No. 602 Squadron RAF
Encyclopedia
No 602 Squadron is a Royal Auxiliary Air Force
Royal Auxiliary Air Force
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force , originally the Auxiliary Air Force , is the voluntary active duty reserve element of the Royal Air Force, providing a primary reinforcement capability for the regular service...

 squadron. Originally formed in 1925 as a light bomber squadron, its role changed in 1938 to army co-operation and in 1939 to that of a fighter squadron.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 the squadron flew Spitfires
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...

 and played amongst others a role in the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...

. After the war the squadron was reinstated as a fighter squadron within the Royal Auxiliary Air Force
Royal Auxiliary Air Force
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force , originally the Auxiliary Air Force , is the voluntary active duty reserve element of the Royal Air Force, providing a primary reinforcement capability for the regular service...

, until all these units disbanded in March 1957.
Reformed on 1 July 2006, No 602 Sqn presently assumes the ISTAR
ISTAR
ISTAR stands for Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance. In its macroscopic sense, ISTAR is a practice that links several battlefield functions together to assist a combat force in employing its sensors and managing the information they gather.Information is collected on...

 mission support role formerly held by the Mission Support Element (MSE) of 603 (City of Edinburgh) Sqn
No. 603 Squadron RAF
No. 603 Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The primary role of 603 Squadron, since reforming on 1 October 1999, has been as a Survive to Operate squadron, as well as providing Force Protection.-Formation and early years:No...

. The role provides Flight Operations and Intelligence support to the RAF ISTAR
ISTAR
ISTAR stands for Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance. In its macroscopic sense, ISTAR is a practice that links several battlefield functions together to assist a combat force in employing its sensors and managing the information they gather.Information is collected on...

 element of 2 Group including the Nimrod MR2 at 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 Sentry AEW1 at RAF Waddington
RAF Waddington
RAF Waddington is a Royal Air Force station in Lincolnshire, England.-Formation:Waddington opened as a Royal Flying Corps flying training station in 1916 until 1920, when the station went into care and maintenance....

.

Formation and early years

The squadron was formed at RAF Renfrew
Renfrew Airport
Renfrew Airport was the former domestic airport serving the city of Glasgow until it was decommissioned in 1966.It was located in the Newmains area of Renfrew, approximately 2 kilometres east of Abbotsinch Airfield which would eventually replace it...

 on 15 September 1925 as a light bomber squadron in the Auxiliary Air Force, and initially equipped with Airco DH.9
Airco DH.9
The Airco DH.9 - also known after 1920 as the de Havilland DH.9 - was a British bomber used in the First World War...

As. These were replaced by Fairey Fawn
Fairey Fawn
|-See also:...

s in 1927, Westland Wapiti
Westland Wapiti
The Westland Wapiti was a British two-seat general purpose military single-engined biplane of the 1920s. It was designed and built by Westland Aircraft Works to replace the Airco DH.9A in Royal Air Force service....

s in 1929, Hawker Hart
Hawker Hart
The Hawker Hart was a British two-seater biplane light bomber of the Royal Air Force , which had a prominent role during the RAF's inter-war period. The Hart was designed during the 1920s by Sydney Camm and built by Hawker Aircraft...

s in 1934 and finally Hawker Hind
Hawker Hind
-See also:-Bibliography:* Crawford, Alex. Hawker Hart Family. Redbourn, Hertfordshire, UK: Mushroom Model Publications Ltd., 2008. ISBN 83-89450-62-3....

s in 1936. It continued in the light bomber until 1 November 1938 when it was redesignated as an Army Co-operation unit.

This was, however, not for long and on 14 January 1939 the squadron became a fighter squadron. It had received Hawker Hector
Hawker Hector
-See also:-Bibliography:* Air Transport Auxiliary Ferry Pilots Notes . Elvington, York, UK: Yorkshire Air Museum, 1996. ISBN 0-9512379-8-5....

s in the November, but re-equipped with Gloster Gauntlet
Gloster Gauntlet
-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Crawford, Alex. Bristol Bulldog, Gloster Gauntlet. Redbourn, UK: Mushroom Model Publications, 2005. ISBN 83-89450-04-6....

s on conversion to the fighter role. These were short-lived as Spitfires
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...

 arrived in May 1939.

World War II

Like No. 603 Squadron RAF
No. 603 Squadron RAF
No. 603 Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The primary role of 603 Squadron, since reforming on 1 October 1999, has been as a Survive to Operate squadron, as well as providing Force Protection.-Formation and early years:No...

, it spent the early part of the war and Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...

 on defensive duties in Scotland, but in August 1940 it moved south to join the Battle, returning to Scotland in December. It moved south again in July 1941, remaining for a year before returning to its native Scotland. Another move came in January 1943, this time to the South-West, where in April it joined the newly forming 2nd Tactical Air Force. It briefly returned to Scotland from January to March 1944, when it returned south prior to taking part in the invasion of Europe.

From the end of June 1944, it operated from advance airfield
Advance airfield
Advance airfield and forward airfield are military terms for a relatively primitive airfield used for refueling and re-arming air units as part of forward operations near the enemy...

s in Normandy, following the Army's advance into Belgium until September, when it returned to the UK. From here it carried out operations against V2 sites in Holland until disbanding on 15 May 1945 at RAF Coltishall
RAF Coltishall
The former Royal Air Force Station Coltishall, more commonly known as RAF Coltishall , was a Royal Air Force station, a military airbase, North-North-East of Norwich, in the English county of Norfolk, East Anglia, from 1938 to 2006....

.

Post-war

With the reactivation of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, No 602 was reformed on 10 May 1946 at RAF Abbotsinch as a day fighter squadron. It was initially equipped with Spitfire F.14s
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...

 and later with F.21s and F.22s, until January 1951 when Vampire FB.5s
De Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British jet-engine fighter commissioned by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Following the Gloster Meteor, it was the second jet fighter to enter service with the RAF. Although it arrived too late to see combat during the war, the Vampire served...

 were received. It also acquired some F.3s in August 1953, which it flew alongside the FB.5s until February 1954. FB.9s arrived in November 1954 and the squadron continued to fly both types (FB.5 and FB.9s) until, along with all the flying units of the RAuxAF, it was disbanded on 10 March 1957.

Present role

As part of the new Royal Air Force Reserves umbrella organisation encompassing both the RAuxAF and RAFR, No 602 Squadron was reformed on 1 July 2006 when the mission support element of No 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron was separated to form a new unit. Its current role is to provide operational support to RAF Station Kinloss, in Scotland as well as to other deployed locations as needed (individual deployments to date have included Kinloss, Cyprus and Iraq). It does this by specialising in the following operational support roles: Flight Operations Officers, Flight Operations Managers, Flight Operations Assistants, Intelligence Officers and Intelligence Analysts.
The Squadron trains Flight Operations and Intelligence Officers, Flight Operations Managers, Flight Operations Assistants and Intelligence Analysts to supplement regular RAF personnel in this task.

Aircraft operated

{|
|+Aircraft operated by No 602 Squadron RAF, data from-
| style="width:50%; vertical-align:top;"|
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!From
!To
!Aircraft
!Version
|-
| October 1925 || January 1928 || Airco DH.9
Airco DH.9
The Airco DH.9 - also known after 1920 as the de Havilland DH.9 - was a British bomber used in the First World War...

 || DH.9A
|-
| September 1927 || September 1929 || Fairey Fawn
Fairey Fawn
|-See also:...

 ||
|-
| July 1929 || April 1934 || Westland Wapiti
Westland Wapiti
The Westland Wapiti was a British two-seat general purpose military single-engined biplane of the 1920s. It was designed and built by Westland Aircraft Works to replace the Airco DH.9A in Royal Air Force service....

 || Mk.IIa
|-
| February 1934 || June 1936 || Hawker Hart
Hawker Hart
The Hawker Hart was a British two-seater biplane light bomber of the Royal Air Force , which had a prominent role during the RAF's inter-war period. The Hart was designed during the 1920s by Sydney Camm and built by Hawker Aircraft...

 ||
|-
| June 1936 || January 1939 || Hawker Hind
Hawker Hind
-See also:-Bibliography:* Crawford, Alex. Hawker Hart Family. Redbourn, Hertfordshire, UK: Mushroom Model Publications Ltd., 2008. ISBN 83-89450-62-3....

 ||
|-
| November 1938 || January 1939 || Hawker Hector
Hawker Hector
-See also:-Bibliography:* Air Transport Auxiliary Ferry Pilots Notes . Elvington, York, UK: Yorkshire Air Museum, 1996. ISBN 0-9512379-8-5....

 || Mk.I
|-
| January 1939 || May 1939 || Gloster Gauntlet
Gloster Gauntlet
-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Crawford, Alex. Bristol Bulldog, Gloster Gauntlet. Redbourn, UK: Mushroom Model Publications, 2005. ISBN 83-89450-04-6....

 || Mk.II
|-
| May 1939 || June 1941 || Supermarine Spitfire
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...

 || Mk.I
|-
| May 1941 || August 1941 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.IIa
|-
| August 1941 || September 1943 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.Vb
|-
| September 1942 || October 1942 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.Va
|-
| September 1942 || October 1942 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.VI
|-
| October 1942 || April 1943 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.Vc
|}
| style="width:50%; vertical-align:top;"|
{|class="wikitable"
|-
!From
!To
!Aircraft
!Version
|-
| September 1943 || January 1944 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.IXb
|-
| January 1944 || March 1944 || Supermarine Spitfire || LF.Vb
|-
| March 1944 || August 1944 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.IXb
|-
| August 1944 || September 1944 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.IXe
|-
| September 1944 || November 1944 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk.IXb
|-
| November 1944 || May 1945 || Supermarine Spitfire || Mk. XVI
|-
| August 1946 || August 1947 || Supermarine Spitfire || F.14
|-
| April 1947 || May 1951 || Supermarine Spitfire || F.21
|-
| June 1948 || January 1951 || Supermarine Spitfire || F.22
|-
| January 1951 || March 1957 || de Havilland Vampire
De Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British jet-engine fighter commissioned by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Following the Gloster Meteor, it was the second jet fighter to enter service with the RAF. Although it arrived too late to see combat during the war, the Vampire served...

 || FB.5
|-
| August 1953 || February 1954 || de Havilland Vampire || F.3
|-
| November 1954 || March 1957 || de Havilland Vampire || FB.9
|}

Commanding officers

{|
|+Officers Commanding No 602 Squadron RAF, data from
| style="width:50%; vertical-align:top;"|
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!From
!To
!Name
|-
| September 1925 || February 1926 || Sqn Ldr
Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...

 C.N. Lowe, MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....

, DFC
Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other services, and formerly to officers of other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against...


|-
| February 1926 || May 1928 || Sqn Ldr J.D. Latta, MC
|-
| May 1928 || June 1931 || Sqn Ldr J. Fullerton
|-
| June 1931 || June 1936 || Sqn Ldr Lord Clydesdale
Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton
Air Commodore Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton and 11th Duke of Brandon, KT, GCVO, AFC, PC, DL, FRCSE, FRGS, was a Scottish nobleman and pioneering aviator....

, AFC
|-
| June 1936 || October 1937 || Sqn Ldr D.F. McIntyre, AFC
Air Force Cross (United Kingdom)
The Air Force Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom Armed Forces, and formerly also to officers of the other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying, though not in active operations against the enemy"...


|-
| October 1937 || March 1940 || Sqn Ldr A.D. Farquhar, DFC
|-
| March 1940 || July 1940 || Sqn Ldr G. Pinkerton, DFC
|-
| July 1940 || June 1941 || Sqn Ldr A.V.R. Johnstone
Sandy Johnstone
Air 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...

, DFC
|-
| June 1941 || August 1941 || Sqn Ldr P.E. Meagher
|-
| August 1941 || January 1942 || Sqn Ldr A.C. Deere
Alan Christopher Deere
Air Commodore Alan Christopher "Al" Deere, DSO, OBE, DFC & Bar , was a New Zealand Spitfire pilot in the Battle of Britain and author of Nine Lives.-Early life:...

, DFC & Bar
Medal bar
A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...


|-
| January 1942 || June 1942 || Sqn Ldr B.E. Finucane
Paddy Finucane
Wing Commander Brendan Eamonn Fergus Finucane DSO, DFC & Two Bars , known as Paddy Finucane, was a Royal Air Force fighter pilot...

, DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...

, DFC & Bar
|}
| style="width:50%; vertical-align:top;"|
{|class="wikitable"
|-
!From
!To
!Name
|-
| June 1942 || October 1942 || Sqn Ldr P.M. Brothers
Peter Malam Brothers
Air Commodore Peter Malam 'Pete' Brothers, CBE, DSO, DFC & Bar was a famed World War II Royal Air Force fighter pilot during the Battle of Britain...

, DFC
|-
| October 1942 || October 1943 || Sqn Ldr M.F. Beytagh, DFC
|-
| October 1943 || July 1944 || Sqn Ldr R.A. Sutherland
|-
| July 1944 || August 1944 || Sqn Ldr J.J. Le Roux, DFC & 2 Bars
|-
| August 1944 || September 1944 || Sqn Ldr A.R. Stewart
|-
| September 1944 || May 1945 || Sqn Ldr R.A. Sutherland, DFC
|-
| May 1946 || 1950 || Sqn Ldr M. Robinson, AFC
|-
| 1950 || 1952 || Sqn Ldr H.M. Stephen, DSO, DFC
|-
| 1952 || December 1953 || Sqn Ldr J.A. Forrest
|-
| December 1953 || 1956 || Sqn Ldr R.B. Davidson, DFC
|-
| 1956 || March 1957 || Sqn Ldr C.D. Bartman
|-
| 2006 || Present || Sqn Ldr G. Lyall AE
|}

Squadron airfields

{|
|+Airfields used by No 602 Squadron RAF, data from
| style="width:50%; vertical-align:top;"|
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!From
!To
!Station
|-
| 12 September 1925 || 20 January 1933 || RAF Renfrew
Renfrew Airport
Renfrew Airport was the former domestic airport serving the city of Glasgow until it was decommissioned in 1966.It was located in the Newmains area of Renfrew, approximately 2 kilometres east of Abbotsinch Airfield which would eventually replace it...

, Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire (historic)
Renfrewshire or the County of Renfrew is a registration county, the Lieutenancy area of the Lord Lieutenant of Renfrewshire, and one of the counties of Scotland used for local government until 1975. Renfrewshire is located in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland, south of the River Clyde,...

, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...


|-
| 20 January 1933 || 7 October 1939 || RAF Abbotsinch
Glasgow International Airport
Glasgow International Airport is an international airport in Scotland, located west of Glasgow city centre, near the towns of Paisley and Renfrew in Renfrewshire...

, Renfrewshire, Scotland
|-
| 7 October 1939 || 13 October 1939 || RAF Grangemouth
RAF Grangemouth
- Pre-war :RAF Grangemouth was a RAF base north east of Falkirk, Stirlingshire, Scotland. It was opened as the Central Scotland Airport in May 1939 and operated as a civilian air navigation school until September 1939.-World War II :...

, Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling is a registration county of Scotland, based around Stirling, the former county town. It borders Perthshire to the north, Clackmannanshire and West Lothian to the east, Lanarkshire to the south, and Dunbartonshire to the south-west.Until 1975 it was a county...

, Scotland
|-
| 13 October 1939 || 14 April 1940 || RAF Drem
RAF Drem
RAF Drem is a former RAF station, just north of the village of Drem in East Lothian, Scotland. The motto of the station was Exiit Hinc Lumen which means "Ascend from this Light"....

, East Lothian
East Lothian
East Lothian is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and a lieutenancy Area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Scottish Borders and Midlothian. Its administrative centre is Haddington, although its largest town is Musselburgh....

, Scotland
|-
| 14 April 1940 || 28 May 1940 || RAF Dyce, Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area.The present day Aberdeenshire council area does not include the City of Aberdeen, now a separate council area, from which its name derives. Together, the modern council area and the city formed historic...

, Scotland
|-
| 28 May 1940 || 13 August 1940 || RAF Drem, East Lothian, Scotland
|-
| 13 August 1940 || 17 December 1940 || RAF Westhampnett
RAF Westhampnett
Royal Air Force Station Westhampnett, more commonly known as RAF Westhampnett, was a Royal Air Force station, located in the village of Westhampnett near Chichester, in the English County of West Sussex....

, West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...


|-
| 17 December 1940 || 15 April 1941 || RAF Prestwick
RAF Prestwick
RAF Prestwick is the home of the "Scottish Air Traffic Control Centre ", and is located within the NATS air traffic control facility at Prestwick, in Ayrshire, Scotland....

, Ayrshire
Ayrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...

, Scotland
|-
| 15 April 1941 || 10 July 1941 || RAF Ayr, Ayrshire, Scotland
|-
| 10 July 1941 || 14 January 1942 || RAF Kenley
RAF Kenley
The former Royal Air Force Station Kenley, more commonly known as RAF Kenley was a station of the Royal Flying Corps in World War I and the RAF in World War II. It is located near Kenley, London, England.-History:...

, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...


|-
| 14 January 1942 || 4 March 1942 || RAF Redhill
Redhill Aerodrome
Redhill Aerodrome is located southeast of Redhill, Surrey, England, in green belt land.Redhill Aerodrome has a CAA Ordinary Licence that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction as authorised by the licensee .-Early history:The airfield came into use in the...

, Surrey
|-
| 4 March 1942 || 13 May 1942 || RAF Kenley, Surrey
|-
| 13 May 1942 || 17 July 1942 || RAF Redhill, Surrey
|-
| 17 July 1942 || 16 August 1942 || RAF Peterhead
Peterhead
Peterhead is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement , with a population of 17,947 at the 2001 Census and estimated to have fallen to 17,330 by 2006....

, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
|-
| 16 August 1942 || 20 August 1942 || RAF Biggin Hill, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...


|-
| 20 August 1942 || 10 September 1942 || RAF Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
|-
| 10 September 1942 || 20 January 1943 || RAF Skaebrae, Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...

, Scotland
|-
| 20 January 1943 || 14 April 1943 || RAF Perranporth
RAF Perranporth
RAF Perranporth was an RAF airfield situated near Perranporth, Cornwall, in the United Kingdom. The 330 acre airfield was built as an RAF Spitfire station in World War II in 1941 and is situated on Cligga cliffs in the north of Cornwall....

, Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...


|-
| 14 April 1943 || 29 April 1943 || RAF Lasham
Lasham Airfield
Lasham Airfield is located north-west of Alton in Hampshire, England, in the village of Lasham.It was built in 1942 and it was an operational RAF during the Second World War. It was used for recreational gliding from 1951. The airfield is now owned by the world's largest gliding club, Lasham...

, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...


|-
| 29 April 1943 || 1 June 1943 || RAF Fairlop
RAF Fairlop
RAF Fairlop was an RAF base situated in the Fairlop district of the London Borough of Redbridge, England. The site is now part of Fairlop Waters.-External links:*http://www.smartin67.freeserve.co.uk/fairlop.htm...

, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...


|-
| 1 June 1943 || 1 July 1943 || RAF Bognor
Bognor Regis
Bognor Regis is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun district of West Sussex, on the south coast of England. It is south-south-west of London, west of Brighton, and south-east of the city of Chichester. Other nearby towns include Littlehampton east-north-east and Selsey to the...

, West Sussex
|-
| 1 July 1943 || 13 August 1943 || RAF Kingsnorth, Kent
|-
| 13 August 1943 || 12 October 1943 || RAF Newchurch, Kent
|-
| 12 October 1943 || 18 January 1944 || RAF Detling
RAF Detling
RAF Detling was a station of the Royal Naval Air Service in World War I and the Royal Air Force in World War II. Situated 600 feet above sea level, it is located near Detling, a village about three miles north-east of Maidstone, in Kent....

, Kent
|-
| 18 January 1944 || 12 March 1944 || RAF Skeabrae, Orkney Islands, Scotland
|}
| style="width:50%; vertical-align:top;"|
{|class="wikitable"
|-
!From
!To
!Base
|-
| 12 March 1944 || 13 March 1944 || RAF Detling, Kent
|-
| 13 March 1944 || 20 March 1944 || RAF Llanbedr
Llanbedr Airport
-History:Llanbedr Airfield , formerly RAF Llanbedr, is a former military facility located in the Snowdonia National Park near the village of Llanbedr, Gwynedd, northwest Wales. It opened in 1941 as part of RAF Fighter Command's 12 Group...

, Gwynedd
Gwynedd
Gwynedd is a county in north-west Wales, named after the old Kingdom of Gwynedd. Although the second biggest in terms of geographical area, it is also one of the most sparsely populated...

, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...


|-
| 20 March 1944 || 18 April 1944 || RAF Detling, Kent
|-
| 18 April 1944 || 25 June 1944 || RAF Ford
Ford (HM Prison)
HM Prison Ford is a Category D men's prison, located at Ford, in West Sussex, England, near Arundel and Littlehampton. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service.-History:...

, West Sussex
|-
| 25 June 1944 || 13 August 1944 || B.11/Longues-sur-Mer
Longues-sur-Mer
Longues-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.The Longues-sur-Mer battery is nearby, part of the Atlantic Wall costal fortifications.-Population:-External links:* *...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...


|-
| 13 August 1944 || 2 September 1944 || B.19/Lingèvres
Lingèvres
-References:*...

, France
|-
| 2 September 1944 || 5 September 1944 || B.40/Nivillers
Nivillers
Nivillers is a small village in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Oise....

, France
|-
| 5 September 1944 || 17 September 1944 || B.52/Douai
Douai
-Main sights:Douai's ornate Gothic style belfry was begun in 1380, on the site of an earlier tower. The 80 m high structure includes an impressive carillon, consisting of 62 bells spanning 5 octaves. The originals, some dating from 1391 were removed in 1917 during World War I by the occupying...

, France
|-
| 17 September 1944 || 29 September 1944 || B.70/Deurne, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...


|-
| 29 September 1944 || 18 October 1944 || RAF Coltishall
RAF Coltishall
The former Royal Air Force Station Coltishall, more commonly known as RAF Coltishall , was a Royal Air Force station, a military airbase, North-North-East of Norwich, in the English county of Norfolk, East Anglia, from 1938 to 2006....

, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...


|-
| 18 October 1944 || 20 November 1944 || RAF Matlaske
RAF Matlaske
RAF Matlaske was a satellite air station to RAF Coltishall of the Royal Air Force, situated near Matlaske in Norfolk, England. RAF Matlaske opened in 1940 and closed in 1945.-History:...

, Norfolk
|-
| 20 November 1944 || 19 February 1945 || RAF Swannington
RAF Swannington
RAF Swannington was a World War II era airfield located just to the north of the Norfolk village of Swannington, England, also occupying a substantial part of the neighbouring parish of Brandiston. It was opened in April 1944 and sold in 1957, though the RAF left in November 1947. The site is now...

, Norfolk
|-
| 19 February 1945 || 23 February 1945 || RAF Coltishall, Norfolk
|-
| 23 February 1945 || 5 April 1945 || RAF Ludham
Ludham
Ludham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, in The Broads, at the end of a dyke leading to Womack Water and flowing into the River Thurne...

, Norfolk
|-
| 5 April 1945 || 15 May 1945 || RAF Coltishall, Norfolk
|-
| 10 May 1946 || 30 July 1949 || RAF Abbotsinch, Renfrewshire, Scotland
|-
| 30 July 1949 || 15 April 1951 || RAF Renfrew, Renfrewshire, Scotland
|-
| 15 April 1951 || 14 July 1951 || 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:...

, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...

, Scotland
|-
| 14 July 1951 || 15 April 1952 || RAF Abbotsinch, Renfrewshire, Scotland
|-
| 15 April 1952 || 18 June 1954 || RAF Renfrew, Renfrewshire, Scotland
|-
| 18 June 1954 || 10 March 1957 || RAF Abbotsinch, Renfrewshire, Scotland
|-
| 1 July 2006 || 27 October 2007 || Combined HQ with 603 Sqn, Edinburgh, Scotland
|-
| 27 October 2007 || Present || Avenuepark Street, Maryhill, Glasgow, Scotland
|}

External links

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