A basic Australian history questionnaire Noel Jackling The term ‘Australia’ is used in a broad sense to include its earlier names. 1. Who was the first known European skipper to reach Australia? What was the name of his ship and which part of Australia did he touch upon? In what Read more…
This is a personal CV written by Dirk Bodemeijer, while he was living in the USA after WWII. Dirk was briefly part of the 120 Squadron that operated out of Bundaberg and Dutch New Guinea. The documents underneath his CV, relate to his time In Bundaberg. CV Dirk Bodemeijer Born Read more…
Coosje Ayal, born in 1926 in the Moluccas, Western New Guinea, became a notable figure for her resistance efforts during World War II. Adopted by her aunt and uncle, who was a civil servant of the Dutch colonial government, she attended a Dutch school and learned the language. When the Read more…
Maatsuyker Island is named after Joan Maetsuycker, the The Dutch Governor of Zeylan (present-day Sri Lanka) during the Dutch period in Ceylon and later the Governor-General of the Netherlands East Indies from 1653 to 1678. The island was named by Dutch explorer Abel Tasman, who named it after Maetsuycker in Read more…
For his extraordinary courage and perseverance, Kokkelink was knighted at Camp Columbia in Brisbane on April 12, 1945. His commendation highlighted his decisive actions, perseverance, and skill during the Japanese occupation, emphasising the “indescribable difficulties and hardships” he faced. Mauritz Christiaan Kokkelink, born on June 17, 1913, at the military Read more…
On June 16th 2021 I received news that the Ambassador of the Netherlands in Australia, H.E. Mrs. Marion Derckx, announced Ms. Marjon Wind to be the new Honorary Consul for Queensland. Ms. Wind succeeds Dr. Frans Karel de Laat as the Honorary Consul for the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Read more…
Military Air Transport in Australia started soon before the fall of the Netherlands East Indies (NEI). In the few months before this happened evacuations started to happen, mainly of Dutch civilian personnel including families of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Airline (KNILM). These civil aircrafts became the earliest core of Read more…
This report recently declassified assesses – in 1948 – the implications of the decolonisation of Africa and Asia for US security. The report – which also mentioned the futile attempts of the Netherlands to hold on to the Netherlands East Indies (now Indonesia) – proofs to be amazingly accurate about Read more…
The establishment of the NEI Personnel & Equipment Pool (PEP) Squadron, initially stationed at RAAF Base in Canberra, resulted from the need to allow Netherlands East Indies (NEI) crews to recover and prepare for upcoming operations after completing their operational tours. Additionally, they required a base to accommodate spare aircraft Read more…
Ivan Vasilyevich Smirnov, a Russian pilot born in 1895 during the era of Tsarist Russia, embarked on a remarkable journey through the turbulent times of the 20th century. His life story is a testament to courage, adaptability, and dedication to aviation. Smirnov’s journey into aviation began as a response to Read more…