the longest regular air route serviced by twin-engined aircraft at the time, and took several days. The courier flights continued until 13 January 1948, after which chartered Qantas aircraft were used to support the force in Japan. In August 1948, five of No. 38 Squadron's air crews were dispatched to Europe where, as members of the RAAF Squadron Berlin Air Lift, they participated in the international efforts to fly supplies into Berlin during the Soviet blockade of the city. These personnel remained in Europe for 12 months, and their absence greatly disrupted No. 38 Squadron's operations. Overall, twenty members of No. 86 Wing were sent to Europe; the resulting shortage of personnel forced Nos. 36 and 38 Squadrons to operate for a period as a single unit, all flying hours being attributed to No. 38 Squadron in official records. No. 86 Wing moved to Richmond between 22 June and 1 July 1949. In 1950, No. 38 Squadron was selected to form part of the Australian force assigned to the Commonwealth Far East Air Force. As an element of this force, the Australian Government agreed for the unit to be tasked with courier flights across Asia and providing support for the British-led counterinsurgency operations in Malaya. The squadron's advance party arrived at RAF Changi in Singapore on 19 June 1950, and all of its personnel and eight Dakotas were operational there by 6 July. While in Malaya the squadron came under the command of No. 90 (Composite) Wing, along with the Avro Lincoln-equipped No. 1 Squadron. Half the squadron's aircrew were veterans of the Berlin Airlift, but none had any direct experience of tropical environments. No. 38 Squadron began flying transport missions in Malaya in early July, with British and New Zealand pilots accompanying its aircrews during the first two weeks of operations to help them become familiar with local conditions. From July 1950 until February 1951, No. 38 Squadron's main task was to conduct courier flights to Borneo, Ceylon, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines, and these remained an important responsibility throughout the period it was based at Singapore. Following the outbreak of the Korean War, the squadron flew British troops and supplies from Singapore to Japan and Korea, and four of No. 38 Squadron's Dakotas were transferred to No. 30 Communication Unit in Japan during November 1950. After losing half its strength, No. 38 Squadron remained at Changi