No. 114 Squadron RAF
No. 114 (Hong Kong) Squadron RAF | |
---|---|
Active | 27 Sep 1917 - 1 Apr 1920 1 Dec 1936 – 1 Sep 1946 1 Aug 1947 – 31 Dec 1957 5 May 1959 – 29 Sep 1961 30 Sep 1961 – 31 Oct 1971 |
Country | United Kingdom |
Branch | Royal Air Force |
Nickname(s) | Hong Kong |
Motto(s) | "With speed I strike"[1] |
Insignia | |
Squadron Heraldry | A Cobra head |
Squadron Codes | 114 (Mar 1937 - Apr 1939) FD (Apr 1939 - Sep 1939) RT Sep 1939 - Sep 1946) |
No. 114 Squadron was a
History
Formation and World War I
No. 114 Squadron
Reformation and World War II
The squadron reformed on 1 December 1936 at
The squadron flew its first operations of the Second World War on 13 October 1939, when two aircraft, operating as a detachment from France, carried out reconnaissance flights over the
The squadron rejoined 2 Group on 10 June 1940,
The squadron, part of 326 Wing, moved to Blida in Algeria in November 1942,[28] with the role of supporting the British First Army.[29] The Bisley, however, had poor performance and was vulnerable to fighter attack, and the squadron was therefore largely confined to night bombing.[30] Bisley losses continued to be high, and in January 1943 the squadron relinquished its Bisleys to 614 Squadron, and waited for new aircraft, receiving more Bisleys in February and returning to operations.[31] In March the squadron finally received more modern equipment, replacing its Bisleys with Douglas Boston light bombers, returning to operation with its new aircraft on 21 April.[32][33]
The squadron then operated from Sicily and Italy, having been re-equipped with Douglas Boston aircraft, which it retained until the end of the war when they were replaced with the De Havilland Mosquito.
Post War
The squadron reformed in
Aircraft operated
From | To | Aircraft | Variant |
---|---|---|---|
Sep 1917 | Oct 1919 | B.E.2 | |
Oct 1919 | Apr 1920 | Bristol F2 | b |
Sep 1936 | Feb 1937 | Hawker Hind | Mk.I |
Mar 1937 | May 1939 | Bristol Blenheim | Mk.I |
May 1939 | Mar 1943 | Bristol Blenheim | Mk.IV |
Apr 1943 | Sep 1945 | Douglas Boston | |
Sep 1945 | Sep 1946 | De Havilland Mosquito | |
Apr 1947 | Aug 1949 | Douglas DC3 |
Dakota |
Apr 1947 | Dec 1957 | Vickers Valetta | C1 |
Dec 1958 | Mar 1959 | De Havilland Chipmunk | T10 |
May 1959 | Sep 1961 | Handley Page Hastings | |
Oct 1961 | Oct 1971 | Armstrong Whitworth Argosy |
References
- ^ Pine 1983, p. 265
- ^ a b "Historic Squadrons: 114 Squadron" Archived 24 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Royal Air Force. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
- ^ a b Rawlings 1982, p. 100
- ^ Barrass, M. B. (2015). "No. 111–115 Squadron Histories". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
- ^ a b Bowyer 1974, p. 486
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 41–42
- ^ Mason 1994, p. 269
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 51–52
- ^ Bowyer 1974, p. 64
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 64, 68
- ^ Ellis 1954, p. 37
- ^ a b Moyes 1964, pp. 158, 160
- ^ Richards 1953, p. 126
- ^ Moyes 1964, p. 158
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 123, 125
- ^ Richards 1953, p. 341
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 173–174, 183–184, 188–189
- London: TMG. 10 April 2006. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 221, 223
- ^ Richards 1953, pp. 364–367
- ^ Richards 1953, pp. 368–373
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 225–226
- ^ Richards 1994, pp. 135–139
- ^ Richards 1953, p. 373
- ^ Bowyer 1974, pp. 230, 233
- ^ Bowyer 1974, p. 234
- ^ Bowyer 1974, p. 252
- ^ Shores et al. 2016, pp. 26–27, 109, 117
- ^ Moyes 1964, p. 159
- ^ Richards & Saunders 1954, pp. 255–257
- ^ Shores et al. 2016, pp. 271, 276, 342
- ^ Moyes 1964, p. 160
- ^ Shores et al. 2016, p. 519
- ^ Halley 1988, p. 191
- ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
Bibliography
- Bowyer, Michael J. F. (1974). 2 Group R.A.F.: A Complete History 1936–1945. London: Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-09491-2.
- Ellis, L. F. (1954). "Advance Into Belgium". The War in France and Flanders 1939-1940. HMSO.
- Halley, J. J. (1988). The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth 1918-1988. Air-Britain (Historians) Limited. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
- Mason, Francis K. (1994). The British Bomber since 1914. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. ISBN 0-85177-861-5..
- Moyes, Philip J. R. (1964). Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald & Co.
- Pine, L. G. (1983). A dictionary of mottoes (First ed.). London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. ISBN 0-7100-9339-X.
- Rawlings, John D. R. (1982). Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Jane's Publishing Company. ISBN 0-7106-0187-5..
- Richards, Denis (1953). Royal Air Force 1939–1945: Volume I The Fight at Odds. History of the Second World War. London: HMSO.
- Richards, Denis (1994). The Hardest Victory: RAF Bomber Command in the Second World War. London: Coronet Books. ISBN 0-340-61720-9.
- Richards, Denis; Saunders, Hilary St. G. (1954). Royal Air Force 1939–1945: Volume II The Fight Avails. History of the Second World War. London: HMSO.
- Shores, Christopher; Massimello, Giovanni; Guest, Russell; Olynyk, Frank; Bock, Winfried (2016). A History of the Mediterranean Air War 1940–1945: Volume Three: Tunisia and the End in Africa: November 1942 – May 1943. London: Grub Street. ISBN 978-1-910690-00-0.
- Shores, Christopher; Massimello, Giovanni; Guest, Russell; Olynyk, Frank; Bock, Winfried; Thomas, Andy (2018). A History of the Mediterranean Air War 1940–1945: Volume Four: Sicily and Italy to the Fall of Rome: 14 May, 1943 – 5 June, 1944. London: Grub Street. ISBN 978-1-911621-10-2.