Fareastdriver,
Your later days out there seem to have been packed with activity. It seems strange that a compulsory retirement age of 60 (presumably introduced on medical grounds) from "regular" employment, could be circumvented by simply going on a "zero-hours" Contract ! But that seems to be the way it was.
No.12 Squadron, RAAF was the first Sqn to be based at Darwin in the Northern Territories '42-'44 so Wiki tells me. They got their Vengeances from Oct'42 onwards, worked-up on them and started operating the next year.
At first they were used on rather pointless sea patrols (we did the same in India), but then they must have decided to "bite the bullet" and teach themselves how to use them properly.
Among other places they were at Merauke (New Guinea) from Nov'43 to May'44. But they did a strike on Selaru in the Tanimbar Islands on 18 June'43 (from where ?); this seems to be the only VV 'op' they ever did. Of course, the VVs were pulled out of the line in summer '44 (as also were we - WHY ? - the war still had a year to run, we could have been useful).
Anyway, in your wanderings in the Darwin area, did you ever come across any memories or trace of the VVs ?
This convivial gathering lacks an important item - the Bomb Fin Container/Bar Stool: Clearly, this lot needed to "Get Some In !" (if they'd done a lot of VV 'ops', they would have collected a whole pile of them and seen the obvious possibility of using them for the purpose).
Also, they would have realised that the end (gunner's) curved section of the canopy, seen pushed back in the photo above, would prove a nuisance when he was facing forward, (but still wanted the breeze), and done what we did - just chuck 'em out ! (you could do things like that in those days).
No. 12 Squadron aircrew in the bar of the aircrew mess at Merauke (note: Gentlemen on the left, Players on the right ! - apartheid still evident)
Hope there's still a bit more to come from the good old Far East,
Cheers, Danny.
PS:
Chugalug in particular will be interested in this VV picture (I've only just spotted it myself). Look at the aerial - there seems to be a downward 'kink' in the (tension sprung?) bit on the mast.
Something is pulling it down. And that something
can only be the conjectured two (invisible) aerial wires running from that point to each wing tip !
Elementary, my dear Danny.