Palestine Brigade RAF
Palestine Brigade | |
---|---|
Active | 5 October 1917 – |
Country | United Kingdom |
Branch | Royal Air Force |
The Palestine Brigade of the
Background
Prior to Allenby's appointment as commander of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, the German and Ottoman air services had enjoyed air superiority in the Levant. This was because of the superior quantity and quality of German Rumpler and Fokker aircraft in comparison to the British aircraft. Allenby was an air power enthusiast and he requested that the British War Office increase the number and quality of Flying Corps aircraft at his disposal.[1]
Formation and composition
With an increased number of British aircraft in the
The Palestine Brigade consisted of the following two
- 5th (Corps) Wing - tasked with aerial cooperation and direct support to Allenby's ground formations.
- 40th (Army) Wing - formed at the same time as the Palestine Brigade[3] and tasked with counter-air missions and attacking the Ottoman and German support infrastructure.
In addition, by the summer of 1918 the Brigade also had a balloon company, an aircraft park, an aircraft depot and an engine repair depot. In August, the Brigade was strengthened by the addition of a single
Actions
The Palestine Brigade saw action throughout the
Commanders
The following officers commanded the Palestine Brigade:[2]
- 5 October 1917 Brigadier-General W G H Salmond
- 5 November 1917 Brigadier-General W S Brancker
- 14 December 1917 Brigadier-General A E Borton
- 28 June 1918 Lieutenant Colonel R Williams[5]
- January 1919 - unknown
- 18 June 1919 Brigadier-General C S Burnett[6]
References
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2014. Retrieved 27 February 2009.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ a b "Groups Middle East_P". Archived from the original on 21 July 2002. Retrieved 27 February 2009.
- ^ "Wings 1 - 50_P". Archived from the original on 26 July 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2008.
- ISBN 0-85052-980-8.
- ^ "The Enemy Driven from the Sky".
- ^ "C S Burnett_P". www.rafweb.org. Retrieved 17 February 2018.