No. 150 Squadron RAF
| No. 150 Squadron RAF | |
|---|---|
 A Vickers Wellington of 150 Squadron being prepared for a night raid on Bizerte | |
| Active | 1918–1919 1938–1945 1959–1963 |
| Disbanded | 9 April 1963 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | Royal Air Force |
| Role | |
| Formed at | Salonika, Greece |
| Motto(s) | Αιει Φθανομεν (Greek for 'Always Ahead')[1] |
| Engagements |
|
| Insignia | |
| Squadron badge[a][2] |  |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Bomber | |
| Fighter |
|
No. 150 Squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the
IRBM
.
World War I
The squadron was founded in April 1918 at
George Gardiner, and Leslie Hamilton.[4]
World War II
It reformed in 1938 equipped with
Advanced Air Striking Force in September 1939. It received heavy losses in attempting to oppose the German invasion of France in May 1940, being evacuated back to England by 20 May.[2][5]
It re-equipped with Vickers Wellingtons in October 1940,[5] at RAF Newton.[3] It moved to RAF Snaith in July 1941 becoming operational with Vickers Wellington 1Cs. It moved to the Mediterranean Theatre in December 1942, flying its Wellingtons from Blida in Algeria against targets in Tunisia and Sardinia. It moved to Tunisia in May 1943, and to bases in Italy in December, disbanding in October 1944.[2][5]
It reformed again in November 1944 at
Cold war
The squadron was reformed – as No. 150 (SM) Squadron – on 8 January 1959 as one of 20 Strategic Missile (SM) squadrons associated with
USSR
. The squadron was disbanded on 9 April 1963, as the Thor Program in Britain was brought to a close.
Notable pilots
- Gordon Cochrane
References
- Notes
- ^ In front of a cross voided, two arrows in saltire, the points uppermost. The cross is adopted in reference to the arms of Greece.
- ^ The photograph is captioned by the Imperial War Museum as being a briefing conducted by S/L Langlois RAAF, the then CO. In fact, the officer shown was almost certainly his successor, Squadron Leader W.Desmond Boxwell DFC, who was immortalised in "The Wimpy Song" celebrating the Desert Air Force and sung to a Bowdlerised version of Lily Marlene.
- Citations
- ISBN 0-7100-9339-X.
- ^ a b c d "150 Squadron". Royal Air Force. Archived from the original on 18 August 2017. Retrieved 29 December 2010.
- ^ a b Gunston (1978)
- ^ Shores, Franks & Guest (1990), p. 40
- ^ a b c d Melinsky (1971), p. 105.
- Bibliography
- ISBN 0-89673-000-X.
- Melinsky, M. A. H (March 1971). "Your Questions Answered; No 150 Squadron RAF". Air Pictorial.
- Shores, Christopher; Franks, Norman; Guest, Russell (1990). Above The Trenches: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the British Empire Air Forces 1915–1920. London: Grub Street. ISBN 0-948817-19-4.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to No. 150 Squadron RAF.
- "No. 150 Squadron, 10 May to 30 June 1940". Traces of World War 2. 2008.
- Rickard, J. (2008). "No. 150 Squadron (RAF): Second World War". Military History Encyclopedia on the Web.
- Barrass, M. B. (2016). "No. 146-150 Squadron Histories". Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation.
