No. 6 Squadron RCAF
| No. 6 Squadron RCAF | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1936–1945 |
| Country |  Canada |
| Branch | .svg){kind=small} Royal Canadian Air Force |
| Role | Bomber Reconnaissance |
| Part of | RCAF Western Air Command |
| Battle honours | Pacific Coast 1941-1945[1] |
| Insignia | |
| Unit code[2] | XE (1939–1942), AF (1942) |
No. 6 (Bomber Reconnaissance) Squadron was a
It was formed on 4 March 1936 at
History
Formation and prewar service
No. 6 Squadron was authorized as a Torpedo Bomber unit on 4 March 1936 at the RCAF main training base in
Second World War
It was mobilized for the
On 12 March 1945, the Canso crew of Flight Lieutenant Moodie sighted a partially deflated Japanese fire balloon over Rupert Inlet, and forced it down on the south side of Rupert Arm by flying above it. The balloon was subsequently recovered by a ground party and sent to Western Air Command headquarters for inspection. As the war drew to a close, the squadron was disbanded on 7 August after flying its last patrol on 1 August. The squadron flew 2,506 sorties during the war, and had a total of 11,716 operational flying hours and 10,565 non-operational flying hours. Its only losses were two aircraft and nine aircrew killed in non-operational incidents. None of its personnel received decorations.[2] It earned the battle honour Pacific Coast 1941-1945, but was never awarded it due to its disbandment.[4]
Lineage
- Authorized as No. 6 (Torpedo Bomber) Squadron on 1 November 1935
- Redesignated No. 6 (Bomber Reconnaissance) Squadron on 1 September 1939
- Disbanded on 7 August 1945.[5]
Assignments
- RCAF Headquarters, 4 March 1936
- Western Air Command, 5 November 1938
- No. 4 Group, 16 June 1942–1 April 1944
- Western Air Command, April 1944–7 August 1945[2]
Stations
- Trenton, Ontario, 4 March 1936
- Jericho Beach, British Columbia, 5 November 1938
- Alliford Bay, British Columbia, 15 May 1940
- Coal Harbour, British Columbia, 23 April 1944–7 August 1945[2]
Aircraft
- Canadian Vickers Vedette, 1936–1937
- Blackburn Shark Marks II and III, 1937–1941
- Supermarine Stranraer, 1941–1943
- Consolidated Canso A, 1943, 1944–1945
- Consolidated Catalina Marks IB and IIIA, 1943–1945
- Noorduyn Norseman, 1940–1941[2]
References
Citations
- ^ "Department of National Defence". Cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca. Retrieved 2014-01-23.
- ^ a b c d e f g Kostenuk & Griffin 1977, p. 27.
- ^ "Canadian Wings". Canadian Wings. Retrieved 2014-01-23.
- ^ Kostenuk & Griffin 1977, p. xix.
- ^ Directorate of History and Heritage 2000, pp. 11–12.
Bibliography
- Directorate of History and Heritage (2000). The Insignia and Lineages of the Canadian Forces (PDF). Vol. 4: Operational Flying Squadrons. Ottawa. )
- Douglas, William Alexander Binny (1986). The Official History of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Vol. II: The Creation of a National Air Force. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. ISBN 0-80202-584-6.
- Kostenuk, Samuel; Griffin, John (1977). RCAF: Squadron Histories and Aircraft, 1924–1968. Canadian War Museum Historical Publication No. 14. Sarasota/Toronto: Samuel Stevens/Hakkert & Company. ISBN 0-88866-577-6.
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1 Aircraft administered and serviced by the RCAF but manned by the
Royal Canadian Artillery .2 Non-standard code as unit using OW added L. Letters normally denoted parent Command, aircraft type (L Liberator transport, D Dakota etc), unit, and individual aircraft. 3 VC .svg){kind=small} XXA where VC was the civil code used by the RCAF replacing CF-, XX was the unit code and A was the aircraft ID letter4 XX nnn where XX was the unit code and nnn was the last 3 digits of the serial number. Unit code was replaced with "RCAF" in 1958 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
