Last air to air combat involving the RAAF

Two Gloster Meteor Mk8 jets of No 77 Squadron, flown by Sergeants George Hale and David Irlam, were conducting a road reconnaissance over North Korea near Sinmak when Hale saw what he thought was a lone MiG-15. It was only as he dived into the attack that he realised he was opposed by three enemy aircraft. In the ensuing dogfight, Hale’s cannon fire sent one MiG down on its back, belching black smoke and shedding bits of fuselage as it dropped from view. Immediately confronted by another pair of MiGs, he scored hits on one of these also and saw it trailing white smoke as it climbed away from him. Having expended all his ammunition, Hale broke off contact. This was the last time that 77 Squadron aircraft engaged in aerial combat in Korea, and indeed the last time that any RAAF unit has been involved in air-to-air fighting since.