11 Squadron was a

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

squadron of the

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

. It was created in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

in 1939 and served in

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

until 1941 as an army cooperation and reconnaissance squadron. It was re-formed in 1944 as a fighter bomber squadron and served in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

until 1945 when it returned to

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and was disbanded on conclusion of the war on 30 October 1945. It was re-activated in 1974, flying Cessna 185s as an army liaison squadron until 1991 when it disbanded for the final time.

History

11 Squadron served in two periods during World War II, in East Africa and again later in Egypt and Italy. It was formed on 11 December 1939 at Waterkloof Flying Station equipped with 24 Hawker Hartbees in an army co-operation role, moving to Kenya in May 1940.The squadron flew from Waterkloof on 19 May to Pietersburg and then Bulawayo, 20 May Bulawayo – Salisbury – Broken Hill; 21 May Broken Hill – Mpika; 22 May Mpika – Mbeya – Dodoma – Moshi and on 23 May Moshi – Nairobi. The squadron received its first

Fairey Battle The Fairey Battle is a British single-engine light bomber that was designed and manufactured by the Fairey Aviation Company. It was developed during the mid-1930s for the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a monoplane successor to the Hawker Hart and Hi ...

in June 1940 and by 19 August all of the Hartbees aircraft had been replaced by Fairey Battles deployed from

Archers Post Archers Post is a settlement in Kenya's Samburu County, which is home to the Samburu people. Nearby villages include Lerata. The land belongs to the Kenyan government. There is a large military training area to the north east of Archer's Post whi ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

.The Hawker Hartbees were passed on to 40 Sqn SAAF. It served in a reconnaissance and army cooperation role in

Italian Somaliland Italian Somalia ( it, Somalia Italiana; ar, الصومال الإيطالي, Al-Sumal Al-Italiy; so, Dhulka Talyaaniga ee Soomaalida), was a protectorate and later colony of the Kingdom of Italy in present-day Somalia. Ruled in the 19th centur ...

and

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

until June 1941 when its aircraft were transferred to 15 Squadron and 11 Squadron was disbanded. The squadron was re-formed on 29 June 1944 at Almaza in Egypt flying Mk.VB and Mk.VC Spitfires in the role of fighter squadron. It was moved to Edku in July 1944 and to Perugia in Italy in September 1944 – where it exchanged the Spitfires for Curtiss Kittyhawk Mk.IVs as part of the Desert Air Force. In Italy, the squadron was part of No.8 (S.A.A.F.) Wing responsible for ground-attack and fighter-bomber sweeps in support of the armies in Italy until the end of the war. In August 1945 the squadron received Spitfire Mk.IXs and was transferred back to Egypt, where it remained until being disbanded on 30 October 1945. It was resurrected in January 1974 as a liaison and army cooperation squadron equipped with Cessna 185s and based at Potchefstroom Air Base. It was finally disbanded in 1991.

Aircraft

Notes and References

;Footnotes ;Citations {{SAAF navbox Squadrons of the South African Air Force Military units and formations established in 1939 Military units and formations disestablished in 1991