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Aviation History
1954
1954 - 1229.PDF
554 FLIGHT IIRISTHL BfAVf.f-HfT£- 19 42- 194 f $ fitff1 Hi 194$ THE QUEEN'S SQUADRON A History of No. 603 City of Edinburgh) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force By JOHN YOXALL Part 11 THE first part of this history, published last week, told the story of No. 603 squadron's early life after its formation in 1925; of its duties and relaxations in the years leading up to the war; of its part in the Battle of Britain; and of its move to assist the defence of Malta in the early summer of 1942. On August 3rd of that year the pilots were posted to No. 299 Squadron, which was then being formed at Takali, one of Malta's airfields; No. 603's ground staff had meanwhile moved to Egypt. The present instalment deals with the Mediterranean opera tions in which No. 603 Squadron was next engaged. The third and final part of this history will describe the unit's operations against the retreating enemy in Western Europe and, finally, its post-war existence. FOR the ground staff there followed a long period of frustration. Plans were made to move to Burg-el-Arab to assist the Maryland Repair Unit, but the enemy advance to El Alamein upset this arrangement and the unit was taken by sea to Cyprus. During July the squadron had no aircraft and time was spent in servicing machines visiting Nicosia, and in assisting, as relief crews, No. 451 Squadron R.A.A.F. at Lakatamia. A detachment went to Paphos to keep the airfield serviceable. In August came the task of servicing the Packard-built Rolls-Royce Merlins in the Curtiss P-40s of the 65th U.S.A.A.F. Pursuit Squadron. S/L. Marshall came to take over command of No. 603 from S/L. Illingworth, who had remained in Egypt on the sick list. The Americans left Cyprus early in September and 603 went back to the dreary round of waiting. This tiresome period finished at long last in December, when the unit was shipped back to Egypt and told that it would be equipped with Beau- fighters, coming under No. 201 Group as a naval co-operation squadron. S/L. Marshall handed over the reins to S/L. H. A. Chater; and at Edku, on February 1st, 1943, the squadron be came an operational unit once more. Pilots and observers began to arrive, a number of them from No. 272 Squadron; S/L. Laycock, "B" Flight Commander, came direct from Britain. A detachment of four Beaufighters, led by S/L. Chater, went up to Berka (Benghazi) and the first "ops" to be flown for nearly a year took the form of close-escort patrol over a convoy. There is a popular idea that North Africa con tinually basks in brilliant sunshine; this is not so, and during the whole of February the squadron was dogged by bad weather. On a number of days die airfield was unserviceable. By the beginning of March re-equipping was finished and most of the pilots had been converted to the Beaufighter. The A.O.C- in-C. Middle East, Sir W. Sholto-Douglas (now Marshal of the Royal Air Force Lord Douglas of Kirtleside) came to visit the squadron, accompanied by Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands. The twelve days from March 16th to 27th were spent in travelling from Edku up to Misurata West via Mersa Matruh, Buq Buq, El Adem, Maturba, Barce, El Agheila and Sirte. Despite die move, protection was provided for four naval convoys by the squadron Beaufighters stationed at El Magrum. There was litde interference from the enemy, but on the occa sions when they put in an appearance the convoys became a trifle trigger-happy. There was one such occurrence on March 15th, when F/L. Ashby's Beaufighter, EL 448, was vectored on to some "Bogies." He sighted six or seven aircraft, possibly Ju 88s, about eight miles astern of the convoy. He lost them in the dark and returned to the ships, which immediately started firing on him. After making several more attempts to rejoin the convoy, each being defeated by flak, he flew back to Misurata. Despite the pre-occupations of war, the 25th anniversary of the formation of the Royal Air Force was celebrated on April 1st, 1943. A parade of the whole squadron was addressed by A.V-M. T. A. Langford-Sainsbury who was then A.O.C. No. 201 Group. The only warlike activity for the day was the assignment of two Beaufighters to give cover to convoy "Rival." This patrol passed off without incident. The same might be said of all the convoy patrols flown during April. The only excitement was on the 19th, when Beau fighter "J," while giving cover-to convoy "Merit," had engine trouble and ditched 15 miles out to sea. The crew, unhurt, were picked up in their dinghies two hours later. In May, also, there were few incidents, though on the 2nd Beaufighter "E" failed to return from extra last-light cover to convoy "Liquid." Enemy aircraft were in the vicinity and, although two more Beaufighters were about, neither saw what happened to "E." June was entirely quiet so far as the enemy was concerned. The high spot of the montb was the cover given to convoy "Ferguson," which included the cruiser H.M.S. Aurora carrying King George VI on his return from Malta, G.C., to Tripoli. At the end of the first week of July came the invasion of Sicily and No. 603 joined with Nos. 252, 272 and 227 in covering the convoys meeting south-east of Malta in readiness for the main assault. Lockheed Lightnings of the 96th Group, U.S.A.A.F., also participated; still, however, there was no response from the enemy air forces. On the 12th the squadron flew 19 sorties to give dawn-to-dusk fighter protection to convoy "Bowery," conveying supplies to the beachhead, but still no interference came from die enemy. Beaufighter "M" (Sgts. Downing and Gresswell) on this day burst a tyre on take-off but carried out the patrol before making a successful wheels-up landing. While on patrol "M" saw the air/sea rescue Wellington itself ditch; die survivors were picked up by convoy escort craft. This absence of fighting in the middle of a war could not go on, and low-level bombing training came to be the order of the day. On August 14th, 1943 the CO., W/C Chater, left Misurata Cause and effect: Sgts. Pete Penny (pilot) and Jeff Hyde (observer), and a Ju 52 which they had shot down, photographed as it hit the water; a few seconds later it burst into flame and the crew were seen swimming from the wreck. mmm
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