Rathmines was a Royal Australian Air Force base located on Lake Macquarie in New South Wales.RAAF Base Rathmines was established in 1939 and was the RAAF's main flying boat base during World War II and the early 1950s...

on 31 January 1946.