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Joe Hewitt (RAAF officer)
Encyclopedia
Air Vice Marshal Joseph Eric (Joe) Hewitt, CBE (13 April 1901 – 1 November 1985) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force
(RAAF). A Royal Australian Navy
(RAN) officer who transferred permanently to the Air Force in 1928, he commanded No. 101 (Fleet Cooperation) Flight
in the early 1930s, and No. 104 (Bomber) Squadron RAF
on exchange in Britain shortly before World War II
. Appointed the RAAF's Assistant Chief of the Air Staff in 1941, Hewitt was posted the following year to Allied Air Forces Headquarters, South West Pacific Area
, as Director of Intelligence. In 1943, he took command of No. 9 Operational Group
, the RAAF's main mobile strike force, but was controversially sacked by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal George Jones
, less than a year later over alleged morale and disciplinary issues.
Described as a "small, dapper man" who was "outspoken, even 'cocky'", Hewitt overcame the setback to his career during the war and made his most significant contributions afterwards, as Air Member for Personnel from 1945 to 1948. Directly responsible for the demobilisation of thousands of wartime staff and the consolidation of what was then the world's fourth largest air force into a much smaller peacetime service, he also modernised education and training within the RAAF. Hewitt was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1951, the same year he became Air Member for Supply and Equipment. Retiring from the military in 1956, he went into business and later managed his own publishing house. He wrote two books including Adversity in Success, a first-hand account of the South West Pacific air war, before his death in 1985 at the age of 84.
, Victoria
, Joe Hewitt was the son of Reverend J.H. Hewitt. He attended Scotch College, Melbourne
, before entering the Royal Australian Naval College
, Jervis Bay
in 1915, at age 13. Graduating in 1919, Hewitt rose to Lieutenant
in the RAN before volunteering for secondment to the RAAF
as a Flight Lieutenant
in January 1923. He undertook the pilots'
course at No. 1 Flying Training School
, Point Cook, and graduated at the end of the year. Hewitt was further seconded to the Royal Air Force
on 4 May 1925, holding a temporary commission as an RAF Flying Officer
; this commission was cancelled on 25 September. He married Lorna Bishop on 10 November; they had three daughters.
Hewitt joined the newly formed No. 101 (Fleet Cooperation) Flight
, operating Seagull III
amphibious
biplane
s, in August 1926. Prior to the unit deploying to Queensland
to survey the Great Barrier Reef
with HMAS Moresby
, he practiced manoeuvres around the centre of Melbourne, landing in the Yarra River
near Flinders Street Station
. Media criticism of the escapade led to him being brought before the Chief of the Air Staff, Group Captain
Richard Williams, who rather than upbraiding Hewitt expressed himself "reservedly pleased about the publicity". After completing its survey work in November 1928, the unit served aboard the seaplane carrier
HMAS Albatross. Hewitt's transfer to the Air Force was made permanent the same year. He became Commanding Officer
of No. 101 Flight in February 1931, and supervised embarkation of the Seagull aboard the cruiser
HMAS Australia in September–October 1932, by which time he had been promoted Squadron Leader
. Finishing his tour with No. 101 Flight the following year, Hewitt was posted to Britain in 1934. He attended RAF Staff College, Andover
in his first year abroad, and served as Assistant Liaison Officer at Australia House, London in 1935. Although a specialist seaplane
pilot, he converted to bomber
s while in England, flying Hawker Hind
s and Bristol Blenheim
s as the Commanding Officer of No. 104 Squadron RAF
from 1936.
Returning to Australia in 1938, Hewitt was appointed Senior Air Staff Officer at RAAF Station Richmond
, New South Wales
, and by July that year had been promoted Wing Commander
. In May 1939, he was chosen to lead No. 10 Squadron
, due to be formed on 1 July at the recently established RAAF Station Rathmines
, near Lake Macquarie. Hewitt was preparing to depart for England to take delivery of the unit's planned complement of Short Sunderland
flying boats when he broke his neck riding his motor cycle near Richmond, and had to forgo the assignment while he recovered. Fit for duty by August, he was given command of the Rathmines base to manage the deployment of No. 10 Squadron and its aircraft, but this was suspended due to the outbreak of World War II
in September, and the Sunderlands and their RAAF crews remained in Britain for service alongside the RAF.
On 20 November 1939, the RAAF formed No. 1 Group in Melbourne, which evolved into Southern Area Command early in 1940 with Hewitt as Senior Administration Staff Officer. Having been promoted Group Captain
, he was made Director of Personnel Services (DPS) after completing his posting to Southern Area, and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 11 July. Described as having "a Calvinist background and rigid ideas on women's place in society", as DPS he opposed the creation of the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force
(WAAAF) and later advocated that its members be enrolled on a contractual basis rather than enlisted or commissioned as Permanent Air Force staff. In 1941, Hewitt became Assistant Chief of the Air Staff, before being assigned in April the following year to the newly formed Allied Air Forces Headquarters (AAF HQ), South West Pacific Area
(SWPA), as Director of Intelligence. He established cordial working relations with his American peers at AAF HQ, becoming a confidant of its commander, Major General George Kenney
.
Promoted Air Commodore
, in February 1943 Hewitt was appointed Air Officer Commanding
(AOC) No. 9 Operational Group
(9OG). The RAAF's premier mobile strike force, 9OG initially comprised seven Australian combat squadrons and came under the control of the US Fifth Air Force
. The month he took over, Hewitt's squadrons were reorganised into two wings: No. 71 Wing
, comprising units based in Milne Bay
, New Guinea
, and No. 73 Wing
, comprising those in Port Moresby
. In March, 9OG led the RAAF's contribution to the Battle of the Bismarck Sea
, "the decisive aerial engagement" in the SWPA according to General Douglas MacArthur
, resulting in 12 Japanese
ships being sunk.
By April 1943, however, Hewitt had been dragged into the divisive personal conflict between the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal George Jones
, and the AOC of RAAF Command
, Air Vice Marshal Bill Bostock
. RAAF Command was the Air Force's main operational formation in the Pacific, controlling 24 Australian squadrons. Jones, administrative and de jure
head of the RAAF, sought to extend his authority into the sphere of operations by posting a "more accountable" officer into Bostock's position, namely Hewitt. The Minister for Air
, Arthur Drakeford
, backed Jones' manoeuvre but was informed by Prime Minister
John Curtin
that General MacArthur, as Supreme Commander SWPA, "would insist on the replacement of AVM Bostock by an equally able officer", and that "Air Commodore Hewitt ... was not considered an adequate replacement."
No changes were made to command arrangements in the South West Pacific following this episode, and Hewitt continued to lead 9OG in its bombing and strafing campaign against Japanese airfields and lines of communication in New Britain
, north-east of New Guinea. By mid-June 1943, he had set up Group Headquarters at Milne Bay, and No. 73 Wing HQ at Goodenough Island
. On 22 July, he mounted an operation against Gasmata airfield
using 62 aircraft from five of his squadrons, the largest strike undertaken by the Australians to that date. 9OG would take most of the credit for the RAAF reaching a peak of 254 tons of bombs dropped in October, as against 137 tons delivered the previous month. On 8 November, Hewitt sent out a formation of three Bristol Beaufort
s in a severe electrical storm to attack the heavily defended harbour at Rabaul
. This was conceived as a "make or break" effort to prove the worth or otherwise of the Beaufort as a torpedo bomber
, in which role it had so far been a disappointment; in what the official history of the RAAF in World War II described as "an heroic attack", at least one enemy tanker
was struck, for the loss of one Beaufort.
Although Hewitt was performing an "excellent job" according to Fifth Air Force commander Major General Ennis Whitehead
, he was controversially removed from his post in mid-November 1943 by Air Vice Marshal Jones, over accusations of poor discipline and morale within 9OG. RAAF historian Alan Stephens later described the circumstances of Hewitt's dismissal as "murky", and the allegations leading to it as unofficial. Drakeford defended Hewitt's service record, informing the Prime Minister that "the present position may be largely, if not entirely, due to some temporary physical stress brought about by the strain of his important duties as A.O.C. of No. 9 Group." Hewitt himself believed that he had been smeared by a disgruntled former staff officer; historian Kristen Alexander later identified Wing Commander Kenneth Ranger, who would play a leading part in the "Morotai Mutiny
" of 1945, as having made allegations regarding Hewitt's supposed "lack of balance, vanity and lack of purpose in the prosecution of the war". As a result, Hewitt returned to his previous position as Director of Intelligence at Allied Air Headquarters, while the Air Member of Personnel, Air Commodore Frank Lukis
, took over as AOC 9OG in December. General Kenney considered Hewitt's removal "bad news".
After completing his tour as Director of Intelligence at AAF HQ at the end of 1944, Hewitt became acting Air Member for Personnel (AMP) in 1945. As AMP, Hewitt sat on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body that consisted of its most senior officers and was chaired by the Chief of the Air Staff. Along with the other members of the board, he reviewed the findings of the inquiry by Justice John Vincent Barry
into the "Morotai Mutiny", which had involved senior pilots of the Australian First Tactical Air Force
(1TAF) attempting to resign their commissions to protest the relegation of RAAF fighter squadrons to strategically unimportant ground attack missions. Hewitt recommended that the AOC 1TAF, Air Commodore Harry Cobby
, be removed from command, along with his two senior staff officers. The majority of the Air Board saw no reason to take such action, leaving Hewitt to append a dissenting note to its decision. However, Minister for Air Arthur Drakeford supported Hewitt's position, and the three senior 1TAF officers were later dismissed from their posts by Air Vice Marshal Jones.
As AMP, Hewitt was responsible for reviewing the potential employment of senior officers in the post-war Air Force. This review led to the early retirement of such figures as Air Marshal Richard Williams and Air Vice Marshals Stanley Goble
, Bill Bostock
, Frank McNamara
, Bill Anderson
, Henry Wrigley
and Adrian Cole
, ostensibly to make way for the advancement of younger and equally capable officers. Hewitt helped draft the letters to each of the retirees, explaining the reasons for the decision and redundancy payments involved. He also had the "thankless task" of rationalising the Air Force List of officers and their seniority, which had become a source of numerous irregularities due to the temporary and acting promotions granted during wartime. This resulted in many officers of senior rank being 'demoted' as many as three levels, such as Group Captain to Flight Lieutenant, in the first post-war List released in June 1947.
Hewitt was responsible for initiating major improvements in Air Force education that took place between 1945 and 1953, playing a key role in the establishment of RAAF College
and the introduction of an apprenticeship training programme. The purpose of the College was, in Hewitt's words, to "sow the seeds of service" for future leaders, helping create a special RAAF esprit de corps
. He added that it was "almost a truism that the future RAAF can be no better than the Air Force College". Founded at Point Cook in January 1948, RAAF College's inaugural Commandant was Air Commodore Val Hancock
, who also drafted its first charter. With the support of the Air Member for Engineering and Maintenance, Air Vice Marshal Ellis Wackett
, Hewitt developed the Apprenticeship Training Scheme to raise the standard of technical roles in the Air Force, introducing it with a nationwide publicity campaign to attract recruits. Its base was the Ground Training School, which opened at Wagga
, New South Wales, in early 1948 to provide education and technical training for youths aged 15 to 17. It was renamed RAAF Technical College in 1950 and then the RAAF School of Technical Training (RSTT) in 1952.
Parallel to his initiatives in Air Force education and training, Hewitt introduced a revised aircrew ranking scheme that consisted of skill categories with various levels, such as navigator level 4 or pilot level 1, rather than the regular military ranks such as sergeant or flight lieutenant. This was abandoned in 1950 due to dissatisfaction caused by the lack of obvious equivalence between these specialist 'ranks' and the traditional ranking system common to the rest of the RAAF and other defence forces. After completing his term as Air Member for Personnel in 1948, he was posted to London as the Australian Defence Representative. By now promoted Air Vice Marshal, Hewitt was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1951 New Years Honours. Returning from Britain the same year, he took over as Air Member for Supply and Equipment (AMSE) from Air Vice Marshal George Mackinolty
, who had died suddenly of cancer. Hewitt served as AMSE until his retirement from the RAAF in April 1956. In this role, he again cooperated with Air Vice Marshal Wackett—now the Air Member for Technical Services—to introduce the concept of acquiring spare parts based on 'life-of-type', whereby the forecast number and type of spares necessary for an aircraft's projected service life would be ordered when it was first deployed operationally, to reduce support costs and delivery times.
as Manager of Education and Training. He became a trustee of the Services Canteen Trust the same year, serving in this position until 1977. Having retired from International Harvester in 1966, Hewitt became an author in later life and wrote two books on his experiences in the military. The first, Adversity in Success, was published in 1980 and gave his account of the air war in the South West Pacific. He followed it in 1984 with The Black One. Hewitt also acted as chairman and managing director of his own publishing house, Langate Publishing. Predeceased by his wife Lorna, he died on 1 November 1985.
Hewitt is credited with being primarily responsible for the "education revolution" that took place in the RAAF between 1945 and 1953, his initiatives while Air Member for Personnel being carried on by his successor in the position, Air Vice Marshal Frank Bladin
. According to Air Force historians Alan Stephens and Keith Isaacs, the importance of RAAF College and the Apprenticeship Training Scheme in contributing to the professionalism of the post-war service "cannot be over-stated". Air Vice Marshal Ernie Hey, the Air Member for Technical Services from 1960 through 1972, declared that the apprenticeship programme was "one of the best things" the RAAF ever established and its graduates—numbering some 5,500 from 1952 to 1993—as "absolutely outstanding". Joe Hewitt is commemorated by Hewitt Reef in Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
, named in his honour by the survey team on HMAS Moresby, with whom he worked as a member of No. 101 Flight in 1926–28.
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 Royal Australian Navy
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...
(RAN) officer who transferred permanently to the Air Force in 1928, he commanded No. 101 (Fleet Cooperation) Flight
No. 101 Flight RAAF
No. 101 Flight RAAF was a Royal Australian Air Force fleet co-operation flight. The Flight was formed on 1 July 1925 and was equipped with Fairey III amphibian aircraft. These aircraft were replaced with Supermarine Seagull IIIs in 1926. Aircraft from No. 101 flight operated from the Royal...
in the early 1930s, and No. 104 (Bomber) Squadron RAF
No. 104 Squadron RAF
No. 104 Squadron RAF was formed at Wyton on 4 September 1917 and was equipped with the DH 9. It then moved to Andover, prior to being posted to France in May 1918. The squadron later began re-equipping with the DH 10, however the armistice arrived before this was completed and the squadron returned...
on exchange in Britain shortly before 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...
. Appointed the RAAF's Assistant Chief of the Air Staff in 1941, Hewitt was posted the following year to Allied Air Forces Headquarters, South West Pacific Area
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....
, as Director of Intelligence. In 1943, he took command of 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...
, the RAAF's main mobile strike force, but was controversially 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...
, less than a year later over alleged morale and disciplinary issues.
Described as a "small, dapper man" who was "outspoken, even 'cocky'", Hewitt overcame the setback to his career during the war and made his most significant contributions afterwards, as Air Member for Personnel from 1945 to 1948. Directly responsible for the demobilisation of thousands of wartime staff and the consolidation of what was then the world's fourth largest air force into a much smaller peacetime service, he also modernised education and training within the RAAF. Hewitt was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1951, the same year he became Air Member for Supply and Equipment. Retiring from the military in 1956, he went into business and later managed his own publishing house. He wrote two books including Adversity in Success, a first-hand account of the South West Pacific air war, before his death in 1985 at the age of 84.
Early career
Born in TyldenTylden, Victoria
Tylden is a small country town in central Victoria, Australia. The town is located in the Shire of Macedon Ranges Local Government Area, north west of the state capital, Melbourne. At the 2006 census, Tylden has a population of 350.-Today:...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Joe Hewitt was the son of Reverend J.H. Hewitt. He attended Scotch College, Melbourne
Scotch College, Melbourne
Scotch College, Melbourne is an independent, Presbyterian, day and boarding school for boys, located in Hawthorn, an inner-eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....
, before entering the Royal Australian Naval College
HMAS Creswell
HMAS Creswell is a shore establishment of the Royal Australian Navy, a part of the Australian Defence Force, and consists of the Royal Australian Naval College , The RAN School of Survivability and Ship's Safety, Kalkara Flight, the Beecroft Weapons Range and an administrative support...
, Jervis Bay
Jervis Bay
Jervis Bay is a large bay bounded by the state of New South Wales, the Jervis Bay Territory, and a detached enclave of the Australian Capital Territory. HMAS Creswell is located between Jervis Bay Village and Greenpatch in the Jervis Bay Territory.-History:...
in 1915, at age 13. Graduating in 1919, Hewitt rose 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 the RAN before volunteering for secondment to the RAAF
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...
as a 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"...
in January 1923. He undertook the pilots'
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
course at 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...
, Point Cook, and graduated at the end of the year. Hewitt was further seconded to the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
on 4 May 1925, holding a temporary commission as an RAF 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...
; this commission was cancelled on 25 September. He married Lorna Bishop on 10 November; they had three daughters.
No. 101 Flight RAAF
No. 101 Flight RAAF was a Royal Australian Air Force fleet co-operation flight. The Flight was formed on 1 July 1925 and was equipped with Fairey III amphibian aircraft. These aircraft were replaced with Supermarine Seagull IIIs in 1926. Aircraft from No. 101 flight operated from the Royal...
, operating Seagull III
Supermarine Seagull (1921)
|-Specifications :-See also:-Bibliography:* Andrews, C.F. and Morgan, E.B. Supermarine Aircraft Since 1914. London: Putnam Books Ltd., 2nd revised edition 2003. ISBN 0-851-77800-3....
amphibious
Amphibious aircraft
An amphibious aircraft or amphibian is an aircraft that can take off and land on either land or water. Fixed-wing amphibious aircraft are seaplanes that are equipped with retractable wheels, at the expense of extra weight and complexity, plus diminished range and fuel economy compared to planes...
biplane
Biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
s, in August 1926. Prior to the unit deploying to Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
to survey the Great Barrier Reef
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
with HMAS Moresby
HMAS Moresby (1918)
HMAS Moresby was a 24-class "Fleet Sweeping" sloop that served in the Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy as a minesweeper, anti-submarine vessel, and survey ship...
, he practiced manoeuvres around the centre of Melbourne, landing in the Yarra River
Yarra River
The Yarra River, originally Birrarung, is a river in east-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stretches of the river is where the city of Melbourne was established in 1835 and today Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches...
near Flinders Street Station
Flinders Street Station
Flinders Street Station is the central railway station of the suburban railway network of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is on the corner of Flinders and Swanston Streets next to the Yarra River in the heart of the city, stretching from Swanston Street to Queen Street and covering two city...
. Media criticism of the escapade led to him being brought before the Chief of the Air Staff, 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...
Richard Williams, who rather than upbraiding Hewitt expressed himself "reservedly pleased about the publicity". After completing its survey work in November 1928, the unit served aboard the seaplane carrier
Seaplane tender
A seaplane tender is a ship that provides facilities for operating seaplanes. These ships were the first aircraft carriers and appeared just before the First World War.-History:...
HMAS Albatross. Hewitt's transfer to the Air Force was made permanent the same year. He became 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...
of No. 101 Flight in February 1931, and supervised embarkation of the Seagull aboard the cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
HMAS Australia in September–October 1932, by which time he had been 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...
. Finishing his tour with No. 101 Flight the following year, Hewitt was posted to Britain in 1934. He attended 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:...
in his first year abroad, and served as Assistant Liaison Officer at Australia House, London in 1935. Although a specialist seaplane
Seaplane
A seaplane is a fixed-wing aircraft capable of taking off and landing on water. Seaplanes that can also take off and land on airfields are a subclass called amphibian aircraft...
pilot, he converted to bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s while in England, flying Hawker Hind
Hawker Hind
-See also:-Bibliography:* Crawford, Alex. Hawker Hart Family. Redbourn, Hertfordshire, UK: Mushroom Model Publications Ltd., 2008. ISBN 83-89450-62-3....
s and Bristol Blenheim
Bristol Blenheim
The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...
s as the Commanding Officer of No. 104 Squadron RAF
No. 104 Squadron RAF
No. 104 Squadron RAF was formed at Wyton on 4 September 1917 and was equipped with the DH 9. It then moved to Andover, prior to being posted to France in May 1918. The squadron later began re-equipping with the DH 10, however the armistice arrived before this was completed and the squadron returned...
from 1936.
Returning to Australia in 1938, Hewitt was appointed Senior Air Staff Officer 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
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, and by July that year had been promoted 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...
. In May 1939, he was chosen to lead No. 10 Squadron
No. 10 Squadron RAAF
No. 10 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force maritime patrol squadron based at RAAF Base Edinburgh. The Squadron was first formed in 1939 and has seen active service in World War II, East Timor, the War on Terrorism and the 2003 Gulf War.-Second World War:...
, due to be formed on 1 July at the recently established RAAF Station 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...
, near Lake Macquarie. Hewitt was preparing to depart for England to take delivery of the unit's planned complement of Short Sunderland
Short Sunderland
The Short S.25 Sunderland was a British flying boat patrol bomber developed for the Royal Air Force by Short Brothers. It took its service name from the town and port of Sunderland in northeast England....
flying boats when he broke his neck riding his motor cycle near Richmond, and had to forgo the assignment while he recovered. Fit for duty by August, he was given command of the Rathmines base to manage the deployment of No. 10 Squadron and its aircraft, but this was suspended due to the outbreak 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...
in September, and the Sunderlands and their RAAF crews remained in Britain for service alongside the RAF.
Director of Personnel Services to AOC No. 9 Operational Group
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...
, he was made Director of Personnel Services (DPS) after completing his posting to Southern Area, and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 11 July. Described as having "a Calvinist background and rigid ideas on women's place in society", as DPS he opposed the creation 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...
(WAAAF) and later advocated that its members be enrolled on a contractual basis rather than enlisted or commissioned as Permanent Air Force staff. In 1941, Hewitt became Assistant Chief of the Air Staff, before being assigned in April the following year to the newly formed Allied Air Forces Headquarters (AAF HQ), South West Pacific Area
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....
(SWPA), as Director of Intelligence. He established cordial working relations with his American peers at AAF HQ, becoming a confidant of its commander, Major 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:...
.
Promoted Air Commodore
Air Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
, in February 1943 Hewitt was appointed 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...
(AOC) 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...
(9OG). The RAAF's premier mobile strike force, 9OG initially comprised seven Australian combat squadrons and came under the control of the US Fifth Air Force
Fifth Air Force
The Fifth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces . It is headquartered at Yokota Air Base, Japan....
. The month he took over, Hewitt's squadrons were reorganised into two wings: No. 71 Wing
No. 71 Wing RAAF
No. 71 Wing was a Royal Australian Air Force wing of World War II. It was formed in February 1943 at Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea, as part of No. 9 Operational Group. The wing initially comprised two squadrons of P-40 Kittyhawks, one of Lockheed Hudsons, and one of Bristol Beauforts...
, comprising units based in Milne Bay
Milne Bay
Milne Bay is a large bay in Milne Bay Province, southeastern Papua New Guinea. The bay is named after Sir Alexander Milne.The area was a site of the Battle of Milne Bay in 1942....
, New Guinea
Territory of New Guinea
The Territory of New Guinea was the Australia-controlled, League of Nations-mandated territory in the north eastern part of the island of New Guinea, and surrounding islands, between 1920 and 1949...
, and No. 73 Wing
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...
, comprising those in 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...
. In March, 9OG led the RAAF's contribution to the Battle of the Bismarck Sea
Battle of the Bismarck Sea
The Battle of the Bismarck Sea took place in the South West Pacific Area during World War II. During the course of the battle, aircraft of the U.S. 5th Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force attacked a Japanese convoy that was carrying troops to Lae, New Guinea...
, "the decisive aerial engagement" in the SWPA according to General Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
, resulting in 12 Japanese
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
ships being sunk.
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...
, and the AOC of RAAF Command
RAAF Command
RAAF Command was the main operational arm of the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. The command was established in September 1942 and by April 1943 comprised 27 squadrons, including units from the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as Australia...
, Air Vice Marshal Bill Bostock
William Bostock
Air Vice Marshal William Dowling Bostock CB, DSO, OBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force. During World War II he led RAAF Command, the Air Force's main operational formation, with responsibility for the defence of Australia and air offensives against Japanese targets in the...
. RAAF Command was the Air Force's main operational formation in the Pacific, controlling 24 Australian squadrons. Jones, administrative and de jure
De jure
De jure is an expression that means "concerning law", as contrasted with de facto, which means "concerning fact".De jure = 'Legally', De facto = 'In fact'....
head of the RAAF, sought to extend his authority into the sphere of operations by posting a "more accountable" officer into Bostock's position, namely Hewitt. The Minister for Air
Minister for Defence (Australia)
The Minister for Defence of Australia administers his portfolio through the Australian Defence Organisation, which comprises the Department of Defence and the Australian Defence Force. Stephen Smith is the current Minister.-Ministers for Defence:...
, Arthur Drakeford
Arthur Drakeford
Arthur Samuel Drakeford was an Australian politician and was the minister responsible for the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II...
, backed Jones' manoeuvre but was informed by Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
John Curtin
John Curtin
John Joseph Curtin , Australian politician, served as the 14th Prime Minister of Australia. Labor under Curtin formed a minority government in 1941 after the crossbench consisting of two independent MPs crossed the floor in the House of Representatives, bringing down the Coalition minority...
that General MacArthur, as Supreme Commander SWPA, "would insist on the replacement of AVM Bostock by an equally able officer", and that "Air Commodore Hewitt ... was not considered an adequate replacement."
No changes were made to command arrangements in the South West Pacific following this episode, and Hewitt continued to lead 9OG in its bombing and strafing campaign against Japanese airfields and lines of communication in New Britain
New Britain
New Britain, or Niu Briten, is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from the island of New Guinea by the Dampier and Vitiaz Straits and from New Ireland by St. George's Channel...
, north-east of New Guinea. By mid-June 1943, he had set up Group Headquarters at Milne Bay, and No. 73 Wing HQ at Goodenough Island
Goodenough Island
Goodenough Island in the Solomon Sea is the westernmost of the three large islands of the D'Entrecasteaux Islands in Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea. It lies to the east of mainland New Guinea and south west of the Trobriand Islands.It should not be confused with Goodenough's Island...
. On 22 July, he mounted an operation against Gasmata airfield
Gasmata Airport
Gasmata Airport is an airport in Gasmata, Papua New Guinea .-Airlines and destinations:...
using 62 aircraft from five of his squadrons, the largest strike undertaken by the Australians to that date. 9OG would take most of the credit for the RAAF reaching a peak of 254 tons of bombs dropped in October, as against 137 tons delivered the previous month. On 8 November, Hewitt sent out a formation of three 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....
s in a severe electrical storm to attack the heavily defended harbour at Rabaul
Rabaul
Rabaul is a township in East New Britain province, Papua New Guinea. The town was the provincial capital and most important settlement in the province until it was destroyed in 1994 by falling ash of a volcanic eruption. During the eruption, ash was sent thousands of metres into the air and the...
. This was conceived as a "make or break" effort to prove the worth or otherwise of the Beaufort as a torpedo bomber
Torpedo bomber
A torpedo bomber is a bomber aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes which could also carry out conventional bombings. Torpedo bombers existed almost exclusively prior to and during World War II when they were an important element in many famous battles, notably the...
, in which role it had so far been a disappointment; in what the official history of the RAAF in World War II described as "an heroic attack", at least one enemy tanker
Tank ship
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
was struck, for the loss of one Beaufort.
AOC No. 9 Operational Group to Air Member for Personnel
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...
, he was controversially removed from his post in mid-November 1943 by Air Vice Marshal Jones, over accusations of poor discipline and morale within 9OG. RAAF historian Alan Stephens later described the circumstances of Hewitt's dismissal as "murky", and the allegations leading to it as unofficial. Drakeford defended Hewitt's service record, informing the Prime Minister that "the present position may be largely, if not entirely, due to some temporary physical stress brought about by the strain of his important duties as A.O.C. of No. 9 Group." Hewitt himself believed that he had been smeared by a disgruntled former staff officer; historian Kristen Alexander later identified Wing Commander Kenneth Ranger, who would play a leading part in the "Morotai Mutiny
Morotai Mutiny
The "Morotai Mutiny" was an incident in April 1945 involving members of the Australian First Tactical Air Force based on the island of Morotai, in the Dutch East Indies...
" of 1945, as having made allegations regarding Hewitt's supposed "lack of balance, vanity and lack of purpose in the prosecution of the war". As a result, Hewitt returned to his previous position as Director of Intelligence at Allied Air Headquarters, while the Air Member of Personnel, Air Commodore Frank Lukis
Frank Lukis
Air Commodore Francis William Fellowes Lukis, CBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . A veteran of World War I, he first saw combat as a soldier in the Australian Imperial Force at Gallipoli...
, took over as AOC 9OG in December. General Kenney considered Hewitt's removal "bad news".
After completing his tour as Director of Intelligence at AAF HQ at the end of 1944, Hewitt became acting Air Member for Personnel (AMP) in 1945. As AMP, Hewitt sat on the Air Board, the RAAF's controlling body that consisted of its most senior officers and was chaired by the Chief of the Air Staff. Along with the other members of the board, he reviewed the findings of the inquiry by Justice John Vincent Barry
John Vincent Barry
Sir John Vincent William Barry KC was an Australian justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria, and an expert in criminology. Born the eldest child of William Edward Barry and Sarah Lena Jeanette, née Keene in Albury, New South Wales, Barry was educated in St Patrick's College, a small convent...
into the "Morotai Mutiny", which had involved senior pilots of 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...
(1TAF) attempting to resign their commissions to protest the relegation of RAAF fighter squadrons to strategically unimportant ground attack missions. Hewitt recommended that the AOC 1TAF, Air Commodore Harry Cobby
Arthur Henry Cobby
Air Commodore Arthur Henry Cobby CBE, DSO, DFC & Two Bars, GM was an Australian military aviator...
, be removed from command, along with his two senior staff officers. The majority of the Air Board saw no reason to take such action, leaving Hewitt to append a dissenting note to its decision. However, Minister for Air Arthur Drakeford supported Hewitt's position, and the three senior 1TAF officers were later dismissed from their posts by Air Vice Marshal Jones.
Demobilisation and rationalisation
Hewitt's appointment as Air Member for Personnel was made permanent following the end of World War II in August 1945. In this role he was directly responsible for the demobilisation of what had become the world's fourth largest air force, and its transition to a much smaller peacetime service. Hewitt considered that the RAAF was in danger of losing some of its best staff through rapid, unplanned demobilisation, and recommended that its workforce be stabilised for two years at a strength of 20,000 while it reviewed its post-war requirements. Although the Air Board supported Hewitt's proposal, government cost-cutting resulted in the strength of the so-called Interim Air Force remaining lower than planned, being reduced to some 13,000 by October 1946 and under 8,000 by the end of 1948. Despite claiming that employing women in the Air Force was an important factor in reducing "antagonism and prejudice" against them in the work force in general, Hewitt also recommended that the WAAAF be disbanded after the war.As AMP, Hewitt was responsible for reviewing the potential employment of senior officers in the post-war Air Force. This review led to the early retirement of such figures as Air Marshal Richard Williams and Air Vice Marshals Stanley Goble
Stanley Goble
Air Vice Marshal Stanley James Goble CBE, DSO, DSC was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . He served three terms as Chief of the Air Staff, alternating with Wing Commander Richard Williams...
, Bill Bostock
William Bostock
Air Vice Marshal William Dowling Bostock CB, DSO, OBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force. During World War II he led RAAF Command, the Air Force's main operational formation, with responsibility for the defence of Australia and air offensives against Japanese targets in the...
, Frank McNamara
Frank Hubert McNamara
Air Vice Marshal Francis Hubert McNamara VC, CB, CBE was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for valour in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to a member of the British and Commonwealth forces...
, Bill Anderson
William Anderson (RAAF officer)
Air Vice-Marshal William Hopton Anderson CBE, DFC was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . He flew with the Australian Flying Corps in World War I, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Belgian Croix de guerre, and leading Nos. 3 and 7 Squadrons...
, Henry Wrigley
Henry Wrigley
Air Vice Marshal Henry Neilson Wrigley CBE, DFC, AFC was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . A pioneer aviator and theorist, he piloted the first trans-Australia flight from Melbourne to Darwin in 1919, and subsequently laid the groundwork for the RAAF's air power doctrine...
and 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...
, ostensibly to make way for the advancement of younger and equally capable officers. Hewitt helped draft the letters to each of the retirees, explaining the reasons for the decision and redundancy payments involved. He also had the "thankless task" of rationalising the Air Force List of officers and their seniority, which had become a source of numerous irregularities due to the temporary and acting promotions granted during wartime. This resulted in many officers of senior rank being 'demoted' as many as three levels, such as Group Captain to Flight Lieutenant, in the first post-war List released in June 1947.
RAAF education and other work
RAAF College
The Royal Australian Air Force College is the Royal Australian Air Force training and education academy which is responsible for all the Air Force's initial, career development, promotion and leadership training...
and the introduction of an apprenticeship training programme. The purpose of the College was, in Hewitt's words, to "sow the seeds of service" for future leaders, helping create a special RAAF esprit de corps
Morale
Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group, is an intangible term used to describe the capacity of people to maintain belief in an institution or a goal, or even in oneself and others...
. He added that it was "almost a truism that the future RAAF can be no better than the Air Force College". Founded at Point Cook in January 1948, RAAF College's inaugural Commandant was Air Commodore Val Hancock
Valston Hancock
Air Marshal Sir Valston Eldridge Hancock, KBE, CB, DFC was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . He served as Chief of the Air Staff from 1961 to 1965. A graduate of the Royal Military College, Duntroon, Hancock transferred to the RAAF in 1929 and qualified as a pilot...
, who also drafted its first charter. With the support of the Air Member for Engineering and Maintenance, Air Vice Marshal Ellis Wackett
Ellis Wackett
Air Vice Marshal Ellis Charles Wackett CB, CBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . Its chief engineer from 1935 to 1959, he served on the RAAF's controlling body, the Air Board, for a record 17 years, and has been credited with infusing operations with new standards of...
, Hewitt developed the Apprenticeship Training Scheme to raise the standard of technical roles in the Air Force, introducing it with a nationwide publicity campaign to attract recruits. Its base was the Ground Training School, which opened at Wagga
RAAF Base Wagga
RAAF Base Wagga is located in the New South Wales town of Wagga Wagga, in the suburb of Forest Hill.The RAAF no longer controls the airfield which, although still owned by the Commonwealth of Australia, is currently leased to the Wagga Wagga City Council...
, New South Wales, in early 1948 to provide education and technical training for youths aged 15 to 17. It was renamed RAAF Technical College in 1950 and then the RAAF School of Technical Training (RSTT) in 1952.
Parallel to his initiatives in Air Force education and training, Hewitt introduced a revised aircrew ranking scheme that consisted of skill categories with various levels, such as navigator level 4 or pilot level 1, rather than the regular military ranks such as sergeant or flight lieutenant. This was abandoned in 1950 due to dissatisfaction caused by the lack of obvious equivalence between these specialist 'ranks' and the traditional ranking system common to the rest of the RAAF and other defence forces. After completing his term as Air Member for Personnel in 1948, he was posted to London as the Australian Defence Representative. By now promoted Air Vice Marshal, Hewitt was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1951 New Years Honours. Returning from Britain the same year, he took over as Air Member for Supply and Equipment (AMSE) from Air Vice Marshal George Mackinolty
George Mackinolty
Air Vice Marshal George John William Mackinolty OBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . Commencing his service in the Australian Flying Corps as a mechanic during World War I, he rose to become the RAAF's chief logistics officer for more than twenty years...
, who had died suddenly of cancer. Hewitt served as AMSE until his retirement from the RAAF in April 1956. In this role, he again cooperated with Air Vice Marshal Wackett—now the Air Member for Technical Services—to introduce the concept of acquiring spare parts based on 'life-of-type', whereby the forecast number and type of spares necessary for an aircraft's projected service life would be ordered when it was first deployed operationally, to reduce support costs and delivery times.
Later life and legacy
Following his retirement from the Air Force in 1956, Hewitt joined International Harvester Co. AustraliaInternational Harvester
International Harvester Company was a United States agricultural machinery, construction equipment, vehicle, commercial truck, and household and commercial products manufacturer. In 1902, J.P...
as Manager of Education and Training. He became a trustee of the Services Canteen Trust the same year, serving in this position until 1977. Having retired from International Harvester in 1966, Hewitt became an author in later life and wrote two books on his experiences in the military. The first, Adversity in Success, was published in 1980 and gave his account of the air war in the South West Pacific. He followed it in 1984 with The Black One. Hewitt also acted as chairman and managing director of his own publishing house, Langate Publishing. Predeceased by his wife Lorna, he died on 1 November 1985.
Hewitt is credited with being primarily responsible for the "education revolution" that took place in the RAAF between 1945 and 1953, his initiatives while Air Member for Personnel being carried on by his successor in the position, Air Vice Marshal Frank Bladin
Frank Bladin
Air Vice Marshal Francis Masson Bladin, CB, CBE was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force . Born in rural Victoria, he graduated from the Royal Military College, Duntroon, in 1920. Bladin transferred from the Army to the Air Force in 1923, and learned to fly at RAAF Point Cook,...
. According to Air Force historians Alan Stephens and Keith Isaacs, the importance of RAAF College and the Apprenticeship Training Scheme in contributing to the professionalism of the post-war service "cannot be over-stated". Air Vice Marshal Ernie Hey, the Air Member for Technical Services from 1960 through 1972, declared that the apprenticeship programme was "one of the best things" the RAAF ever established and its graduates—numbering some 5,500 from 1952 to 1993—as "absolutely outstanding". Joe Hewitt is commemorated by Hewitt Reef in Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park protects a large part of Australia's Great Barrier Reef from damaging activities. Fishing and the removal of artefacts or...
, named in his honour by the survey team on HMAS Moresby, with whom he worked as a member of No. 101 Flight in 1926–28.