|
No. 83 Group Support Unit RAF
No. 83 Group Support Unit RAF was a "holding unit" for aircraft and pilots in WW2, supplying them to operational RAF combat squadrons. History No 83 SGU was formed in March 1944 at RAF Redhill, and was there until 25 June 1944 later moving to RAF Bognor, RAF Thorney Island, RAF Westhampnett and RAF Dunsfold in Surrey. No 83 GSU maintained a substantial number of combat aircraft of all types, ready to replace losses in combat squadrons in the field. Pilots were often "rotated out" to combat squadrons within a few days of arrival. The instructors were usually pilots who were "resting" between operational tours.83 GSU RAF at www.rafcommands.com Retrieved 10 May 2022 83 GSU also operated "conversion flights" to train pilots on new aircraft types and maintain combat readiness of the existing pool of pilots. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ensign Of The Royal Air Force
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be different from the civil ensign (merchant ships) or the yacht ensign (recreational boats). Large versions of naval ensigns called battle ensigns are used when a warship goes into battle. The ensign differs from the jack (flag), jack, which is flown from a jackstaff at the bow of a vessel. In its widest sense, an ensign is just a flag or other standard. The European military rank of Ensign (rank), ensign, once responsible for bearing a unit's standard (whether national or regimental), derives from it (in the cavalry, the equivalent rank was Cornet (rank), cornet, named after a type of flag). Ensigns, such as the ancient Roman ensigns in the Arch of Constantine, are not always flags. National ensigns In nautical use, the ensign is flown on a shi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Thorney Island
Royal Air Force Thorney Island or more simply RAF Thorney Island is a former Royal Air Force station located on Thorney Island, West Sussex, England, west of Chichester and east of Portsmouth, Hampshire. Station history The airfield was built in 1938 for fighter aircraft and was involved in the Battle of Britain when it was attacked by the Luftwaffe on the same day as other stations such as RAF Ford and RAF Poling radar station. RAF Thorney Island was transferred to RAF Coastal Command for the protection of shipping and other various roles, and had its concrete runways laid in 1942. The station closed as an RAF airfield on 31 March 1976; however, the Royal Artillery re-opened the site in 1982. Operational history Major units As with many RAF Coastal Command airfields, a great variety of squadrons and aircraft were posted to RAF Thorney Island during World War II; in particular: No. 22 Squadron RAF moved to the airfield on 10 March 1938 firstly using Vickers Vildebeest a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Military Units And Formations Of The Royal Air Force In World War II
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct military uniform. It may consist of one or more military branches such as an army, navy, air force, space force, marines, or coast guard. The main task of the military is usually defined as defence of the state and its interests against external armed threats. In broad usage, the terms ''armed forces'' and ''military'' are often treated as synonymous, although in technical usage a distinction is sometimes made in which a country's armed forces may include both its military and other paramilitary forces. There are various forms of irregular military forces, not belonging to a recognized state; though they share many attributes with regular military forces, they are less often referred to as simply ''military''. A nation's military may f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dunsfold
Dunsfold is a village in the borough of Waverley, Surrey, England, 8.7 miles (14 kilometres) south of Guildford. It lies in the Weald and reaches in the north the southern escarpment of the Greensand Ridge. It includes the Wey and Arun Canal, and just under half of Dunsfold Aerodrome, which is shared with Alfold. History Norman English (Middle Ages) building and records The village's name was recorded as ''Duntesfaude'' in 1259, ''Duntesfaud'' in 1272 and ''Duntesfalde'' in 1291, apparently meaning ''Dunt's fold''. Alternatively it may be derived from the Old English (and Celtic) ''dun'' (hill i.e. down) and ''fold'' (enclosure). Either way folding means enclosing with fences, a way of moving sheep around the land to graze off the remains of previously harvested crops. It still emulated in modern sheep farming with and without pens around the village. There are some prize-winning Aberdeen Angus cattle farmed here but the last dairy herd has now closed. St Mary & All Saint ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an area of 1,991 square kilometres (769 sq mi), West Sussex borders Hampshire to the west, Surrey to the north, and East Sussex to the east. The county town and only city in West Sussex is Chichester, located in the south-west of the county. This was legally formalised with the establishment of West Sussex County Council in 1889 but within the ceremonial County of Sussex. After the reorganisation of local government in 1974, the ceremonial function of the historic county of Sussex was divided into two separate counties, West Sussex and East Sussex. The existing East and West Sussex councils took control respectively, with Mid Sussex and parts of Crawley being transferred to the West Sussex administration from East Sussex. In the 2011 censu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. With a population of approximately 1.2 million people, Surrey is the 12th-most populous county in England. The most populated town in Surrey is Woking, followed by Guildford. The county is divided into eleven districts with borough status. Between 1893 and 2020, Surrey County Council was headquartered at County Hall, Kingston-upon-Thames (now part of Greater London) but is now based at Woodhatch Place, Reigate. In the 20th century several alterations were made to Surrey's borders, with territory ceded to Greater London upon its creation and some gained from the abolition of Middlesex. Surrey is bordered by Greater London to the north east, Kent to the east, Berkshire to the north west, West Sussex to the south, East Sussex to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Dunsfold
Dunsfold Aerodrome (former ICAO code EGTD) is an unlicensed airfield in Surrey, England, near the village of Cranleigh. It extends across land in the villages of Dunsfold and Alfold. It was built by the Canadian Army and civilian contractors as a Class A bomber airfield for Army Co-operation Command. It was commanded by the Royal Canadian Air Force from 1942 to 1944 and was known as Royal Canadian Air Force Station Dunsfold. Under RAF control it was RAF Dunsfold. Post-war it was used by Hawker Siddeley and then its successor British Aerospace. From 2002 to 2020, it was used as the main site of the BBC show ''Top Gear''. History Construction and military use Canadian engineers were charged with the construction of the aerodrome. Such projects had previously taken up to a year to complete and this site was complicated by the two hundred acres of woodland that first had to be cleared. The Canadian sappers had access to large-scale earth moving equipment from North America o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Westhampnett
Royal Air Force Westhampnett or more simply RAF Westhampnett is a former Royal Air Force satellite station, located in the village of Westhampnett near Chichester, in the English County of West Sussex. It was built as an emergency landing airfield for fighter aircraft, as a satellite station to RAF Tangmere. Built on land belonging to the Goodwood Estate, the then landowner, the Duke of Richmond, Frederick Gordon-Lennox retained the Title Deed to the land. History Royal Air Force use Squadrons * No. 41 Squadron RAF., from RAF Merston 16 December 1941, to RAF Merston 1 April 1942; operating Supermarine Spitfire Vb * No. 43 Squadron RAF. * No. 65 Squadron RAF. * No. 91 Squadron RAF. * No. 118 Squadron RAF. * No. 124 Squadron RAF. * No. 129 Squadron RAF. * No. 130 Squadron RAF. * No. 131 Squadron RAF. * No. 145 Squadron RAF - operating Hawker Hurricane. * No. 167 Squadron RAF. * No. 174 Squadron RAF. * No. 175 Squadron RAF. * No. 184 Squadron RAF. * No. 245 S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Bognor
RAF Bognor (also known as ''Bognor Advanced Landing Ground (A.L.G.)'') is a former Royal Air Force Advanced Landing Ground north of Bognor, West Sussex, England. History Survey work on the site was undertaken in "mid-1942", with construction beginning in early 1943, completed by the Royal Canadian Engineers. Bognor was one of 82 planned Operation Hadrian sites planned with only 26 being built. The original budget for the site was £20,500. The airfield became operational on 1 June 1943 with two intersecting Sommerfield track runways. The site was under the control of RAF Tangmere located four miles further north. The site was originally a training site for aircrews to practise operating with few facilities, however, in Autumn 1943, extra over blister hangars were installed. These provided shelter for most aircraft that were stationed at Bognor, little accommodation was provided for the aircrews who lived in tented camps. The site was used as a forward staging base for a n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and many smaller islands within the British Isles. Northern Ireland shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland; otherwise, the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea and the Irish Sea. The total area of the United Kingdom is , with an estimated 2020 population of more than 67 million people. The United Kingdom has evolved from a series of annexations, unions and separations of constituent countries over several hundred years. The Treaty of Union between the Kingdom of England (which included Wales, annexed in 1542) and the Kingdom of Scotland in 170 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North American Mustang
The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James H. Kindelberger of North American Aviation (NAA) in response to a requirement of the British Purchasing Commission. The Purchasing Commission approached North American Aviation to build Curtiss P-40 fighters under license for the Royal Air Force (RAF). Rather than build an old design from another company, North American Aviation proposed the design and production of a more modern fighter. The prototype NA-73X airframe was rolled out on 9 September 1940, 102 days after the contract was signed, and first flew on 26 October. The Mustang was designed to use the Allison V-1710 engine, which had limited high-altitude performance in its earlier variants. The aircraft was first flown operationally by the RAF as a tactical-reconnaissance aircraft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawker Typhoon
The Hawker Typhoon is a British single-seat fighter-bomber, produced by Hawker Aircraft. It was intended to be a medium-high altitude interceptor, as a replacement for the Hawker Hurricane, but several design problems were encountered and it never completely satisfied this requirement.Thomas and Shores 1988, p. 16. The Typhoon was originally designed to mount twelve .303 inch (7.7 mm) Browning machine guns and be powered by the latest engines. Its service introduction in mid-1941 was plagued with problems and for several months the aircraft faced a doubtful future. When the ''Luftwaffe'' brought the new Focke-Wulf Fw 190 into service in 1941, the Typhoon was the only RAF fighter capable of catching it at low altitudes; as a result it secured a new role as a low-altitude interceptor. The Typhoon became established in roles such as night-time intruder and long-range fighter. From late 1942 the Typhoon was equipped with bombs and from late 1943 RP-3 rockets were added to i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.png "Click for more on -> West Sussex")
.png "Click for more on -> RAF Westhampnett")
.svg "Click for more on -> United Kingdom")
