In my book I Think I Prefer the Tinned Variety: The Diary of a Petty Officer in the Fleet Air Arm during World War II, I explain that in 1945 my dad was sent to a naval air-base on Ponam Island in the Admiralty Islands (part of present day Papua New Guinea). He was a member of MONAB 4.
The MONABs were Mobile Naval Operating Air Bases which were needed to provide repair, maintenance and servicing for the aircraft used by the Fleet Air Arm on board the ships of the British Pacific Fleet.
The plan was that there would be ten MONABs in total. Each MONAB was given an H.M.S name that began with "Nab" to reflect the NAB in MONAB. Norman Australia Australia in the Pacific Ocean.
MONAB 1 - R.N.A.S Nowra (approximately 99 miles south of Sidney , New South Wales , Australia
MONAB 2 - R.N.A.S Bankstown (a suburb of Sidney , New South Wales , Australia
MONAB 3 - R.N.A.S Schofields (a suburb of Sidney , New South Wales , Australia
MONAB 4 - R.N.A.S Ponam (Admiralty Islands approximately 2500 miles north of Australia
MONAB 5 - R.N.A.S Jervis Bay (approximately 80 miles south of Sidney , New South Wales , Australia
MONAB 6 - R.N.A.S Mary borough (approximately 160 miles north of Brisbane , Queensland , Australia
MONAB 7 - R.N.A.S Archerfield (Brisbane , Queensland , Australia
MONAB 8 - R.N.A.S Kai-Tak (Hong Kong ) - H.M.S Nabcatcher commissioned 26/9/45.
MONAB 9 - R.N.A.S Sembewang (Singapore
MONAB 10 - H.M.S Nabhurst - didn't leave the UK
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| My dad stuck this map in his photo book in 1945. His arrow indicates the location of Ponam Island but the map distorts the distance which was over 2,000 miles from Australia. |