From here the Ventura aircraft patrolled the western sea approaches to Cape Town at the height of the submarine menace.
The Detachment's aircraft consisted of a mixture of aircraft, consisting of the Douglas A-20 Havoc, Beech C-43 Staggerwing, Taylorcraft L-2 Grasshopper, Beech AT-7, Douglas A-24 Dauntless, Curtiss A-25 Helldiver, and the B-34 Lexington.
A Ventura bomber of the South African Air Force, therefore, was sent from Cape Town to drop supplies on the beach for the survivors.
Later in 1941, the squadron was re-equipped with the new Lockheed Hudson Bomber and in 1943 re-equipped once more, this time with Lockheed Ventura aircraft.
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In 2008, numerous aircraft were still present, including C-54s, DC-4s, DC-7s, PV-2s, and a Howard 500.
A particularly violent engagement took place on 3 May 1943, when the Spitfires of 118, 167 and 504 Squadrons escorted the Lockheed Venturas of No. 487 Squadron RNZAF on a raid against a power station in Amsterdam.