One of Australia's leading aces in WWII, the diminutive Bobby Gibbles rose from pilot officer to command No. 3 Sq., RAAF, flying sorties and scoring ten and two shared victories during almost two years of service in North Africa. He flew "ET953," marked with his personal letter "V," while CO of the unit, claiming a Bf109 destroyed and a second damaged with it. Subsequently serving with Nos. 250 and 5 Squadrons, "ET953" was written off while still with the latter unit when it stalled on takeoff after its pilot tried to avoid a gunpost at Neffatia on March 2, 1943.