No. 18 Group RAF
Encyclopedia
No. 18 Group of the Royal Air Force
was a group
active from 1918 to 1919, and from 1938 to 1996.
for operations with the Royal Navy
's Rosyth
and Orkney & Shetlands areas of operations. Its headquarters were established at Rosyth, and of the three groups forming Coastal Command's planned dispositions on the outbreak of war, it was the only one with a fully operational Navy/Air Force Area Combined Headquarters (ACHQ). It covered much of the North Sea
and areas to the north and west of Scotland, north of a line running north west from the Mull of Kintyre.
By October 1946, after the war ended, it was headquartered at Pitreavie Castle
and its front-line strength consisted of Nos 120 and No. 203
Squadrons operating from RAF Leuchars
flying Lancaster GR.3s. However by 1954 its strength had grown to five squadrons of Avro Shackleton
s, and Neptune
s (Nos 120, 204, 217, 240, and 269) at RAF Ballykelly, RAF Kinloss
, and RAF Aldergrove
as well as No. 202 Squadron RAF
flying Handley Page Hastings
on meteorological reconnaissance missions from RAF Aldergrove
. With the advent of Strike Command the former 18 Group became the Northern Maritime Air Region, and Coastal Command was renamed 18 Group, both changes happening on 28 Nov 1969. Within Strike Command the new group's title was No 18 (Maritime) Group. From that point the Group commander held the NATO post of Commander, Maritime Air, Eastern Atlantic, reporting to CinC, Eastern Atlantic
at the Northwood Headquarters
in London. The Group commander also held the corresponding post within the NATO Channel Command.
The Hawker Siddeley Nimrod entered service in late 1970 and early 1971, initially with four squadrons of six aircraft, 120, 201, and 206 at Kinloss and 42 at St. Mawgan. Elements also went to Malta; No. 203 Squadron disbanding there at RAF Luqa
in 1977 while flying Nimrods. The Kinloss Wing spent thousands of hours tracking Soviet submarines of the Northern Fleet
, often after they had been detected by NATO submarines or the P-3 Orions of the Royal Norwegian Air Force
. Keeping track of the submarines was made easier by the aid of SOSUS
acoustic listening devices on the sea bed. Also part of the force were Sea King helicopters, flying for a long period in the SAR role with No. 22 and 202 Squadrons. Blackburn Buccaneer
s joined the Group in the mid 1970s, and with the retirement of the final Royal Navy
Buccaneers in December 1978, Nos 12, 208, and 216 Squadrons began to operate them at RAF Honington
, before shifting north to RAF Lossiemouth
from July 1980. No. 216 Squadron however disbanded as a Buccaneer unit in late 1980 due to a shortage of airframes following the discovery of fatigue cracks. In 1985 other units of the Group were Nos 51
, 100
, and 360
Squadrons at RAF Wyton
, as well as No. 236 OCU carrying out Canberra
operational conversion at the same station.
The Group was disbanded by being merging with No 11 Group on 1 April 1996 to form No. 11/18 Group RAF
.
of No. 18 Group:
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
was a group
Group (air force)
A group is a military aviation unit, a component of military organization and a military formation. Usage of the terms group and wing differ from one country to another, as well as different branches of a defence force, in some cases...
active from 1918 to 1919, and from 1938 to 1996.
1918 - 1919
The Group was initially formed on 1 April 1918 in No 4 Area. It was transferred to North-Eastern Area, 8 May 1918. Disbanded 18 Oct 1919.1938 - 1996
It was reformed on 1 September 1938 as No 18 (Reconnaissance) Group of the Coastal CommandRAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...
for operations with the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
's Rosyth
Rosyth
Rosyth is a town located on the Firth of Forth, three miles south of the centre of Dunfermline. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the town has a population of 12,790....
and Orkney & Shetlands areas of operations. Its headquarters were established at Rosyth, and of the three groups forming Coastal Command's planned dispositions on the outbreak of war, it was the only one with a fully operational Navy/Air Force Area Combined Headquarters (ACHQ). It covered much of the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
and areas to the north and west of Scotland, north of a line running north west from the Mull of Kintyre.
By October 1946, after the war ended, it was headquartered at Pitreavie Castle
Pitreavie Castle
Pitreavie Castle is a country house, located between Rosyth and Dunfermline in Fife, Scotland. It was built in the early 17th century, and was extensively remodelled in 1885. The house remained in private hands until 1938, when it was acquired by the Air Ministry, and became RAF Pitreavie Castle...
and its front-line strength consisted of Nos 120 and No. 203
No. 203 Squadron RAF
No. 203 Squadron RAF was originally formed as No. 3 Squadron Royal Naval Air Service. It was renumbered No. 203 when the Royal Air Force was formed on 1 April 1918.-First World War:...
Squadrons operating from RAF Leuchars
RAF Leuchars
RAF Leuchars is the most northerly air defence station in the United Kingdom. It is located in Leuchars, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland, near to the university town of St Andrews.-Operations:...
flying Lancaster GR.3s. However by 1954 its strength had grown to five squadrons of Avro Shackleton
Avro Shackleton
The Avro Shackleton was a British long-range maritime patrol aircraft for use by the Royal Air Force. It was developed by Avro from the Avro Lincoln bomber with a new fuselage...
s, and Neptune
P-2 Neptune
The Lockheed P-2 Neptune was a Maritime patrol and ASW aircraft. It was developed for the United States Navy by Lockheed to replace the Lockheed PV-1 Ventura and PV-2 Harpoon, and being replaced in turn with the Lockheed P-3 Orion...
s (Nos 120, 204, 217, 240, and 269) at RAF Ballykelly, RAF Kinloss
RAF Kinloss
RAF Kinloss is a Royal Air Force station near Kinloss, on the Moray Firth in the north of Scotland. It opened on 1 April 1939 and served as an RAF training establishment during the Second World War. After the war it was handed over to Coastal Command to watch over Russian ships and submarines in...
, and RAF Aldergrove
RAF Aldergrove
RAF Aldergrove was a Royal Air Force station situated northwest of Belfast. It adjoined Belfast International Airport, sometimes referred to simply as Aldergrove which is the name of the surrounding area...
as well as No. 202 Squadron RAF
No. 202 Squadron RAF
No. 202 Squadron of the Royal Air Force presently operates the Sea King HAR.3 in the Search and rescue role at three stations in the northern half of the United Kingdom. It was originally formed as one of the first aeroplane squadrons of the RNAS before it became part of the RAF.-Formation and...
flying Handley Page Hastings
Handley Page Hastings
The Handley Page H.P.67 Hastings was a British troop-carrier and freight transport aircraft designed and built by Handley Page Aircraft Company for the Royal Air Force...
on meteorological reconnaissance missions from RAF Aldergrove
RAF Aldergrove
RAF Aldergrove was a Royal Air Force station situated northwest of Belfast. It adjoined Belfast International Airport, sometimes referred to simply as Aldergrove which is the name of the surrounding area...
. With the advent of Strike Command the former 18 Group became the Northern Maritime Air Region, and Coastal Command was renamed 18 Group, both changes happening on 28 Nov 1969. Within Strike Command the new group's title was No 18 (Maritime) Group. From that point the Group commander held the NATO post of Commander, Maritime Air, Eastern Atlantic, reporting to CinC, Eastern Atlantic
Commander-in-Chief Fleet
Commander-in-Chief Fleet is the admiral responsible for the operation, resourcing and training of the ships, submarines and aircraft, and personnel, of the British Royal Navy...
at the Northwood Headquarters
Northwood Headquarters
Northwood Headquarters is a military headquarters facility of the British Armed Forces in Eastbury, Hertfordshire, England, adjacent to the London suburb of Northwood...
in London. The Group commander also held the corresponding post within the NATO Channel Command.
The Hawker Siddeley Nimrod entered service in late 1970 and early 1971, initially with four squadrons of six aircraft, 120, 201, and 206 at Kinloss and 42 at St. Mawgan. Elements also went to Malta; No. 203 Squadron disbanding there at RAF Luqa
RAF Luqa
Royal Air Force Luqa was a flying station and location of RAF Mediterranean Command headquarters of the Royal Air Force on the island of Malta during World War II...
in 1977 while flying Nimrods. The Kinloss Wing spent thousands of hours tracking Soviet submarines of the Northern Fleet
Northern Fleet
The Red Banner Northern Fleet is a unit of the Russian Navy that has access to the Barents and Norwegian Seas, the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, and is responsible for the defense of northwestern Russia. It was established in 1937 as part of the Soviet Navy...
, often after they had been detected by NATO submarines or the P-3 Orions of the Royal Norwegian Air Force
Royal Norwegian Air Force
The Royal Norwegian Air Force is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian armed forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peace force is approximately 1,430 employees . 600 personnel also serve their draft period in the RNoAF...
. Keeping track of the submarines was made easier by the aid of SOSUS
SOSUS
SOSUS, an acronym for Sound Surveillance System, is a chain of underwater listening posts across the northern Atlantic Ocean near Greenland, Iceland and the United Kingdom — the GIUK gap. It was originally operated by the United States Navy for tracking Soviet submarines, which had to pass...
acoustic listening devices on the sea bed. Also part of the force were Sea King helicopters, flying for a long period in the SAR role with No. 22 and 202 Squadrons. Blackburn Buccaneer
Blackburn Buccaneer
The Blackburn Buccaneer was a British low-level subsonic strike aircraft with nuclear weapon delivery capability serving with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force between 1962 and 1994, including service in the 1991 Gulf War...
s joined the Group in the mid 1970s, and with the retirement of the final Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
Buccaneers in December 1978, Nos 12, 208, and 216 Squadrons began to operate them at RAF Honington
RAF Honington
RAF Honington is a Royal Air Force station located south of Thetford near Ixworth in Suffolk, England. Although used as a bomber station during the Second World War, RAF Honington is now the RAF Regiment depot and home to the Joint CBRN Regiment.-RAF use:...
, before shifting north to RAF Lossiemouth
RAF Lossiemouth
RAF Lossiemouth is a Royal Air Force station to the west of the town of Lossiemouth in Moray, Scotland. It is one of the RAF's biggest bases and is currently Britain's main base for Tornado GR4s. From 2013 the Northern QRA force of Typhoon F2 will relocate to Lossiemouth following the closure of...
from July 1980. No. 216 Squadron however disbanded as a Buccaneer unit in late 1980 due to a shortage of airframes following the discovery of fatigue cracks. In 1985 other units of the Group were Nos 51
No. 51 Squadron RAF
No. 51 Squadron of the Royal Air Force most recently operated the Nimrod R1 from RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire until June 2011. Crews from No. 51 Squadron are currently training alongside the US Air Force on the Boeing RC-135, which is planned to enter service with the RAF over the next seven years...
, 100
No. 100 Squadron RAF
No. 100 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is based at RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire, UK, and operates the Hawker-Siddeley Hawk.-World War I:No. 100 was established on 23 February 1917 at Hingham in Norfolk as the Royal Flying Corps' first squadron formed specifically as a night bombing unit and...
, and 360
No. 360 Squadron RAF
No. 360 Squadron RAF was an electronic countermeasures squadron of the Royal Air Force.-History:The squadron was created from the merger of the personnel of 831 Naval Air Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm and 'B' Flight, No. 97 Squadron RAF at RAF Watton on 1 April 1966...
Squadrons at RAF Wyton
RAF Wyton
RAF Wyton is a Royal Air Force station near St. Ives, Cambridgeshire, England.In terms of organisation RAF Wyton is now part of the combined station RAF Brampton Wyton Henlow, a merger of Wyton with two previously separate bases, RAF Brampton and RAF Henlow. Wyton is the largest of the three. It...
, as well as No. 236 OCU carrying out Canberra
English Electric Canberra
The English Electric Canberra is a first-generation jet-powered light bomber manufactured in large numbers through the 1950s. The Canberra could fly at a higher altitude than any other bomber through the 1950s and set a world altitude record of 70,310 ft in 1957...
operational conversion at the same station.
The Group was disbanded by being merging with No 11 Group on 1 April 1996 to form No. 11/18 Group RAF
No. 11/18 Group RAF
No. 11/18 Group was a short-lived formation of Strike Command in the Royal Air Force. It was formed in 1996 as part of the post-Cold War reorganisation of the RAF. It absorbed the forces of No. 11 and No. 18 Groups, which were descended from the old Fighter Command and Coastal Command functional...
.
Commanders
The following men were the Air Officers Commanding (AOC)Air Officer Commanding
Air Officer Commanding is a title given in the air forces of Commonwealth nations to an air officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, an air vice marshal might be the AOC 38 Group...
of No. 18 Group:
1 April 1918 to 18 October 1919
- 1 April 1918 Colonel H A Williamson
1 September 1938 to 1 April 1996
- 27 September 1938 Air CommodoreAir CommodoreAir commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
C D BreeseCharles BreeseAir Vice Marshal Charles Dempster Breese CB AFC RAF was an officer in the Royal Navy and a senior officer in the Royal Air Force in the first half of the 20th century.-Honours:... - 24 March 1941 Air Vice-MarshalAir Vice-MarshalAir vice-marshal is a two-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in...
R L G Marix - 10 February 1942 Air Vice-Marshal A DurstonAlbert DurstonAir Marshal Sir Albert Durston KBE CB AFC was a senior Royal Air Force officer who became Deputy Chief of the Air Staff.-RAF career:...
- 25 January 1943 Air Vice-Marshal A B EllwoodAubrey Ellwood (RAF officer)Air Marshal Sir Aubrey Beauclerk Ellwood KCB DSC RAF was a senior Royal Air Force commander.-RAF career:...
- 22 February 1944 Air Vice-Marshal S P SimpsonSturley SimpsonAir Vice-Marshal Sturley Philip Simpson CB, CBE, MC, RAF was a senior Royal Air Force commander.-RAF career:Simpson was commissioned into the Bedfordshire Regiment in 1915 during World War I. Awarded the Military Cross in 1927, he was appointed Officer Commanding No. 4 Squadron in 1930 and Station...
- January 1947 Air Vice-Marshal E J Kingston-McClaughry
- 17 June 1948 Air Vice-Marshal D V Carnegie
- 1 November 1950 Air Vice-Marshal H T LydfordHarold LydfordAir Marshal Sir Harold Thomas Lydford KBE, CB, AFC was a World War I pilot in the Royal Flying Corps and senior commander in the Royal Air Force during World War II and the post-war decade.-RAF career:...
- 29 September 1952 Air Vice-Marshal R L Ragg
- 1 April 1955 Air Vice-Marshal P D Cracroft
- 29 September 1958 Air Vice-Marshal A D SelwayAnthony SelwayAir Marshal Sir Anthony Dunkerton 'Mark' Selway KCB DFC was a Royal Air Force officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at RAF Coastal Command.-RAF career:...
- 7 July 1961 Air Vice-Marshal R B Thomson
- 15 February 1963 Air Vice-Marshal K V Garside
- 25 September 1965 Air Vice-Marshal A V R JohnstoneSandy JohnstoneAir Vice Marshal Alexander Vallance Riddell Johnstone CB, DFC, AE, RAF, better known as Sandy Johnstone, was a Royal Air Force squadron, wing and station commander during World War II and the commander of Commonwealth forces operating in Borneo during the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation.Alexander...
- 1 October 1968 Air Vice-Marshal F D Hughes
- 28 November 1969 Air MarshalAir MarshalAir marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Sir Robert Craven - 19 November 1972 Air Marshal Sir Anthony HewardAnthony HewardAir Chief Marshal Sir Anthony Wilkinson Heward KCB, OBE, DFC & Bar, AFC was a senior Royal Air Force commander.-RAF career:...
- 3 March 1973 Air Marshal Sir Douglas LoweDouglas Lowe (RAF officer)Air Chief Marshal Sir Douglas Charles Lowe KCB, DFC, AFC was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force in the 1970s and early 1980s.-RAF career:...
- 18 September 1975 Air Marshal Sir Robert FreerRobert FreerAir Chief Marshal Sir Robert William George Freer GBE KCB is a former Royal Air Force officer who became Deputy Commander of RAF Strike Command.-RAF career:...
- 30 September 1978 Air Marshal Sir Philip Lageson
- 10 May 1980 Air Marshal Sir John Curtiss
- 31 March 1983 Air Marshal Sir John Fitzpatrick
- 21 March 1986 Air Marshal Sir Barry DuxburyBarry DuxburyAir Marshal Sir Barry Duxbury KCB CBE was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force who became Air Secretary.-RAF career:...
- 25 October 1989 Air Marshal Sir Michael Stear
- 1 May 1992 Air Marshal Sir John Harris