No. 606 Squadron RAF

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No. 606 (Chiltern) Squadron RAF

Merlin Helicopter Carrying 105mm Light Gun MOD 45155696.jpg

Merlin Helicopter carrying 105mm Light Gun with staff from No. 606 Squadron
Active 1 October 1999 – present
Country Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
Branch Ensign of the Royal Air Force.svg Royal Air Force
Part of Royal Auxiliary Air Force
Garrison/HQ RAF Benson
Motto(s)Steadfast in support
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldry A red kite grasping a lightning flash
Squadron CodesBG (Apr 1939 – Sep 1939)

No 606 (Chiltern) Squadron was formed as a Royal Auxiliary Air Force helicopter support squadron in 1996 at RAF Benson and gaining its official number three years later on 1 October 1999. [1] It provides personnel for the RAF tactical support helicopter fleet and does not operate any aircraft itself. [2]

Royal Auxiliary Air Force component of Her Majestys Reserve Air Forces

The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), formerly the Auxiliary Air Force (AAF), together with the Air Force Reserve, is a component of Her Majesty's Reserve Air Forces. It provides a primary reinforcement capability for the regular service, and consists of paid volunteers who give up some of their weekends, evenings and holidays to train at one of a number of squadrons around the United Kingdom. Its current mission is to provide trained personnel in support of the regular RAF. Queen Elizabeth II is Air Commodore-in-Chief of the RAuxAF.

RAF Benson Royal Air Force main operating base in Oxfordshire, England.

Royal Air Force Benson or RAF Benson is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located at Benson, near Wallingford, in South Oxfordshire, England. It is a Main Operating Base of the RAF and home to it's fleet of Westland Puma HC2 support helicopters, comprising No. 33 Squadron and No. 230 Squadron. Other flying units comprise No. 28 Squadron which is the combined Puma and Boeing Chinook HC4 operational conversion unit, the Oxford University Air Squadron and No. 6 Air Experience Flight both flying the Grob Tutor T1. The National Police Air Service and the Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance are also based at the station, both operating the Airbus H135 helicopter.

Contents

History

The squadron code ‘BG’ was allocated to No 606 Squadron RAuxAF in 1939, but it was never activated during the Second World War. [3]

World War II 1939–1945 global war

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

Since its reformation in 1996, personnel from the squadron have deployed on Operations across the globe including Afghanistan, the Falkland Islands, Cyprus and Iraq. [4]

Afghanistan A landlocked south-central Asian country

Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in South-Central Asia. Afghanistan is bordered by Pakistan in the south and east; Iran in the west; Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan in the north; and in the far northeast, China. Its territory covers 652,000 square kilometers (252,000 sq mi) and much of it is covered by the Hindu Kush mountain range, which experiences very cold winters. The north consists of fertile plains, while the south-west consists of deserts where temperatures can get very hot in summers. Kabul serves as the capital and its largest city.

Falkland Islands archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean

The Falkland Islands is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about 300 miles east of South America's southern Patagonian coast, and about 752 miles from the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, at a latitude of about 52°S. The archipelago, with an area of 4,700 square miles, comprises East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 smaller islands. As a British overseas territory, the Falklands have internal self-governance, and the United Kingdom takes responsibility for their defence and foreign affairs. The Falkland Islands' capital is Stanley on East Falkland.

Cyprus Island country in Mediterranean

Cyprus, officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the Eastern Mediterranean and the third largest and third most populous island in the Mediterranean, located south of Turkey, west of Syria and Lebanon, northwest of Israel, north of Egypt, and southeast of Greece.

Related Research Articles

Royal Air Force Aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces

The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's aerial warfare force. Formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world. Following victory over the Central Powers in 1918 the RAF emerged as, at the time, the largest air force in the world. Since its formation, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history. In particular, it played a large part in the Second World War where it fought its most famous campaign, the Battle of Britain.

RAF Woodvale Royal Air Force training station in Merseyside, England

Royal Air Force Woodvale or RAF Woodvale is a Royal Air Force Station located 4 mi (6.4 km) next to the town of Formby in an area called Woodvale which is located to the south of Southport, Merseyside. Woodvale was constructed as an all-weather night fighter airfield for the defence of Liverpool. However, it did not open until 7 December 1941 which was just after the Liverpool Blitz which peaked in May of that year.

RAF Halton Royal Air Force training station in Buckinghamshire, England

Royal Air Force Halton or more simply RAF Halton is one of the largest Royal Air Force stations in the United Kingdom, located near the village of Halton near Wendover, Buckinghamshire. The site has been in use since the First World War but is due to close by 2025.

RAF Leeming Royal Air Force station in North Yorkshire, England

Royal Air Force Leeming or RAF Leeming is a Royal Air Force station located near Leeming, North Yorkshire, England. It was opened in 1940 and was jointly used by the RAF and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Between 1950 and 1991, it operated mostly as a training base with Quick Reaction Force (QRF) Tornado F3 fighters based there in the latter stages of the Cold War and into the early 21st century. Since 2006, it has become the home of the deployable RAF communications cadre and the home of No. 135 Expeditionary Air Wing.

RAF Odiham Royal Air Force main operating base in Hampshire, England

Royal Air Force Odiham or more simply RAF Odiham is a Royal Air Force station situated a little to the south of the historic village of Odiham in Hampshire, England. It is the home of the Royal Air Force's heavy lift helicopter, the Chinook. Its current station commander is Group Captain Lee Turner BEng Hons RAF.

RAF Barkston Heath Royal Air Force station near Grantham, Lincolnshire, England

Royal Air Force Barkston Heath or RAF Barkston Heath is a Royal Air Force station near Grantham, Lincolnshire, England.

RAF Shawbury Royal Air Force training station in Shropshire, England.

Royal Air Force Shawbury otherwise known as RAF Shawbury is a Royal Air Force station near the village of Shawbury in Shropshire in the West Midlands of England.

No. 28 Squadron RAF

No. 28 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma and Chinook helicopters from RAF Benson.

No. 33 Squadron RAF

No. 33 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma HC.2 from RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.

No. 1310 Flight RAF flight of the Royal Air Force

No. 1310 Flight RAF is a flight of the Royal Air Force.

Joint Helicopter Command

Joint Helicopter Command (JHC) is a tri-service organisation uniting battlefield military helicopters of the British Armed Forces for command and coordination purposes. Joint Helicopter Command reports to Commander Field Army at Andover.

Defence Helicopter Flying School (United Kingdom)

The Defence Helicopter Flying School or DHFS is a military flying school based at RAF Shawbury in Shropshire, England. The school, established in 1997, is a tri-service organisation and trains helicopter aircrews for all three British armed forces, using the Airbus Juno HT1 and Airbus Jupiter HT1 helicopters.

The Central Flying School (CFS) is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912, it is the longest existing flying training school. Its motto is Imprimis Praecepta which is Latin for "Our Teaching is Everlasting" and its Mission Statement is 'To Deliver, Develop and Assure Excellence in Aircrew Instruction for Defence'.

408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron

408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron is a unit of 1 Wing, Kingston. It is co-located with 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Edmonton.

No. 68 Squadron RAF

The name No. 68 Squadron has been used for two quite different units, only one of which was strictly a unit of the Royal Air Force. "No. 68 Squadron RFC" was for a time the official British military designation for No. 2 Squadron Australian Flying Corps.

No. 663 Squadron RAF was an Air Observation Post (AOP) unit of the Royal Air Force (RAF), which was officially formed in Italy on 14 August 1944. Numbers 651 to 663 Squadrons of the RAF were Air Observation Post units working closely with Army units in artillery spotting and liaison. A further three of these squadrons, 664–666, were manned with Canadian personnel. Their duties and squadron numbers were transferred to the Army with the formation of the Army Air Corps on 1 September 1957.

No. 605 Squadron RAF

No 605 Squadron was formed as an Auxiliary Air Force Squadron. Initially formed as a bomber unit, it was one of the most successful participants of the Battle of Britain. It also had the distinction of being active during the Second World War at two fronts at a time, when the squadron was split up between Malta and the Dutch East Indies. In its last incarnation as an active flying unit, the squadron served as the first jet fighter unit in the post-war Royal Auxiliary Air Force; 616 having already flown Gloster Meteors during the war. No. 605 Squadron was reformed as a RAuxAF Logistic Support Squadron on 1 Nov 2014 within No. 85 Expeditionary Logistics Wing of the RAF A4 Force. Reservist recruitment commenced on 30 May 2015.

No. 629 Squadron RAuxAF, a non-flying squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force was formed in 1999 for "Helicopter Support".

At the end of the Cold War in 1989 the Royal Air Force structure was as follows:

References

  1. ↑ "RAF - 606 (Chiltern)". www.raf.mod.uk. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
  2. ↑ "Sqn Histories 600-610_P". www.rafweb.org. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
  3. ↑ Lake, Alan (1999). Flying units of the RAF : the ancestry, formation and disbandment of all flying units from 1912 (1 ed.). Shrewsbury: Airlife. p. 270. ISBN   1-84037-086-6.
  4. ↑ Williams, Simon, ed. (23 September 2016). "606 Squadron hits landmark date". RAF News (1403). Royal Air Force. p. 15. ISSN   0035-8614.
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