Nederlandse Modelbouw en Luchtvaartsite

In service with RNlAF, NEIAF and RAF

In service with NEIAF.

Late thirties the NEIAF expanded and therefore there was need for a multi-engine training aircraft.
This aircraft must be equipped dual controls, retractable landing gear, allowing an a rotating machine gun turret for training of air gunners and equipment shedding light bombs for training of bombardiers.
It could therefore also limited operational deployment.

Lockheed began in 1938 with the development of a military version of the Lockheed 12, the Lockheed Model 212.
The NEIAF was the first customer and ordered on September 27, 1938 12 Lockheed 212-26 trainers.
The first NEI Lockheed 212, c/n 212-01 L201 and registration made on March 7, 1939 the first flight.
The first five machines arrived in June 1939, at Surabaya, where they were assembled.
In October 1939 another four were ordered, which were delivered in April 1940, these were designated Lockheed 212A-13.

After the Netherlands was occupied, attempts were done to acquire more units, however, due to the lack of engines and the American Purchasing committee, this process run considerably slower than the previous orders.

On September 24, 1940 a request was applied by the NPC (Netherlands Purchasing Committee)for 10 Lockheed 12's. This request was approved in October 1940, but without the necessary R-985 engines, which had to obtained from the British.
The British refused to release the engines, so that request was withdrawn in April 1941. The serials L-217 to L-226 were already reserved for these aircraft.

On November 27, 1940 a request followed for ten Lockheed 212s, which was approved, this time including the engines.
This (third) order for the Lockheed 212s was soon converted into an order for Lockheed 12s, because the Lockheed 212 was no longer in production.
Another request on February 14, 1941 for another ten Lockheed 12s was approved on 9 April that year, so on June 6, 1941 this order was placed at Lockheed.

MLD, who was planning to buy the Douglas Boston, also needed a multi-engine trainer, and demanded in January 1941 for seven Lockheed 212s and Lockheed received in February a request for another seventeen pieces.
The Wright engines, intended for the Fokker T. VIIIw, were still available and delivered in England.
Because the Lockheed 212 was discontinued, the request was converted into Lockheed 12.
Both were rejected because Lockheed had been overloaded with orders, so it was recommended to purchase 24 Beech AT-11 Kansans.

Mid August 1940, the registration system of the ML-KNIL was changed. It now consisted of one or two letters indicating the manufacturer, than one digit, representing the class of the aircraft, e.g. 2 was a transitional aircraft, followed by two or more numbers indicating the sequence number.

The first three Lockheed 12s were completed in October 1941, three in December 1941 and four in January 1942. Meanwhile, the war in Dutch East Indies was in full swing.
The first Lockheed 12 was sent to England, for Prince Bernhard, where it arrived in August 1942.
The plane received RAF serial number NF753 and PB-2.

Lockheed 12, L2-38, photographed in 1985 at the Militaire Luchtvaart Museum at Soesterberg.

War

8 December 1941, war with Japan broke out and maritime reconnaissance unit with nine Lockheed 212s was established, the fourth section of IV aircraft group, 4-VLG-IV.
The armament of these devices was very useful. It was also possible to mount a machine gun in the nose, but for unknown reasons it never worked out well.
The range of the Lockheed 212 with bomb-load and the dorsal turret in operational position, was about 1200 km, which is rather limited for a patrol plane. This problem was solved by a stop-over at various airfields along the coast.

During such a patrol flight was on January 1, 1942 Lockheed L-215 lost.

At he end of January and early February it was commissioned to assessed to continue the training programs from Australia. The planes had to be evacuated.
It was possible to do this with the aircraft tender USS Langley, but this ship was sunk near Cilacap by the Japanese. Also, one could add additional fuel tanks in the aircraft or to take fuel.
For unknown reasons, this was not done.
It was ordered to destroy the aircraft "without smoke and fire", usually this was accomplished by retracting the landing gear and destroy fuel tanks with axes.

The six Lockheed of the Flying School were destroyed, that same happened with the two Lockheeds at the Depot VliegtuigAfdeling (Depot aircraft Division).
 These were probably the two Lockheeds 12, which had just  arrived from America.
 Certainly one Lockheed 12 was used by the Japanese.

The ensign Pelders managed to flee with the L201 to Ceylon after repairs and this aircraft was sent to Karachi.

Among the Lockheeds which were directed to Australia, were L2-34 and L2-35. These were initially used by the staff of the ML, which had been  evacuated to Australia.

The  L2-L2-31 and 33 were shortly after arrival on March 22, 1944, taken over by the Americans.
 Not long after, most of ML material which arrived in Australia was handed over to the U.S. Only Lockheed L2-34 remained in Dutch service.

The two Lockheed 12 that were sent to Ceylon, were flown to Karachi, where Bangalore Detachment was assigned to pick up the North American B-25s, which currently has five examples had arrived.

Period at the end of the war

The remaining eleven aircraft, available in the U.S., were flown  to the Royal Netherlands Military Flying School in May 1942. Initially these had the U.S. insignia applied.

The devices were used for multi-engine training, navigation training and training of radio officers and also used for light transport flights.

In March 1943, after the second group students was certified, there was less employability for the Lockheeds.
 As the ML in Australia needed such aircraft, a total of seven Lockheeds was sent to Australia. The L2-40 was the first on March 19, 1943, the second, L-41 followed on May 20, the last in November 1943.

Post-war

In Australia two Transport sections were formed  during 1943.
 One, NEITSB, NEI Transport Section Brisbane, consisted mainly of KLM and KNILM crews, and  flew mainly for the USAAF.
 The other, NEITSM, NEI Transportation Section Melbourne, was intended for use by the ML.

This had a variety of aircraft types, varying from old B-25s,  Lockheed Lodestars and Lockheed 12, L2-35 and, after some time, the Lockheeds from  Jackson.
In 1944 TSM received squadron status and was known as no. 1 NEI Transport Squadron.
The Lockheeds were re-registered  in 1944 and their new serials were L2-100 till L2-107.

L2-100 (ex L2-35) was permanently loaned to 120 Squadron at Merauke. Also some of the other devices were loaned to 120 and 18 squadron for shorter or longer period.

For the Australian air traffic the Lockheeds were also assigned Australian civil registrations.
 In mid August 1945 the thus far independent squadron was transformed to no 19 Squadron RAAF NEI. Mainly for political reasons.
 The Australian, very left-wing unions were strongly opposed to the return of Dutch power in Indonesia and caused many troubles.

In February 1946 the five Lockheed went over to the squadron of the Air Base Detachment Tjililitan in Java. Lockheed L2-106 was written off at that time.

Some were stored. In March 1948 multi-engine training started to progress, so five went to the Flying School.
A sixth aircraft which was assigned to the PVA since July 1947 was added in May 1948.
The seventh Lockheed was in us for staff aircraft of the Air Command Java since May 1947.

In March 1950 the remaining Lockheeds were handed over to Indonesia.

In service with the RAF.

The two Lockheeds 12, which were sent to Ceylon were handed over to the RAF, together with de Mitchells on June 12, 1942.

Lockheed L2-30 received RAF serial LV761 and was withdrawn from use on August 31, 1944. Is is possible though, that this aircraft has been used by the Metropolitan Communications Flight. This would have been for a very short period.

The L201, which was flown to Karachi by ensign Pelders, received registration LV762 and was written off after a crash on July 18, 1944.
 L2-32, was registered LV760 and was written off after a belly landing at Kanchrapara on March 3, 1945. The serial was applied on the aircraft as LV700.

Since the training at the Flying School at Jackson in October 1943 was completed, the remaining four were on loan to KLM for the West Indian company in Curacao. Eventually one was used for charter flights and training, with civilian registration PJ -AKC, the others were stored.

Beginning 1945, these aircraft were sent to England. On July 7, 1944 an air service was established.
 This was known as Dutch Communications Flight, was part of the Allied Flight of the Metropolitan Communications Squadron at RAF Hendon airfield.
The first Dutch aircraft were already added in March 1944 to the Allied Flight, namely a Proctor, a Hudson, four Dominions, an Auster III and the Lockheed 12 PB-2.

The first of four Lockheed was added in June, the last just in January 1946.

In service with RNlAF.

At the end of 1945 the DCF moved from Hendon to airbase Valkenburg, where on June 17, 1946 the Dutch Transport Aircraft Division, TransVA, was formed containing the material of the DCF plus a number of Austers.

The Lockheed had at least on paper fictitious RAF records, AX236, BX238, CX245, DX246 and EX753 assigned, but these are not always applied.

For example, the L2-45 / CX245 brought in June 1945  Princess Juliana to Deelen, and then still had the original L2-serial applied.

The Lockheeds were re-registered with T-registrations and were mainly used for various tasks in addition to transport also as target tugs for aircraft artillery. The T2 and T-3 had a cabin window replaced by a blister.

The remaining aircraft, the T3 and T-5 had already crashed, were sold to Sweden in April 1953. Lockheed L2-38 is nowadays on display for many in the Military Aviation Museum at Soesterberg.

Lockheed L-12A.
[Enclosed photo from BeeldBank NIMH. Click on photo for ordering information]

Museum aircraft Lockheed 12A in front of a hangaar at airbase Soesterberg.
[Enclosed photo from BeeldBank NIMH. Click on photo for ordering information]

Arrival of General M.P.J.F. Koenig, commander of the French occupation zone in Germany, for a visit to the Netherlands in April 1948. The aircraft a Dutch Lockheed 12 has the name "Utrecht".
[Enclosed photo from BeeldBank NIMH. Click on photo for ordering information]

Three Lockheed 12A's at airbase Valkenburg.
[Enclosed photo from BeeldBank NIMH. Click on photo for ordering information]