No. 321 (Netherlands) Squadron RAF
| No. 321 (Netherlands) Squadron RAF | |
|---|---|
Consolidated Liberator |
No. 321 (Netherlands) Squadron RAF was a unit of the
Royal Netherlands Naval Air Service
.
History
Formation
Formed on 1 June 1940 at
anti-submarine patrols with Avro Ansons until the squadron was disbanded, due to lack of personnel, and merged with No. 320 (Netherlands) Squadron
on 18 January 1941.
Catalinas
The squadron was re-activated at RAF
Port Elizabeth, Aden and Cape Town. Supplemented with Consolidated Liberators in July 1945, the air echelon moved to Cocos Island in preparation for Operation Zipper, the proposed invasion of Malaya
.
After the Japanese surrender, relief flights and supply drops to thousands of internees in the POW camps were flown to Java and Sumatra, and in October the squadron moved to its new base near Batavia, where the squadron passed to MLD control on 8 December 1945, keeping the same squadron number, No. 321 Squadron MLD. Along with 320 Squadron, it flew maritime patrol missions from Valkenburg for decades afterwards. The Squadron was disbanded in January 2005 due to budget cuts.[1]
Aircraft operated
| From | To | Aircraft | Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1940 | Jan 1941 | Avro Anson | Mk.I |
| Aug 1942 | Dec 1944 | Consolidated Catalina | Mk.II |
| Dec 1943 | Aug 1945 | Consolidated Catalina | Mk.III |
| Dec 1944 | Dec 1945 | Consolidated Liberator | Mk.VI |
| Aug 1945 | Dec 1945 | Consolidated Catalina | Mk.Va |
| Dec 1945 | Dec 1945 | Consolidated Catalina | Mk.IVb |
Commanding officers
| From | To | Name |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 1940 | Aug 1940 | Lt/Cdr. H. Kolff |
| Aug 1940 | Oct 1940 | Lt/Cdr. M.G. Smalt |
| Oct 1940 | Jan 1941 | Lt/Cdr. W. van Lier |
| Jul 1942 | 1945 | Lt/Cdr. W. van Prooijen |
References
Citations
- ISBN 1-870745-14-0.
- ^ a b Rawlings 1982, p. 201.
- ^ Halley 1988, p. 368.
- ^ Jefford 2001, p. 88.
Bibliography
- Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
- Jefford, C.G. RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 2001. ISBN 1-84037-141-2.
- Rawlings, John D.R. Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. ISBN 0-7106-0187-5.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to No. 321 (Netherlands) Squadron RAF.
- Scramble – The Aviation Magazine
- Squadron bases at RAF Commands
- RAF website
- Nos 310–330 Squadron Aircraft & Markings on RAFweb
- Nos. 310–347 Squadron Histories on RAFweb
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