Frank Lukis
Encyclopedia
Air Commodore
Francis William Fellowes (Frank) Lukis, CBE (27 July 1896 – 18 February 1966) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force
(RAAF). A veteran of World War I, he first saw combat as a soldier in the Australian Imperial Force
at Gallipoli. In 1917, Lukis transferred to the Australian Flying Corps and flew with No. 1 Squadron
in the Middle East
, where he was twice mentioned in despatches. A member of the Australian Air Corps following the war, he transferred to the fledgling RAAF in 1921, and became the first Commanding Officer of the newly re-formed No. 3 Squadron
at RAAF Station Richmond
, New South Wales, in 1925.
Lukis went on to lead No. 1 Squadron in the early 1930s, and was promoted to group captain
in 1938. Appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire the same year, he was in charge of RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, during the early years of World War II. He later held forward commands in the South West Pacific theatre
, including Northern Area (later North-Eastern Area), for which he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and No. 9 Operational Group
(later Northern Command). Lukis also served on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body, as Air Member for Personnel. After retirement from the Air Force in 1946, he became a manager with Australian National Airways
, and was active in veterans' associations. He died in 1966 at the age of sixty-nine.
Born on 27 July 1896 in Balingup
, Western Australia
, Lukis was the son of grazier
William Fellowes Lukis and his wife Jean. He was educated at The High School
, Perth
, and later worked on the family farm. In October 1914, he joined the Australian Imperial Force
as part of the 10th Light Horse Regiment
, the only such regiment raised in Western Australia. Ranked corporal
, Lukis sailed from Fremantle
aboard A47 Mashobra on 17 February 1915, seeing combat first at Gallipoli and then in Egypt. At Gallipoli, the 10th Light Horse went into action in the Battles of the Nek
and Hill 60
, before being withdrawn in December and redeployed to Egypt. There it took part in the campaign against the Turks in Sinai
, including the Battle of Romani
.
Lukis was commissioned as a second lieutenant
in July 1916 and promoted to lieutenant
in December. On 25 February 1917, he transferred to the Australian Flying Corps (AFC) and was posted to No. 1 Squadron
(also known until 1918 as No. 67 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps
), operating in Sinai and Palestine
. He undertook reconnaissance missions as an observer in Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2s from April to September 1917. In January 1918 he completed pilot training and began flying fighter and ground attack sorties in Bristol Fighters
. He was twice mentioned in despatches for distinguished service with the AFC in the Middle East, the first gazetted
on 16 January 1918, and the second on 12 January 1920. Lukis finished the war a flight commander
with the temporary rank of captain, and returned to Australia on 5 March 1919.
in March the following year. Ranked flying officer
(honorary flight lieutenant
), he was one of the original twenty-one officers on the Air Force's strength at its formation, and became popularly known as "Luke". In February 1922, he surveyed the air route between Perth and Port Augusta
, South Australia. He took part in one of the embryonic service's earliest public flying displays in May that year, when he and another pilot flew Airco DH.9
s in mock dogfight
s with four Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5
s during the New South Wales Aerial Pageant at Victoria Park, Sydney
. On 21 January 1925, he married Florence St Aubyn Allen at St Mary's Anglican Church, West Perth; the couple later had two sons. The previous year, Lukis had been best man at the wedding of Squadron Leader Frank McNamara, the AFC's only Victoria Cross
recipient in World War I.
No. 3 Squadron
was re-formed at RAAF Point Cook, Victoria, on 1 July 1925, with Lukis as its Commanding Officer
(CO). Over the next week, operating DH.9s and S.E.5s, the unit established itself at the Air Force's newest base, RAAF Station Richmond
, New South Wales. Alerted to a forthcoming inspection by the Chief of the Air Staff, Group Captain Richard Williams, Lukis had the foresight to engage in a speedy beautification program at the base, arranging delivery of pot plants and shrubs; the notoriously fastidious Williams concluded the inspection by pronouncing himself "happily surprised ... that so much had been done so quickly". For the duration of his tour as No. 3 Squadron commander, Lukis doubled as CO of the base. He was promoted squadron leader
on 2 July 1927, and handed over command to Squadron Leader Harry Cobby on 13 January 1930. Lukis served as CO of No. 1 Squadron from 1930 to 1934, interrupted in 1931 by a posting to Britain to attend RAF Staff College, Andover
. Raised to wing commander
, he was put in charge of No. 1 Aircraft Depot at RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, in 1936. Lukis was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 1938 King's Birthday Honours
, and promoted group captain
in July the same year, taking command of No. 1 Flying Training School
at Point Cook.
The CO of RAAF Station Laverton from December 1939, Lukis was made acting air commodore
and posted to Townsville
, Queensland, on 8 May 1941 as the inaugural Air Officer Commanding
Northern Area. Described by Major General Lewis H. Brereton
, commander of the US Far East Air Force, as "a dark, husky, energetic man with a keen sense of humour" who was very much "alive to the situation", Lukis was in charge of air defence on the north coast of Australia. His task was complicated by the poor standard and quantity of available equipment, with only CAC Wirraway
s as fighters. In January 1942, Northern Area was split into North-Western Area and North-Eastern Area, Lukis remaining in charge of the latter as a temporary air commodore. The following month, he warned higher command of the poor state of preparedness and low morale of Australian Army
troops at Port Moresby
, New Guinea, due to lack of air cover and apparent lack of interest from government echelons. In March, seventeen P-40 Kittyhawks of No. 75 Squadron
, newly formed under North-Eastern Area Command, were deployed to the area; this unit would shortly distinguish itself in the Battle of Port Moresby
.
By the end of April 1942, Lukis' forces consisted of three squadrons (general purpose, tranport, and fighter) at Townsville, one general purpose squadron at RAAF Station Amberley
in southern Queensland, and four squadrons (three general purpose and one fighter) at Port Moresby. Posted to RAAF Headquarters, Melbourne, as Air Member for Personnel, he handed over command of North-Eastern Area to Group Captain (later Air Commodore) Harry Cobby on 25 August. On 23 March 1943, Lukis was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for the "courage, enterprise and devotion" that he had displayed at North-Eastern Area. As Air Member for Personnel, he occupied a seat on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body that was chaired by the Chief of the Air Staff. In this position he clashed with Group Officer Clare Stevenson
, Director of the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force
, over plans to reduce the number of female officers in technical roles. Stevenson was forced to apologise to Lukis for going over his head to the Deputy Chief of the Air Staff to voice her opposition to the scheme; nevertheless, cuts to these positions did not eventuate.
In November 1943, Lukis took over No. 9 Operational Group
(No. 9 OG), the RAAF's main mobile formation in the Pacific at the time, after its commander, Air Commodore Joe Hewitt
, was sacked by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal George Jones
, over allegations of poor discipline and morale. The change in leadership dismayed the US-led South West Pacific Area Command, whose senior air officers, Lieutenant General George Kenney
and Major General Ennis Whitehead
, did not hold Lukis in the same high regard that they did his predecessor. For the next two months, No. 9 OG supported the Allied invasion of New Britain. On 17 January 1944, Lukis mounted an operation with a force of seventy-three aircraft comprising Bristol Beaufort
light bombers and Kittyhawk and Spitfire
fighters, which was the largest strike undertaken by the Australians to that date. However it encountered no opposition, and Lukis voiced his concerns to Whitehead that the "mopping up" role he had been assigned was costing his fighter pilots the opportunity to engage in air-to-air combat.
As the Pacific conflict shifted further north, No. 9 OG's operational tasking lessened and it became colloquially known in the RAAF as the "Non-Ops Group". When ordered to transfer one of his fighter wings, No. 73
, to the Admiralty Islands
for convoy escort in late February, Lukis complained directly to Kenney that it was a waste of resources, but was overruled. The rest of No. 9 OG became a garrison force in New Guinea, and was renamed Northern Command on 11 April 1944 to better reflect this new status; its original mobile strike role was taken over by No. 10 Operational Group (later the Australian First Tactical Air Force
). Lukis was again considered for the position of Air Member for Personnel when the incumbent, acting Air Vice Marshal Adrian Cole
, was removed from his position following accusations of drunkenness at an RAAF Headquarters meeting in November 1944. In the event, Lukis continued to lead Northern Command until April the following year, when he took command of No. 2 Training Group in Melbourne; he held this post for the remainder of the Pacific War.
(ANA) after leaving the Air Force, Lukis become airfield manager at Essendon
, Melbourne. He took over the airline's Canberra
office in 1952, before joining a stockbroking firm in 1957, the year that ANA merged with Ansett Airways
to become Ansett-ANA. Active in veterans' organisations, he served as president of the Air Force Association in Victoria during 1947–48, and helped found the Commonwealth Club in Canberra in 1954. Survived by his wife and children, Frank Lukis died in Melbourne of cancer on 18 February 1966, and was cremated.
Air Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Francis William Fellowes (Frank) Lukis, CBE (27 July 1896 – 18 February 1966) was a senior commander in the 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...
(RAAF). A veteran of World War I, he first saw combat as a soldier in the Australian Imperial Force
First Australian Imperial Force
The First Australian Imperial Force was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during World War I. It was formed from 15 August 1914, following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. Generally known at the time as the AIF, it is today referred to as the 1st AIF to distinguish from...
at Gallipoli. In 1917, Lukis transferred to the Australian Flying Corps and flew with No. 1 Squadron
No. 1 Squadron RAAF
No. 1 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force squadron based at RAAF Amberley. The squadron is currently being re-equipped with F/A-18F Super Hornet multi-role fighters.-World War I:...
in the Middle East
Middle Eastern theatre of World War I
The Middle Eastern theatre of World War I was the scene of action between 29 October 1914, and 30 October 1918. The combatants were the Ottoman Empire, with some assistance from the other Central Powers, and primarily the British and the Russians among the Allies of World War I...
, where he was twice mentioned in despatches. A member of the Australian Air Corps following the war, he transferred to the fledgling RAAF in 1921, and became the first Commanding Officer of the newly re-formed No. 3 Squadron
No. 3 Squadron RAAF
No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:...
at RAAF Station Richmond
RAAF Base Richmond
RAAF Base Richmond is one of Australia's oldest and largest air force bases. It is located within the City of Hawkesbury in the north-western fringe of Sydney, New South Wales, between the towns of Windsor and Richmond. The base is home to the Royal Australian Air Force's transport headquarters,...
, New South Wales, in 1925.
Lukis went on to lead No. 1 Squadron in the early 1930s, and was promoted to group captain
Group Captain
Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks above wing commander and immediately below air commodore...
in 1938. Appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire the same year, he was in charge of RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, during the early years of World War II. He later held forward commands in the South West Pacific theatre
South West Pacific theatre of World War II
The South West Pacific Theatre, technically the South West Pacific Area, between 1942 and 1945, was one of two designated area commands and war theatres enumerated by the Combined Chiefs of Staff of World War II in the Pacific region....
, including Northern Area (later North-Eastern Area), for which he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and No. 9 Operational Group
No. 9 Operational Group RAAF
No. 9 Operational Group was a major Royal Australian Air Force unit providing fighter, ground attack and anti-shipping support to the Allies in the South West Pacific theatre during World War II. It was designed to act as a mobile striking force independent of the RAAF's static area commands. As...
(later Northern Command). Lukis also served on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body, as Air Member for Personnel. After retirement from the Air Force in 1946, he became a manager with Australian National Airways
Australian National Airways
Australian National Airways was Australia's predominant carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s.-The Holyman Airways Period:On 19 March 1932 Flinders Island Airways began a regular aerial service using the Desoutter Mk.II VH-UEE Miss Launceston between Launceston, Tasmania and Flinders...
, and was active in veterans' associations. He died in 1966 at the age of sixty-nine.
Early life and World War I
Balingup, Western Australia
Balingup is a town located in the South West of Western Australia, south of the state capital, Perth, and southeast of the town of Donnybrook.The town takes its name from Balingup Pool, located on the Balingup Brook which flows through the town...
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, Lukis was the son of grazier
Pastoral farming
Pastoral farming is farming aimed at producing livestock, rather than growing crops. Examples include dairy farming, raising beef cattle, and raising sheep for wool. In contrast, mixed farming is growing of both crops and livestock on the same farm. Pastoral farmers are also known as graziers...
William Fellowes Lukis and his wife Jean. He was educated at The High School
Hale School
Hale School is a selective, independent, Anglican day and boarding school for boys, located in Wembley Downs, a coastal suburb of Perth, Western Australia....
, Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, and later worked on the family farm. In October 1914, he joined the Australian Imperial Force
First Australian Imperial Force
The First Australian Imperial Force was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during World War I. It was formed from 15 August 1914, following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. Generally known at the time as the AIF, it is today referred to as the 1st AIF to distinguish from...
as part of the 10th Light Horse Regiment
10th Light Horse Regiment (Australia)
The 10th Light Horse Regiment is a light cavalry regiment of the Australian Army. Tracing its lineage back to 1900, it predecessor units served during the Second Boer War and the First World War. Today consisting of only a single squadron, the regiment is part of the Royal Australian Armoured Corps...
, the only such regiment raised in Western Australia. Ranked corporal
Corporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
, Lukis sailed from Fremantle
Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle is a city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829...
aboard A47 Mashobra on 17 February 1915, seeing combat first at Gallipoli and then in Egypt. At Gallipoli, the 10th Light Horse went into action in the Battles of the Nek
Battle of the Nek
The Battle of the Nek was a small World War I battle fought as part of the Gallipoli campaign. "The Nek" was a narrow stretch of ridge in the Anzac battlefield on the Gallipoli peninsula. The name derives from the Afrikaans word for a "mountain pass" but the terrain itself was a perfect bottleneck...
and Hill 60
Battle of Hill 60 (Gallipoli)
The Battle of Hill 60 was the last major assault of the Battle of Gallipoli. It was launched on 21 August 1915 to coincide with the attack on Scimitar Hill made from the Suvla front by General Stopford's British IX Corps. Hill 60 was a low knoll at the northern end of the Sari Bair range which...
, before being withdrawn in December and redeployed to Egypt. There it took part in the campaign against the Turks in Sinai
Sinai Peninsula
The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai is a triangular peninsula in Egypt about in area. It is situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Red Sea to the south, and is the only part of Egyptian territory located in Asia as opposed to Africa, effectively serving as a land bridge between two...
, including the Battle of Romani
Battle of Romani
The Battle of Romani was fought east of the Suez Canal, near the Egyptian town of Romani and the site of ancient Pelusium on the Sinai Peninsula during the First World War...
.
Lukis was commissioned as a second lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
in July 1916 and promoted to lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
in December. On 25 February 1917, he transferred to the Australian Flying Corps (AFC) and was posted to No. 1 Squadron
No. 1 Squadron RAAF
No. 1 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force squadron based at RAAF Amberley. The squadron is currently being re-equipped with F/A-18F Super Hornet multi-role fighters.-World War I:...
(also known until 1918 as No. 67 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
), operating in Sinai and Palestine
Sinai and Palestine Campaign
The Sinai and Palestine Campaigns took place in the Middle Eastern Theatre of World War I. A series of battles were fought between British Empire, German Empire and Ottoman Empire forces from 26 January 1915 to 31 October 1918, when the Armistice of Mudros was signed between the Ottoman Empire and...
. He undertook reconnaissance missions as an observer in Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2s from April to September 1917. In January 1918 he completed pilot training and began flying fighter and ground attack sorties in Bristol Fighters
Bristol F.2 Fighter
The Bristol F.2 Fighter was a British two-seat biplane fighter and reconnaissance aircraft of the First World War flown by the Royal Flying Corps. It is often simply called the Bristol Fighter or popularly the "Brisfit" or "Biff". Despite being a two-seater, the F.2B proved to be an agile aircraft...
. He was twice mentioned in despatches for distinguished service with the AFC in the Middle East, the first gazetted
London Gazette
The London Gazette is one of the official journals of record of the British government, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are required to be published...
on 16 January 1918, and the second on 12 January 1920. Lukis finished the war a flight commander
Flight (military unit)
A flight is a military unit in an air force, naval air service, or army air corps. It usually comprises three to six aircraft, with their aircrews and ground staff; or, in the case of a non-flying ground flight, no aircraft and a roughly equivalent number of support personnel. In most usages,...
with the temporary rank of captain, and returned to Australia on 5 March 1919.
Between the wars
With the disbandment of the wartime AFC, Lukis joined the short-lived Australian Air Corps early in 1920. He transferred to the newly formed Royal Australian Air ForceRoyal 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...
in March the following year. Ranked flying officer
Flying Officer
Flying officer is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence...
(honorary flight lieutenant
Flight Lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...
), he was one of the original twenty-one officers on the Air Force's strength at its formation, and became popularly known as "Luke". In February 1922, he surveyed the air route between Perth and Port Augusta
Port Augusta, South Australia
-Electricity generation:Electricity is generated at the Playford B and Northern power stations from brown coal mined at Leigh Creek, 250 km to the north...
, South Australia. He took part in one of the embryonic service's earliest public flying displays in May that year, when he and another pilot flew Airco DH.9
Airco DH.9
The Airco DH.9 - also known after 1920 as the de Havilland DH.9 - was a British bomber used in the First World War...
s in mock dogfight
Dogfight
A dogfight, or dog fight, is a form of aerial combat between fighter aircraft; in particular, combat of maneuver at short range, where each side is aware of the other's presence. Dogfighting first appeared during World War I, shortly after the invention of the airplane...
s with four Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5
Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 was a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. Although the first examples reached the Western Front before the Sopwith Camel and it had a much better overall performance, problems with its Hispano-Suiza engine, particularly the geared-output H-S...
s during the New South Wales Aerial Pageant at Victoria Park, Sydney
Victoria Park, Sydney
Victoria Park is a large park in Sydney, situated on the corner of Parramatta road and City road, within the grounds of University of Sydney and across Parramatta road from Broadway Shopping Centre...
. On 21 January 1925, he married Florence St Aubyn Allen at St Mary's Anglican Church, West Perth; the couple later had two sons. The previous year, Lukis had been best man at the wedding of Squadron Leader Frank McNamara, the AFC's only Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
recipient in World War I.
No. 3 Squadron
No. 3 Squadron RAAF
No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:...
was re-formed at RAAF Point Cook, Victoria, on 1 July 1925, with Lukis as its Commanding Officer
Commanding officer
The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...
(CO). Over the next week, operating DH.9s and S.E.5s, the unit established itself at the Air Force's newest base, RAAF Station Richmond
RAAF Base Richmond
RAAF Base Richmond is one of Australia's oldest and largest air force bases. It is located within the City of Hawkesbury in the north-western fringe of Sydney, New South Wales, between the towns of Windsor and Richmond. The base is home to the Royal Australian Air Force's transport headquarters,...
, New South Wales. Alerted to a forthcoming inspection by the Chief of the Air Staff, Group Captain Richard Williams, Lukis had the foresight to engage in a speedy beautification program at the base, arranging delivery of pot plants and shrubs; the notoriously fastidious Williams concluded the inspection by pronouncing himself "happily surprised ... that so much had been done so quickly". For the duration of his tour as No. 3 Squadron commander, Lukis doubled as CO of the base. He was promoted squadron leader
Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
on 2 July 1927, and handed over command to Squadron Leader Harry Cobby on 13 January 1930. Lukis served as CO of No. 1 Squadron from 1930 to 1934, interrupted in 1931 by a posting to Britain to attend RAF Staff College, Andover
RAF Staff College, Andover
The RAF Staff College at RAF Andover was the first Royal Air Force staff college to be established. Its role was the training of officers in the administrative, staff and policy apects of air force matters.-Foundation:...
. Raised to wing commander
Wing Commander (rank)
Wing commander is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries...
, he was put in charge of No. 1 Aircraft Depot at RAAF Station Laverton, Victoria, in 1936. Lukis was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 1938 King's Birthday Honours
Queen's Birthday Honours
The Queen's Birthday Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the celebration of the Queen's Official Birthday in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen...
, and promoted group captain
Group Captain
Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks above wing commander and immediately below air commodore...
in July the same year, taking command of No. 1 Flying Training School
No. 1 Flying Training School RAAF
No. 1 Flying Training School was a flying training school of the Royal Australian Air Force . It was one of the Air Force's original units, dating back to the service's formation in 1921, when it was based at RAAF Point Cook, Victoria. The school underwent a number of reorganisations during its...
at Point Cook.
World War II
Air Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
and posted to Townsville
Townsville, Queensland
Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Australia, in the state of Queensland. Adjacent to the central section of the Great Barrier Reef, it is in the dry tropics region of Queensland. Townsville is Australia's largest urban centre north of the Sunshine Coast, with a 2006 census...
, Queensland, on 8 May 1941 as the inaugural Air Officer Commanding
Air Officer Commanding
Air Officer Commanding is a title given in the air forces of Commonwealth nations to an air officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, an air vice marshal might be the AOC 38 Group...
Northern Area. Described by Major General Lewis H. Brereton
Lewis H. Brereton
Lewis Hyde Brereton was a military aviation pioneer and lieutenant general in the United States Air Force...
, commander of the US Far East Air Force, as "a dark, husky, energetic man with a keen sense of humour" who was very much "alive to the situation", Lukis was in charge of air defence on the north coast of Australia. His task was complicated by the poor standard and quantity of available equipment, with only CAC Wirraway
CAC Wirraway
The Wirraway was a training and general purpose military aircraft manufactured in Australia by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation between 1939 and 1946...
s as fighters. In January 1942, Northern Area was split into North-Western Area and North-Eastern Area, Lukis remaining in charge of the latter as a temporary air commodore. The following month, he warned higher command of the poor state of preparedness and low morale of Australian Army
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
troops at Port Moresby
Port Moresby
Port Moresby , or Pot Mosbi in Tok Pisin, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea . It is located on the shores of the Gulf of Papua, on the southeastern coast of the island of New Guinea, which made it a prime objective for conquest by the Imperial Japanese forces during 1942–43...
, New Guinea, due to lack of air cover and apparent lack of interest from government echelons. In March, seventeen P-40 Kittyhawks of No. 75 Squadron
No. 75 Squadron RAAF
No. 75 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter unit based at RAAF Base Tindal in the Northern Territory. The squadron was formed in 1942 and saw extensive action in the South West Pacific theatre of World War II, operating P-40 Kittyhawks. It was disbanded in 1948, but reformed the...
, newly formed under North-Eastern Area Command, were deployed to the area; this unit would shortly distinguish itself in the Battle of Port Moresby
Battle of Port Moresby
The Battle of Port Moresby was an aerial battle fought between aircraft of the Royal Australian Air Force , United States Army Air Force and aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy between 3 February 1942 and 17 August 1943 over Port Moresby, New Guinea.-References:**...
.
By the end of April 1942, Lukis' forces consisted of three squadrons (general purpose, tranport, and fighter) at Townsville, one general purpose squadron at RAAF Station Amberley
RAAF Base Amberley
RAAF Base Amberley is a Royal Australian Air Force base located southwest of Ipswich, Queensland and southwest of Brisbane. It is currently home to No. 1 Squadron and No. 6 Squadron , No. 33 Squadron and No. 36 Squadron...
in southern Queensland, and four squadrons (three general purpose and one fighter) at Port Moresby. Posted to RAAF Headquarters, Melbourne, as Air Member for Personnel, he handed over command of North-Eastern Area to Group Captain (later Air Commodore) Harry Cobby on 25 August. On 23 March 1943, Lukis was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for the "courage, enterprise and devotion" that he had displayed at North-Eastern Area. As Air Member for Personnel, he occupied a seat on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body that was chaired by the Chief of the Air Staff. In this position he clashed with Group Officer Clare Stevenson
Clare Stevenson
Clare Grant Stevenson AM, MBE was the inaugural Director of the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force . As such, she has been described as "the most significant woman in the history of the Air Force"...
, Director of the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force
Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force
The Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force was formed in March 1941 after considerable lobbying by women keen to serve and by the Chief of the Air Staff who wanted to release male personnel serving in Australia for service overseas. The WAAAF was the first and largest of the World War II...
, over plans to reduce the number of female officers in technical roles. Stevenson was forced to apologise to Lukis for going over his head to the Deputy Chief of the Air Staff to voice her opposition to the scheme; nevertheless, cuts to these positions did not eventuate.
No. 9 Operational Group RAAF
No. 9 Operational Group was a major Royal Australian Air Force unit providing fighter, ground attack and anti-shipping support to the Allies in the South West Pacific theatre during World War II. It was designed to act as a mobile striking force independent of the RAAF's static area commands. As...
(No. 9 OG), the RAAF's main mobile formation in the Pacific at the time, after its commander, Air Commodore Joe Hewitt
Joe Hewitt (RAAF officer)
Air Vice Marshal Joseph Eric Hewitt, CBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force...
, was sacked by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal George Jones
George Jones (RAAF officer)
Air Marshal Sir George Jones KBE, CB, DFC was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . He rose from private soldier in World War I to Air Marshal in 1948, and served as Chief of the Air Staff from 1942 to 1952, the longest continuous tenure of any RAAF chief...
, over allegations of poor discipline and morale. The change in leadership dismayed the US-led South West Pacific Area Command, whose senior air officers, Lieutenant General George Kenney
George Kenney
George Churchill Kenney was a United States Army Air Forces general during World War II. He was commander of the Allied air forces in the Southwest Pacific Area from August 1942 until 1945.-Early life:...
and Major General Ennis Whitehead
Ennis Whitehead
Ennis Clement Whitehead was an early United States Army aviator and a United States Army Air Forces general during World War II. Whitehead joined the U. S. Army after the United States entered World War I in 1917...
, did not hold Lukis in the same high regard that they did his predecessor. For the next two months, No. 9 OG supported the Allied invasion of New Britain. On 17 January 1944, Lukis mounted an operation with a force of seventy-three aircraft comprising Bristol Beaufort
Bristol Beaufort
The Bristol Beaufort was a British twin-engined torpedo bomber designed by the Bristol Aeroplane Company, and developed from experience gained designing and building the earlier Blenheim light bomber....
light bombers and Kittyhawk and Spitfire
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...
fighters, which was the largest strike undertaken by the Australians to that date. However it encountered no opposition, and Lukis voiced his concerns to Whitehead that the "mopping up" role he had been assigned was costing his fighter pilots the opportunity to engage in air-to-air combat.
As the Pacific conflict shifted further north, No. 9 OG's operational tasking lessened and it became colloquially known in the RAAF as the "Non-Ops Group". When ordered to transfer one of his fighter wings, No. 73
No. 73 Wing RAAF
No. 73 Wing was a Royal Australian Air Force wing of World War II. It was formed in February 1943 at Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, as part of No. 9 Operational Group. The wing initially comprised three attack squadrons flying CAC Wirraways, Douglas Bostons, and Bristol Beaufighters, with...
, to the Admiralty Islands
Admiralty Islands campaign
The Admiralty Islands campaign was a series of battles in the New Guinea campaign of World War II in which the United States Army's 1st Cavalry Division occupied the Japanese-held Admiralty Islands....
for convoy escort in late February, Lukis complained directly to Kenney that it was a waste of resources, but was overruled. The rest of No. 9 OG became a garrison force in New Guinea, and was renamed Northern Command on 11 April 1944 to better reflect this new status; its original mobile strike role was taken over by No. 10 Operational Group (later the Australian First Tactical Air Force
Australian First Tactical Air Force
The Australian First Tactical Air Force was formed on 25 October 1944 by the Royal Australian Air Force . Its purpose was to provide a mobile force of fighter and ground attack aircraft that could support Allied army and naval units fighting the Empire of Japan in the South West Pacific Area...
). Lukis was again considered for the position of Air Member for Personnel when the incumbent, acting Air Vice Marshal Adrian Cole
Adrian Cole (RAAF officer)
Air Vice Marshal Adrian Lindley Trevor Cole, CBE, DSO, MC, DFC was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . Joining the army at the outbreak of World War I, he transferred to the Australian Flying Corps in 1916 and flew with No. 1 Squadron in the Middle East and No. 2...
, was removed from his position following accusations of drunkenness at an RAAF Headquarters meeting in November 1944. In the event, Lukis continued to lead Northern Command until April the following year, when he took command of No. 2 Training Group in Melbourne; he held this post for the remainder of the Pacific War.
Later life
With the end of hostilities, Lukis was summarily retired from the RAAF along with a number of other senior commanders and veterans of World War I, ostensibly to make way for the advancement of younger and equally capable officers. According to RAAF historian Alan Stephens, the Air Board believed that Lukis "had not taken a role commensurate with his seniority during the war, a strange accusation to make against a man who had been Air Member for Personnel and AOC of the RAAF's most important operational group in the Southwest Pacific Area". He was officially discharged on 2 May 1946. Employed by Australian National AirwaysAustralian National Airways
Australian National Airways was Australia's predominant carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s.-The Holyman Airways Period:On 19 March 1932 Flinders Island Airways began a regular aerial service using the Desoutter Mk.II VH-UEE Miss Launceston between Launceston, Tasmania and Flinders...
(ANA) after leaving the Air Force, Lukis become airfield manager at Essendon
Essendon Airport
Essendon Airport is located at Essendon, in Melbourne's northern suburbs, Victoria, Australia. It is located next to the Tullamarine Freeway on , from the Melbourne Central Business District and from Melbourne Airport.-History:...
, Melbourne. He took over the airline's Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
office in 1952, before joining a stockbroking firm in 1957, the year that ANA merged with Ansett Airways
Ansett Australia
Ansett Australia, Ansett, Ansett Airlines of Australia, or ANSETT-ANA as it was commonly known in earlier years, was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne. The airlines flew domestically within Australia and to destinations in Asia during its operation in 1996...
to become Ansett-ANA. Active in veterans' organisations, he served as president of the Air Force Association in Victoria during 1947–48, and helped found the Commonwealth Club in Canberra in 1954. Survived by his wife and children, Frank Lukis died in Melbourne of cancer on 18 February 1966, and was cremated.