Royal Netherlands East Indies Air Force
| Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force | |
|---|---|
| Militaire Luchtvaart van het Koninklijk Nederlands-Indisch Leger | |
| Active | 1915–1950 |
| Country | Netherlands |
| Branch | Royal Netherlands East Indies Army |
| Type | Air force |
| Role | Aerial warfare |
| Aircraft | See list below |
| Engagements | World War II Indonesian War of Independence |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
See list below |
| Insignia | |
| Roundel circa 1921-1939 & 1948-1950 |  |
| Roundel 1939-1942 |  |
| Roundel 1942-1948 |  |
The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (Militaire Luchtvaart van het Koninklijk Nederlands-Indisch Leger, ML-KNIL) was the air arm of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) from 1939 until 1950. It was an entirely separate organisation from the Royal Netherlands Air Force.
The unit was founded in 1915 as the "Test Flight Service" (Proefvliegafdeling-KNIL, PVA-KNIL). In 1921 it became the "Aviation Service" (Luchtvaartafdeling-KNIL, LA-KNIL), before finally receiving the designation of ML-KNIL on 30 March 1939. In 1950, following Dutch recognition of Indonesian independence, its bases and facilities were handed over to the Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU).
On 1 January 1942 the Dutch forces joined the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command, but at the onset of the Japanese assault the ML-KNIL was not up to full combat strength. Of the aircraft that had been ordered, only a small number had been delivered, and many were obsolete models. There were five groups, three of bombers and two of fighters, each of three to four squadrons. A sixth depot group provided support, transport and training. Reconnaissance aircraft were placed directly under command of the Army to give support to ground troops.
Despite stubborn resistance the Japanese occupied the Dutch colonies, though numbers of aircraft found their way to northern Australia to continue the fight.
Four Dutch squadrons were formed in Australia. The first of these, No. 18 (NEI) Squadron RAAF, was formed in April 1942 as a medium bomber squadron equipped with B-25 Mitchell aircraft. The second joint Australian-NEI squadron, No. 119 (NEI) Squadron RAAF, was also to be a medium bomber squadron. No. 119 NEI Squadron was only active between September and December 1943 when it was disbanded to form No. 120 (NEI) Squadron RAAF, was a fighter squadron. In 1944, the KNIL formed No. 1 Netherlands East Indies Transport Squadron, later absorbed by the RAAF as No. 19 (NEI) Squadron RAAF. Both No. 18 and No. 120 Squadrons saw action against the Japanese during World War II.
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