| 9 Squadron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1 March 1918 |
| Country |  Belgium |
| Branch | Air Component |
| Role | Instruction |
| Garrison/HQ | Beauvechain Air Base |
| Motto(s) | Boutez en avant (Get In) |
| Insignia | |
| Identification symbol | A silver "Cocotte" on green background |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Trainer | SF260 |
9 Squadron is a training squadron of the Belgian Air Component, constituting the Basic Flying Training School together with 5 Squadron.
The 9ème Escadrille de Chasse was originally the 1ère Escadrille de Chasse , which was founded in February 1916 as the first dedicated fighter squadron of the Aviation Militaire Belge.
On 1 March 1918, while stationed at Les Moëres aerodrome near Veurne, it would be reorganized into the 9ème Escadrille and become part of Belgium's first fighter wing, the Groupe de Chasse. The squadron continued to use the equipment and personnel of the 1ère Escadrille . 9ème Escadrille also inherited the "Thistle" symbol and motto "Nemo me impune lacessit" or "No-one can challenge me unpunished". The squadron's fleet consisted largely of Hanriot-Dupont 1s, supplemented by a some Sopwith Camels. [1]
The 10ème Escadrille and 11ème Escadrille were the other squadrons of the Group, also known as the Groupe Jaquet, after its commanding officer, Capitaine Fernand Jacquet. Headed by Capitaine Walter Gallez, [2] 9 Squadron counted a number of famous fighter pilots amongst its ranks: Willy Coppens [3] (who was also the first Belgian pilot to use the "Cocotte" on his aircraft), Jan Olieslagers, [4] André de Meulemeester. [1] [5]
 |  |  |
During the initial years of World War I, the Aviation Militaire Belge was based in the diminished remnant of a small country, and performed largely in support of a defensive army. Only in September 1918 did the Belgian Army advance. [6] To support the offensive, 9ème Escadrille moved to Moerkerke near the Dutch border in October 1918. [1] [7] At the end of the war, 9ème Escadrille was credited with 51 verified aerial victories, 41 of which were enemy observation balloons. [7] In turn, it suffered three pilots wounded in action or captured. [8]
After the armistice, 9 Squadron was stationed at Sint-Agatha-Berchem, in the outskirts of Brussels. In 1919, they moved again to Schaffen near Diest to be integrated in 2nd Group. The squadron equipment was augmented by Fokker D-VII aircraft, yielded by the Germans as compensation for damages during World War I. In March 1920, 9 Squadron was equipped with SPAD XIII aircraft, and together with 10 Squadron, made up 4th Group. Still at Schaffen, the Squadron received their new Nieuport-Delage 29 aircraft in July 1922, only to be transformed into 2 Squadron sometime during 1924. [9]
In 1935, the Squadrons at Bierset were re-organised into 9 Squadron and 11 Squadron of the 5th Group of the 1st Aeronautical Regiment. Initially still equipped with Bréguet XIX, they soon received the Belgian Renard R 31 monoplane. Their mission changed from Bombardment to Observation. As of 1938, the "Sioux" symbol appeared on the aircraft, designed by Roger Delannay. On 9 Squadron aircraft the "Sioux" was surrounded by a blue circle. [10] The squadron motto was "Tenacity".
Just before the outbreak of World War II, 11 Squadron was assigned to 6th Group. 9 Squadron remained the only flying unit in the 5th Group which was now under command of Commander Breulhez. To improve mobility and the possibility of deployed operations, each group comprised a maintenance squadron, a field train of about 25 vehicles, and an anti-aircraft unit of 40mm Bofors guns.
Commanded by Captain Lekeuche, 9 Squadron took an active part in the 18 days campaign. On the morning of 10 May, 9 Squadron rejoined its diversion airfield at Duras, few hours before Bierset was bombarded by Dornier 17's of the Luftwaffe . 9 Squadron was one of three squadrons that continued to fight until the surrender on 28 May 1940. Both "Sioux" squadrons (9 and 11) combined executed 54 combat missions, for a loss of three pilots and 11 aircraft. [11]
After the war, with the creation of the 7th Day Fighter Wing at Chièvres, 9 Squadron was resurrected under the command of Commander Demey. The other units of 7th Wing were 7 Squadron and 8 Squadrons. The Squadron crest represented the "Cocotte", originally painted on Willy Coppens’ Nieuport 17 in 1917, [12] but this time in silver on a green background. The associated motto was selected by Major Coppens in its French form "Boutez en avant" in 1936, and translated to the English "Get In" by 7th Wing Commander Major Van Lierde. [13] Starting on Gloster Meteor F8 on 17 March 1952, the Squadron transformed to Hawker Hunter F4 in June 1956, only to be disbanded on 15 March 1957.
In 1971, a thorough revision of the Air Force training system called for the creation of new training squadrons. Re-created on 16, 9 November Squadron became part of the "Perfectioning Center" at Brustem, together with 7 Squadron and 11 Squadron. Its mission was to convert the new Instructor Pilots on the CM170 Fouga Magister, Lockheed T-33 and SF260 SIAI-Marchetti aircraft. The latter being employed at Goetsenhoven, the Squadron operated a detachment at that airfield. Although having received a new designation, the name of the former unit assuming the squadron's mission, "FFM" (Flight de Formation des Moniteurs) stuck until well into the next century. During the following years, the most noteworthy changes were the replacement of the CM170 and T-33 by the Dassault Alpha-Jet as from January 1980 and the transformation of the unit into the Training and Evaluation Center of the Instruction and Training Command on 28 June 1985. Although keeping the same insignia and still being in charge of the training of new instructors, the unit was now a Staff section, detached in the training units. It became more involved in the standardization of the training. On request of the Instruction Command, regular "STANEVAL" inspections were carried out.
In 1993, the Air Force's SF260M were supplemented by 9 SF260D, that were equipped more extensively for instrument flying. Subsequently, the squadron's expert instructors developed a training course for the benefit of those requiring an introduction to civilian IFR flying. This mission also remains with the squadron until the present day.
On 19 November 1996, all training units were moved to Beauvechain Air Base, a former air defense base. A few years later, on 12 September 2000, the Air Force's Tactical and Training Commands merged into COMOPSAIR, and the TEC was transferred into the structure of 1st Wing. Meanwhile, its instructors took an active part in the integration process of the Alpha Jet avionics update. Although the insignia of the "Green Cocotte" had survived the different changes in organization, the "shadow" squadron number had slipped into oblivion. In early 2001, on request of the CO, Major Conte, the unit obtained once more its squadron number. Nevertheless, on 30 August 2001, the Squadron is disbanded, and the mission of Training and Evaluation Center is taken over by 7 Squadron. From 2001 to 2005, the Training and Evaluation Centre existed as part of the 1st Wing Staff. Although continuing to supervise the training process, the different courses were taken over by the training squadrons. After the move of the Alpha-Jets to Cazaux in 2004, on 14 November 2005, [14] the TEC returned to being a flying unit, and started once more training the new instructors on SF260. Slowly, the unit continued to evolve, first by taking on the IFR course again, later by hosting and supervising the Flying duties of several Staff Officers. This task became even more important after the phasing out of the Fouga Magister in September 2007. [15] To acknowledge the unit's status as a flying squadron, it received the traditions and insignia of 9th Squadron on 21 February 2008.
After a further re-organisation of the Belgian Armed Forces, the A109BA helicopters of the Wing Heli, based at Bierset, moved to Beauvechain on 1 September 2010. The name and traditions of 1st Wing were handed over to the helicopter unit. [16]
Both training squadrons (5 and 9) now constitute the Basic Flying Training School. Still based at Beauvechain, this school is now independent of 1st Wing.
Commanding Officers as from Chièvres:
The SPAD S.VII was the first of a series of highly successful biplane fighter aircraft produced by Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés (SPAD) during the First World War. Like its successors, the S.VII was renowned as a sturdy and rugged aircraft with good climbing and diving characteristics. It was also a stable gun platform, although pilots used to the more manoeuvrable Nieuport fighters found it heavy on the controls. It was flown by a number of the famous aces, such as France's Georges Guynemer, Italy's Francesco Baracca and Australia's Alexander Pentland.
The Polish Air Forces was the name of the Polish Air Forces formed in France and the United Kingdom during World War II. The core of the Polish air units fighting alongside the Allies were experienced veterans of the 1939 invasion of Poland. They contributed to the Allied victory in the Battle of Britain and Allied air operations during the war.
The Belgian Air Component is the air arm of the Belgian Armed Forces, and until January 2002 it was officially known as the Belgian Air Force. The Belgian military aviation was founded in 1909 and is one of the world's oldest air services.
Willy Omer François Jean baron Coppens de Houthulst was Belgium's leading fighter ace and the champion "balloon buster" of World War I. He was credited with 37 confirmed victories and six probables.
The Hanriot HD.1 was a French World War I single-seat fighter aircraft. Rejected for service with French squadrons in favour of the SPAD S.VII, the type was supplied to the Belgian Army′s Aviation Militaire Belge and the Corpo Aeronautico Militare of the Royal Italian Army, with both of which it proved highly successful. Of a total of about 1,200 examples built, 831 were produced by Italian companies under licence.
The 1st Wing is a wing in the Air Component of the Belgian Armed Forces, located at Beauvechain Air Base.
The 1st Squadron is a Recce squadron in the Air Component of the Belgian Armed Forces. It is part of the 2nd Tactical Wing and operates the General Dynamics F-16 Block 20 MLU Fighting Falcon.
The 350th Squadron is a fighter squadron in the Air Component of the Belgian Armed Forces. It was originally formed in 1941 as No. 350 (Belgian) Smaldeel of the Royal Air Force during World War II. The unit was transferred to the Belgian Air Force, together with 349th Squadron, in 1946. The unit is now part of the 2nd Tactical Wing and operates F-16 Fighting Falcons.
Beauvechain Air Base is a Belgian Air Component military airfield in Belgium, located 3 nautical miles south of Beauvechain in Wallonia ; 20 mi (32 km) east-southeast of Brussels.
A squadron in air force, army aviation, or naval aviation is a unit comprising a number of military aircraft and their aircrews, usually of the same type, typically with 12 to 24 aircraft, sometimes divided into three or four flights, depending on aircraft type and air force. Land based squadrons equipped with heavier type aircraft such as long-range bombers, cargo aircraft, or air refueling tankers have around 12 aircraft as a typical authorization, while most land-based fighter equipped units have an authorized number of 18 to 24 aircraft.
The 5me Escadrille de Chasse was the second fighter squadron of the Belgian Air Component. The squadron was founded during World War I, reorganized into a dedicated fighter unit under its new designation of 10me Escadrille de Chasse in March 1918, and became part of a fighter wing before war's end.
The 11ème Escadrille de Chasse was the third and last fighter squadron of the Belgian Air Component during World War I. It was organized as a dedicated fighter unit in March 1918, to fill out a fighter wing that supported the Belgian Army's advance near war's end.
Colonel Remy Van Lierde, was a Belgian pilot and fighter ace who served in the aviation branch of the Belgian Army and the British Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War, shooting down six enemy aircraft and 44 V-1 flying bombs, and achieving the RAF rank of squadron leader. Returning to the Belgian Air Force in 1946, Van Lierde was made Deputy Chief of Staff to the Ministre of Defense in 1954. In 1958 he became one of the first Belgians to break the sound barrier while test flying a Hawker Hunter at Dunsfold Aerodrome in England. He went on to hold several important commands before retiring in 1968.
The Groupe de Chasse was Belgium's first dedicated fighter wing. It was created in March 1918 at Les Moëres aerodrome near Veurne. On request of King Albert I, Captain-commandant Fernand Jacquet was appointed Commanding Officer, and the Groupe de Chasse also became known as the Groupe Jaquet. It consisted of the 9ème Escadrille de Chasse, the 10ème Escadrille de Chasse and the 11ème Escadrille de Chasse.
11 Squadron is a training squadron of the Belgian Air Component, deployed at Cazaux Air Base in France, in the scope of the Advanced Jet Training School (AJeTS).
Escadron de Chasse 2/30 Normandie-Niemen or is a French Air and Space Force Fighter Squadron which flies the Dassault Rafale C from BA 118 Mont-de-Marsan Air Base.
The Escadron de Chasse 2/4 Lafayette is a squadron of the French Air and Space Force. It is currently stationed at BA 113 Saint-Dizier – Robinson Air Base, and is equipped with the Dassault Rafale C. The squadron has a long history dating back to the First World War, and has seen service in the Second World War, the French Indochina War and Algeria. It is now a nuclear strike squadron.
The 5th squadron is a training squadron which, together with the 9th squadron, forms the Basic Flying Training School of the Belgian Air Component.
The Nieuport 16 C.1 was a French World War I single-seat sesquiplane fighter aircraft, designed by Gustave Delage as a development of the Nieuport 11 with a more powerful engine. The Nieuport 16's service life coincided with the period when the first air-to-air rockets, the Le Prieur rocket, were used most frequently, and the type has a closer association with them than any other aircraft.
General Gerard Van Caelenberge is a Belgium Air Force general, he was Air Component Commander in 2006 to 2008 and Chief of Defence of the Kingdom of Belgium in March 2012 until retired in July 2016. He was an expertise and member of the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence.