No. 279 Squadron RAF

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No. 279 Squadron RAF
279 Squadron air sea rescue Avro Lancaster.jpg
One of No. 279 Squadron's Avro Lancasters carrying a lifeboat in December 1945
Active16 Nov 1941 – 10 Mar 1946
Country Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
Branch Ensign of the Royal Air Force.svg Royal Air Force
Role Air-sea rescue
Motto(s)To See and be Seen [1]
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldryAbove waves of the sea, nine flashes of lightning [1]
Squadron codesOS (Nov 1941 - Nov 1944) [2] [3]
RL (Nov 1944 - Mar 1946) [4] [5]

No 279 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force air-sea rescue squadron of World War II. The squadron was formed on 16 November 1941 and disbanded on 10 March 1946.

Contents

History

No 279 Squadron was formed at RAF Bircham Newton on 16 November 1941. It was originally equipped with Lockheed Hudson fitted, from 1943, to carry Mark I airborne lifeboats. [6] Detachments of the squadron were stationed at several RAF stations in the south-west of England between April 1942 and December 1943 to provide an air-sea rescue capability over the Bay of Biscay and Western Approaches. [7]

In October 1944 No 279 Squadron was transferred to RAF Thornaby and re-equipped with Vickers Warwick aircraft. The squadron subsequently deployed detachments to RAF airfields in the north of Scotland to provide support to patrol and strike squadrons. Following the end of the war the Warwicks were replaced with Avro Lancasters in September 1945. These were flown until the squadron was disbanded on 10 March 1946 at RAF Beccles by being renumbered to No. 38 Squadron. A detachment had left in January 1946 for Pegu in Burma and upon arrival there around March was designated 1348 Air Sea Rescue Flight. [7] [8]

Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 279 Squadron RAF, data from [1] [9] [10]
FromToAircraftVersion
November 1941November 1944 Lockheed Hudson Mks. III, V, VI
November 1944September 1945 Vickers Warwick ASR Mks.I, VI
April 1945June 1945 Hawker Hurricane Mks.IIc, IV
July 1945September 1945 Supermarine Sea Otter Mk.II
September 1945March 1946 Avro Lancaster ASR.3

Squadron locations

Airfields used by No 279 Squadron RAF, data from [1] [9] [11]
FromToAirfieldRemark
16 November 194114 October 1944 RAF Bircham Newton Posted
28 April 194229 May 1942 RAF Sumburgh Detachment
29 June 19421942 RAF Benbecula Detachment
15 July 19421942 RAF Leuchars Detachment
26 July 194215 August 1942 RAF Reykjavik, Iceland Detachment
14 August 194215 August 1942 RAF Thorney Island Detachment
15 August 194219 August 1942 RAF Chivenor Detachment
23 August 19425 February 1943 RAF St Eval Detachment
25 September 19421942 RAF Beaulieu Detachment
5 February 19439 June 1943 RAF Davidstow Moor Detachment
9 June 194314 December 1943 RAF Harrowbeer Detachment
28 September 19431945 RAF Wick Detachment
1 January 19441 August 1944RAF Reykjavik, IcelandDetachment
1 October 1944September 1945 RAF Tain Detachment
1 October 1944September 1945RAF WickDetachment
14 October 19443 September 1945 RAF Thornaby Posted
31 October 194427 December 1944 RAF Banff Detachment
27 December 1944September 1945 RAF Fraserburgh Detachment
26 May 1945September 1945RAF Reykjavik, IcelandDetachment
July 1945September 1945RAF BanffDetachment
3 September 194510 March 1946 RAF Beccles Posted

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References

Notes
  1. 1 2 3 4 Halley 1988, p. 345.
  2. ↑ Bowyer and Rawlings 1979, p. 80.
  3. ↑ Flintham and Thomas 2003, p. 96.
  4. ↑ Bowyer and Rawlings 1979, p. 90.
  5. ↑ Flintham and Thomas 2003, p. 104.
  6. ↑ "BN Memorial Project". www.rafbnmp.org.uk. Archived from the original on 20 November 2008.
  7. 1 2 "History of No. 279 Squadron". Royal Air Force History. Royal Air Force. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  8. ↑ Docherty 2007, p. 207.
  9. 1 2 Rawlings 1982, p. 251.
  10. ↑ Docherty 2007, pp. 210–217.
  11. ↑ Docherty 2007, p. 209.
Bibliography
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