Number 1 Squadron, also known as No. 1 (Fighter) Squadron, is a

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

. It was the first squadron to fly a

VTOL A vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft is one that can take off and land vertically without relying on a runway. This classification can include a variety of types of aircraft including helicopters as well as thrust-vectoring fixed-win ...

aircraft. It currently operates

Eurofighter Typhoon The Eurofighter Typhoon is a European multinational twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter. The Typhoon was designed originally as an air-superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo ...

aircraft from

RAF Lossiemouth Royal Air Force Lossiemouth or more commonly RAF Lossiemouth is a military airfield located on the western edge of the town of Lossiemouth in Moray, north-east Scotland. Lossiemouth is one of the largest and busiest fast-jet stations in the ...

. The squadron motto, ''In omnibus princeps'' ("First in all things") reflects the squadron's status as the RAF's oldest unit, having been involved in almost every major British military operation from the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

to the present time. These include the

Second World War 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 ...

Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...

Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

Kosovo War The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that started 28 February 1998 and lasted until 11 June 1999. It was fought by the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (i.e. Serbia and Montenegro), which controlled Kosovo before the war ...

, and

Operation Telic Operation Telic (Op TELIC) was the codename under which all of the United Kingdom's military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on ...

(Iraq).

History

1878 to 1918

No. 1 Squadron's origins go back to 1878 when its predecessor, No. 1 Balloon Company, was formed at the

Royal Arsenal The Royal Arsenal, Woolwich is an establishment on the south bank of the River Thames in Woolwich in south-east London, England, that was used for the manufacture of armaments and ammunition, proofing, and explosives research for the Britis ...

, Woolwich as part of the Balloon Section. On 1 April 1911 the

Air Battalion The Air Battalion Royal Engineers (ABRE) was the first flying unit of the British Armed Forces to make use of heavier-than-air craft. Founded in 1911, the battalion in 1912 became part of the Royal Flying Corps, which in turn evolved into the R ...

of the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

was created. The battalion initially consisted of two companies, with No. 1 Company, Air Battalion taking responsibility for

lighter than air A lifting gas or lighter-than-air gas is a gas that has a density lower than normal atmospheric gases and rises above them as a result. It is required for aerostats to create buoyancy, particularly in lighter-than-air aircraft, which include free ...

flying. The first Officer Commanding was Captain E. M. Maitland. On 13 May 1912, with the establishment of the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

, No. 1 Company of the Air Battalion was redesignated No. 1 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps. No. 1 Squadron was one of the original three Royal Flying Corps squadrons. Maitland continued as the new squadron's Officer Commanding and he was promoted to major several days after the establishment of the squadron. It retained the airships ''Beta'' and ''Gamma'', adding ''Delta'' and ''Eta'', as well as kites and a few spherical balloons. However, in October 1913 a sudden decision was made to transfer all the airships to the Naval Wing of the RFC (which became the

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

dictat, not Cabinet decision, on 1 July 1914). While retaining kites 1 Squadron was reorganised as an 'aircraft park' for the British Expeditionary Force. On 1 May 1914, Major

Charles Longcroft Air Vice Marshal Sir Charles Alexander Holcombe Longcroft, (13 May 1883 – 20 February 1958) was a pilot and squadron commander in the Royal Flying Corps who went on to become a senior commander in the Royal Air Force. He was the first comma ...

was appointed as the new squadron commander. Apart from a few weeks as a supernumerary in August and September 1914, Longcroft continued as the squadron commander until January 1915. Brit Flying Squad

The squadron was reformed as an aircraft squadron in August 1914, and equipped with a mixture of

Avro 504 The Avro 504 was a First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind tha ...

s and

Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.8 The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.8 was a British two-seat single-engined general purpose biplane of the First World War, designed by John Kenworthy at the Royal Aircraft Factory in 1913.Hare 1990, p. 171. Small numbers were used by the Royal Fly ...

s, crossed over to France on 7 March 1915,Halley 1971, p.10. under the command of Major

Geoffrey Salmond Air Chief Marshal Sir William Geoffrey Hanson Salmond, (19 August 1878 – 27 April 1933) was a senior commander in the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. Remaining in the Royal Air Force after the war, he held senior appointments in ...

, later Chief of the Air Staff. It operated mainly in the reconnaissance role, with a few single seat fighters for escort purposes. The squadron was soon thrown into action, taking part in the

Battle of Neuve Chapelle The Battle of Neuve Chapelle (10–13 March 1915) took place in the First World War in the Artois region of France. The attack was intended to cause a rupture in the German lines, which would then be exploited with a rush to the Aubers Ridge and ...

in March 1915, and moved to Balleul at the end of the month, remaining there until March 1918, operating from an airfield next to the town's Asylum.Halley 1971, p. 28. In April–May 1915, the squadron flew reconnaissance missions during the

Second Battle of Ypres During the First World War, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from for control of the tactically important high ground to the east and south of the Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium. The First Battle of Ypres had been fought the pre ...

. On 19 August, Salmond was replaced as commander of the squadron by Major

Philip Joubert de la Ferté Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Bennet Joubert de la Ferté, (21 May 1887 – 21 January 1965) was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force during the 1930s and the Second World War. Early life Joubert de la Ferté was born in Darjeeling, India t ...

, later an

Air Chief Marshall Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer originating from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. An air chief marshal is equivalent to an Admir ...

. By October 1915, the squadron had re-equipped with a mixture of various

Morane-Saulnier Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier was a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier (aircraft manufacturer), Raymond Saulnier (1881–1964) and the Robert and Léon Morane, Morane brothers, Léon (1885–1918) and ...

types, with Morane Parasols ( Types L and LA) in the Corps Reconnaissance role and

Morane-Saulnier N The Morane-Saulnier N, also known as the Morane-Saulnier Type N, was a French monoplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. Designed and manufactured by Morane-Saulnier, the Type N entered service in April 1915 with the ''Aéronautique Mili ...

single-seat fighters. The squadron supplemented its Parasols with more modern

Morane-Saulnier P The Morane-Saulnier Type P (official designations MS.21, MS.24 and MS.26) was a French parasol wing two-seat reconnaissance aeroplane of the First World War. Morane-Saulnier built 595 for the French air force, and it was also used by the Britis ...

parasols and

Morane-Saulnier BB The Morane-Saulnier BB was a military observation aircraft produced in France during World War I for use by Britain's Royal Flying Corps.Taylor 1989, 684"The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft", 2538 It was a conventional single-bay biplane ...

biplanes in 1916, although the last LA remained with the squadron until 1917. The squadron became a dedicated fighter squadron on 1 January 1917, flying

Nieuport 17 The Nieuport 17 C.1 (or Nieuport XVII C.1 in contemporary sources) was a French sesquiplane fighter designed and manufactured by the Nieuport company during World War I. An improvement over the Nieuport 11, it was a little larger than earlier N ...

s and

Nieuport 27 The Nieuport 27 (or Nieuport XXVII C.1 in contemporary sources) was a World War I French sesquiplane fighter aircraft designed by Gustave Delage. The 27 was the last of the line of Nieuport "V-strut" single seat fighters that began with the Ni ...

.Halley 1971, p.10. The obsolete Nieuports were replaced by more modern S.E.5as in January 1918. On incorporation into the RAF on 1 April 1918 the squadron kept its numeral; No 1 Squadron of the

(RNAS) was displaced to become

No. 201 Squadron RAF Number 201 Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It currently operates the Boeing Poseidon MRA1 from RAF Lossiemouth, Moray. It is the only squadron affiliated with Guernsey, in the Channel Islands. This affiliation started in 1935 ...

.The war diary of No. 1 Squadron held by the Australian War Memorial, starts in January 1918. No. 1 Squadron had among its ranks no fewer than 31

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

s. They include

Robert A. Birkbeck Captain Robert Alexander Birkbeck (8 October 1898 – 9 January 1938), was a British World War I flying ace credited with 10 aerial victories. World War I service Birkbeck received the Royal Aero Club certificate No. 3157 on 23 June 1916 to qua ...

Quintin Brand Air Vice-Marshal Sir Christopher Joseph Quintin Brand, (25 May 1893 – 7 March 1968) was a South African officer of the Royal Air Force. Early life Brand was born in Beaconsfield (now part of Kimberley, Northern Cape) in South Africa to a Crim ...

(later

Air Vice Marshal Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes u ...

), Douglas Cameron,

William Charles Campbell Captain William Charles Campbell, (27 April 1889 – 26 February 1958), was a World War I fighter pilot of Scots heritage who was credited with 23 victories. Serving with No. 1 Squadron during 1917, he was a notable balloon buster, being t ...

Percy Jack Clayson Percy Jack Clayson (born 7 June 1896) was a British flying ace in the First World War credited with 29 victories. Biography Early life and education Clayson was born in Deptford, London on 7 June 1896. In the 1910 Census of Watford, he is liste ...

, Edwin Cole,

Philip Fullard Air Commodore Philip Fletcher Fullard, (27 May 1897 – 24 April 1984) was an English First World War flying ace, one of the most successful fighter pilots of the Royal Flying Corps, with a reputation as a superb combat leader. With 40 confir ...

(later Air Commodore), Eustace Grenfell,

Louis Fleeming Jenkin Captain Louis Fleeming Jenkin, Military Cross & Bar, (22 August 1895 – 11 September 1917) was a First World War flying ace credited with 22 victories. Early life and service Jenkin was born in London, England, on 22 August 1895 to Austin Fleem ...

Tom Hazell Thomas Falcon Hazell & Bar (7 August 1892 – 4 September 1946) was a fighter pilot with the Royal Flying Corps, and later, the Royal Air Force during the First World War. Hazell scored 43 victories in 1917–18 making him the fifth most succe ...

Harold Albert Kullberg Captain Harold Albert Kullberg (10 September 1896 – 5 August 1924) was a World War I flying ace credited with 19 aerial victories. Though he scored his victories with the Royal Air Force, Kullberg was an American citizen. He was rejected fo ...

Charles Lavers Captain Charles Stewart Touzeau Lavers BEM (17 August 1896 – 1979) was a British World War I flying ace credited with nine aerial victories. Early life Charles Stewart Touzeau Lavers was born in Saint Albans, England on 17 August 1896.Shore ...

, Francis Magoun,

Guy Borthwick Moore Captain Guy Borthwick Moore (1895-1918) was a Canadian World War I flying ace credited with ten aerial victories. Biography Moore lived in Vancouver and attended the University of British Columbia from 1913 to 1916, gaining a BA. He was an oarsm ...

Gordon Olley Flying Officer Gordon Percy Olley MM (29 April 1893 – 18 March 1958) was a World War I flying ace who later formed his own airline, Olley Air Services. He was the first pilot to fly one million miles in total. Early years Olley was born in Har ...

, Harry Rigby, William Wendell Rogers and William Rooper.

Between the wars

The squadron returned to the UK from France in March 1919, being formally disbanded on 20 January 1920. On the next day it reformed at

Risalpur Risalpur (Pashto/ ur, رسالپور) is a city in Nowshera District, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, on the Nowshera-Mardan Road. It is nearly 45 km from Peshawar and 18 km from Mardan and is located at 34°4'52N 71°58'21E. In a basin so ...

in the North West Frontier of India (now part of Pakistan), flying the

Sopwith Snipe The Sopwith 7F.1 Snipe was a British single-seat biplane fighter of the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was designed and built by the Sopwith Aviation Company during the First World War, and came into squadron service a few weeks before the end of th ...

and from January 1920. It moved to Hinaidi near

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

in May 1921, to carry out policing duties, retaining its Snipes,Halley 1971, p.12. although it also received one

Bristol Jupiter The Bristol Jupiter was a British nine-cylinder single-row piston radial engine built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. Originally designed late in World War I and known as the Cosmos Jupiter, a lengthy series of upgrades and developments turn ...

engined

Nieuport Nighthawk The Nieuport Nighthawk was a British fighter aircraft developed by the Nieuport & General Aircraft company for the Royal Air Force towards the end of the First World War. Although ordered into production before the aircraft first flew, it did ...

for evaluation.Halley 1971, p.15. It remained in Iraq, carrying out

strafing Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such ...

and bombing against hostile tribal forces until November 1926 when it was disbanded.Halley 1971, pp.12–15. In early 1927 it was reformed at

RAF Tangmere RAF Tangmere was a Royal Air Force station located in Tangmere, England, famous for its role in the Battle of Britain, and one of several stations near Chichester, West Sussex. The famous Second World War aces Wing Commander Douglas Bader, a ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

as a Home Defence Fighter Squadron, equipped with the

Armstrong Whitworth Siskin The Armstrong Whitworth Siskin was a biplane single-seat fighter aircraft developed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft. It was also the first all-metal fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force ( ...

. After receiving the

Hawker Fury The Hawker Fury is a British biplane fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force in the 1930s. It was a fast, agile aircraft, and the first interceptor in RAF service capable of speed higher than 200 mph (321 kmh). It was the fighter cou ...

Mk.1 in February 1932, the squadron gained a reputation for aerobatics, giving displays throughout the United Kingdom and at the

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

International Air Meeting in July 1937, where its display impressed but it was clear that it was outclassed by the German

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...

and

Dornier Do 17 The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing a ...

also displayed at Zurich. The squadron re-equipped with the Hawker Hurricane Mk.I in October 1938.Halley 1971, p.16.

Second World War

Hurricane I 1 Sqn RAF at RAF Wittering 1940

On the outbreak of the

in September 1939 the squadron was deployed to France as part of the

RAF Advanced Air Striking Force The RAF Advanced Air Striking Force (AASF) comprised the light bombers of No. 1 Group RAF, 1 Group RAF Bomber Command, which took part in the Battle of France during the Second World War. Before hostilities began, it had been agreed between the ...

. In October it flew over enemy territory for the first time and soon claimed its first victory, shooting down a

on 31 October.Halley 1971, p.20. Further successes were made during the

Phoney War The Phoney War (french: Drôle de guerre; german: Sitzkrieg) was an eight-month period at the start of World War II, during which there was only one limited military land operation on the Western Front, when French troops invaded Germ ...

, until the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

erupted in May 1940. Within a week the squadron was bombed out of its base at

Berry-au-Bac Berry-au-Bac () is a commune in the department of Aisne in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Population See also * Communes of the Aisne department The following is a list of the 799 communes in the French department of Aisne. Th ...

, north-west of Paris. A series of retreats followed, ending only when the squadron evacuated from France on 18 June,Halley 1971, pp. 20–21. with a return to Tangmere on 23 June. In August 1940 the squadron entered the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

and was heavily engaged until 9 September, when the squadron was transferred to No. 12 Group and sent to

RAF Wittering Royal Air Force Wittering or more simply RAF Wittering is a Royal Air Force station within the unitary authority area of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire and the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire. Although Stamford, Lincolnshire, Sta ...

to refit, rest and recuperate. It returned to No. 11 Group in early 1941 and was employed in fighter sweeps and bomber escort duties. In February, it began "

Rhubarb Rhubarb is the fleshy, edible stalks ( petioles) of species and hybrids (culinary rhubarb) of ''Rheum'' in the family Polygonaceae, which are cooked and used for food. The whole plant – a herbaceous perennial growing from short, thick rhizo ...

" (low-level sweeps over occupied territory) and night flying missions, and was re-equipped with the Hurricane IIA. In this period its pilots included

Karel Kuttelwascher Karel Miloslav Kuttelwascher DFC and Bar (23 September 1916 – 17 August 1959) was a Czech fighter pilot, and a flying ace of the UK's Royal Air Force (RAF) in the Second World War. He was in combat service from May 1940 to October 1942, firs ...

DFC, who was the RAF's highest-scoring night intruder pilot and highest-scoring Free Czechoslovak pilot. The squadron carried out night intruder patrols until July 1942, when it was re-equipped with the

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 i ...

fighter-bomber and relocated to

RAF Acklington Royal Air Force Acklington, simply known as RAF Acklington, is a former Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force station located south west of Amble, Northumberland and north east of Morpeth, Northumberland. The airfield was operational initial ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

where it reverted to daytime operations. The squadron was equipped with the Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IX in April 1944, and in June began anti- V1 patrols, shooting down 39 flying bombs. Missions were also flown over the Falaise Gap, strafing targets of opportunity. Later in the year it reverted to bomber escort duties, based at

Maldegem Maldegem (; vls, Moaldegem), earlier spelled Maldeghem, is a municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the villages of Maldegem, Adegem and . and have always been separate hamlets of Maldegem. On ...

. It was involved in supporting

Operation Market Garden Operation Market Garden was an Allies of World War II, Allied military operation during the World War II, Second World War fought in the Netherlands from 17 to 27 September 1944. Its objective was to create a Salient (military), salient into G ...

: the parachute drops into the Netherlands, and later in support of the Allied counter-offensive in the Ardennes. The squadron dropped 250 lb bombs on to 'Key Points' (KPs), directed by radar to counter the adverse weather conditions. In May 1945 it converted to the Spitfire Mk.XXI, but these were only used operationally to cover landings on the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

Post-War

In 1946, the Squadron returned to Tangmere and took delivery of its first jet aircraft, the

Gloster Meteor The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies of World War II, Allies' only jet aircraft to engage in combat operations during the Second World War. The Meteor's development was heavily reliant on its ground-breaking turb ...

. In October 1948, Major

Robin Olds Robin Olds (July 14, 1922 – June 14, 2007) was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the United States Air Force (USAF). He was a " triple ace", with a combined total of 17 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. Que ...

, USAF, under the U.S. Air Force/Royal Air Force exchange program, was posted in and flying the

jet fighter. He eventually served as commander of the Squadron at RAF Station Tangmere, an unusual posting for a non-commonwealth foreigner in peacetime. The Squadron was then equipped with the Hawker Hunter F.5, which were flown from

RAF Akrotiri RAF Akrotiri ( el, Βασιλική Πολεμική Αεροπορία Ακρωτηρίου) is a large Royal Air Force base on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. It is located in the Western Sovereign Base Area, one of two areas which compr ...

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

during the 1956

. The squadron disbanded on 23 June 1958. However, on 1 July 1958 the squadron was reformed by re-numbering No. 263 Squadron at

RAF Stradishall Royal Air Force Stradishall or more simply RAF Stradishall is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station located north east of Haverhill, Suffolk, Haverhill, Suffolk and south west of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. Part of th ...

. It then moved to

RAF Waterbeach Royal Air Force Waterbeach or more simply RAF Waterbeach is a former Royal Air Force station located in Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire which is about north of Cambridge, England. The site was transferred to the Royal Engineers, part of the British A ...

from where, flying the Hunter FGA.9, it operated in the ground attack role as part of No. 38 Group. The Squadron continued in this role for the next eight years, operating out of Waterbeach and then

RAF West Raynham Royal Air Force West Raynham or more simply RAF West Raynham is a former Royal Air Force station located west of West Raynham, Norfolk and southwest of Fakenham, Norfolk, England. The airfield opened during May 1939 and was used by RAF Bomb ...

Flight Lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth countries. It has a NATO rank code of OF-2. Flight lieutenant is abbreviated as Flt Lt in the India ...

Alan Pollock of No. 1 Squadron was responsible for the infamous and very unofficial flying display on the 50th anniversary of the RAF in 1968.

Harrier

Under the command of Squadron Leader Bryan Baker, the squadron became the world's first operator of a

V/STOL A vertical and/or short take-off and landing (V/STOL) aircraft is an airplane able to take-off or land vertically or on short runways. Vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft are a subset of V/STOL craft that do not require runways at al ...

aircraft with the arrival of the

Hawker Siddeley Harrier The Hawker Siddeley Harrier is a British military aircraft. It was the first of the Harrier series of aircraft and was developed in the 1960s as the first operational ground attack and reconnaissance aircraft with vertical/short takeoff and ...

in 1969, declared operational the following year. A detachment from No. 1 Squadron was deployed aboard the Carrier Battle Group (TG 317.8) of the

Falklands Task Force The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland I ...

during the

, operating from HMS ''Hermes'' and flying ground attack missions against Argentine forces.Ashworth 1989, p.26.Evans 1998, pp. 74–75. It replaced its first generation Harriers with Harrier IIs from 23 November 1988, being declared fully operational on the Harrier GR.5 on 2 November 1989.Evans 1998, p.123. The squadron was the subject of an episode of the BBC documentary series ''Defence of the Realm'' before and during its participation in the Bosnian War as part of NATO's ''

Operation Deny Flight Operation Deny Flight was a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) operation that began on 12 April 1993 as the enforcement of a United Nations (UN) no-fly zone over Bosnia and Herzegovina. The United Nations and NATO later expanded the mis ...

''. During the Kosovo war the Squadron flew sorties as part of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

Operation Allied Force The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) carried out an aerial bombing campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from 24 March 1999 to 10 June 1999. The bombings continued until an a ...

. No. 1 Squadron left the "home of the Harrier" at

for

RAF Cottesmore Royal Air Force Station Cottesmore or more simply RAF Cottesmore is a former Royal Air Force station in Rutland, England, situated between Cottesmore and Market Overton. On 15 December 2009, Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth announced that the ...

on 28 July 2000. Cottesmore became home to all operational RAF Harrier squadrons – No. 20 (Reserve) Squadron, later renumbered as No. 4 (R) Squadron, the Harrier Operational Conversion Unit remained at Wittering. The squadrons both flew missions during the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

and were awarded the "Iraq 2003" battle honour. The squadron was awarded a

battle honour A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...

in March 2020, recognising its role in the

War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC) *Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709) *Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see als ...

. One outcome of the Strategic Defence and Security Review by the coalition government in 2010 was the decision to take the RAF's Harriers out of service almost immediately. All Harrier units, including No. 1 (F) Squadron, ceased Harrier flying on 15 December 2010, with No. 1 (F) Squadron formally disbanding on 28 January 2011.

Typhoon

On 15 September 2012, the squadron reformed on the

RAF Leuchars Royal Air Force Leuchars or RAF Leuchars was a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located in Leuchars, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. Throughout the Cold War and beyond, the station was home to fighter aircraft which policed northern UK airspac ...

. The squadron participated in multiple exercises in foreign countries including Exercise Shaheen Star in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

during January 2013 and Exercise Bersama Shield in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

during March 2013. On 8 September 2014, No. 1 (F) Squadron relocated to

, to operate alongside

No. 6 ''No. 6'' is a Japanese novel series written by Atsuko Asano and published by Kodansha in nine volumes between October 2003 and June 2011. A manga adaptation drawn by Hinoki Kino was serialized in Kodansha's ''Aria'' magazine from January 201 ...

and XV (R) squadrons, as well as "D" Flight, No. 202 Squadron (SAR) and No. 5 Force Protection Wing. On 14 November 2019 the squadron deployed 4 fighters to

Keflavik Air Base Naval Air Station Keflavik (NASKEF) was a United States Navy station at Keflavík International Airport, Iceland, located on the Reykjanes peninsula on the south-west portion of the island. NASKEF was closed on 8 September 2006, and its facilitie ...

as part of the NATO Air Policing, Iceland. The squadron also deployed an additional 100 personnel to support the squadron and forces based in

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

Aircraft operated

(1915–1916) * B.E.8 (1915–1916) * Morane Parasol (1915–1916) *

(1916–1917) *

(1917–1918) *

SE5a The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 is a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. It was developed at the Royal Aircraft Factory by a team consisting of Henry Folland, John Kenworthy and Major Frank Goodden. It was one of the fas ...

(1918–1920) *

(1920–1927) *

(1927–1933) *

(1933–1937) *

Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness by ...

(1937–1943) *

(1943–1944) *

Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Grif ...

(1944–1950) *

F.8 (1950–1957) *

Hawker Hunter The Hawker Hunter is a transonic British jet-powered fighter aircraft that was developed by Hawker Aircraft for the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It was designed to take advantage of the newly developed Rolls-R ...

F.5/F.6/FGA.9/T.7 (1957–1970) * Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.1 and GR.3 (1969–1989) * British Aerospace Harrier GR5, GR7 and GR9 (1988–2010) *

Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 The Eurofighter Typhoon is in service with seven nations: United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Austria. It has been ordered by Kuwait and Qatar, with orders for all eight customers still pending as of September 2017. Th ...

(2012 – present)

Battle honours

The

battle honours A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...

awarded to No. 1 Squadron are: * Western Front 1915–1918 *

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality co ...

1915 *

Neuve Chapelle Neuve-Chapelle ( vls, Nieuwkappel) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. It was the site of a First World War battle in 1915. Geography Neuve-Chapelle is situated some northeast of Béthune and ...

* Loos * Somme 1916 *

Arras Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department, which forms part of the regions of France, region of Hauts-de-France; before the regions of France#Reform and mergers of ...

1917 * Lys *

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

* Somme 1918 *

Hindenburg Line The Hindenburg Line (German: , Siegfried Position) was a German defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to Laffaux, near Soissons on the Aisne. In 191 ...

* Independent Force and Germany 1918 *

Kurdistan Kurdistan ( ku, کوردستان ,Kurdistan ; lit. "land of the Kurds") or Greater Kurdistan is a roughly defined geo-cultural territory in Western Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, Kurdish la ...

1922–1925 *

1923–1925 * France and Low Countries 1939–1940 *

1940 *Channel and North Sea 1941–1945 *

Home Defence A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

1940–1945 *

Fortress Europe Fortress Europe (german: Festung Europa) was a military propaganda term used by both sides of the Second World War which referred to the areas of Continental Europe occupied by Nazi Germany, as opposed to the United Kingdom across the Channel. ...

1941–1944 *

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

1944 * France and Germany 1944–1945 *Biscay 1944–1945 *

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

South Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

1982 *

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

2003 Items in bold are permitted to be displayed on the squadron standard

Commanding officers

List of commanding officers of No. 1 Squadron, including date of appointment, sourced from Halley, Shaw and Franks & O'Connor. *

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

E M Maitland (13 May 1912) * Major C A H Longcroft (1 May 1914) * Major W G H Salmond (28 January 1915) * Major P B Joubert de la Ferté (19 August 1915) * Major G F Pretyman (24 November 1915) * Major G C St P de Dombasle (24 December 1916) * Major A Barton-Adams (20 June 1917) * Major W E Young (3 August 1918) *

Squadron Leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also ...

J O Andrews (21 January 1920) * Squadron Leader J B Graham (18 September 1920) * Squadron Leader G G A Williams (10 November 1922) * Squadron Leader E O Grenfell (8 October 1923) * Squadron Leader E D Atkinson (25 May 1924) * Squadron Leader C.N. Lowe (19 April 1926) * Squadron Leader E D Atkinson (11 April 1927) * Squadron Leader E O Grenfell (19 March 1928) * Squadron Leader C B S Spackman (27 July 1931) * Squadron Leader R W Chappell (21 November 1933) * Squadron Leader

C W Hill Cedric Waters Hill (3 April 1891 – 5 March 1975) was an Australian officer in the Royal Flying Corps and later the Royal Air Force who, together with E. H. Jones, escaped from the Yozgat prisoner of war camp in Turkey during the First World ...

(1 October 1934) *

T N McEvoy (acting) (31 January 1936) * Squadron Leader C W Hill (1 December 1936) * Squadron Leader F R D Swain (12 April 1937) * Squadron Leader I A Bertram (15 January 1938) * Squadron Leader P J H Halahan (17 April 1939) * Squadron Leader D A Pemberton (24 May 1940) * Squadron Leader M H Brown (10 November 1940) * Squadron Leader R E P Brooker (23 April 1941) * Squadron Leader J A F MacLachlan (3 November 1941) * Squadron Leader R C Wilkinson (31 July 1942) * Squadron Leader A Zweigbergh (30 May 1943) * Squadron Leader J Checketts (3 April 1944) * Squadron Leader H P Lardner-Burke (29 April 1944) * Squadron Leader D G S R Cox (11 January 1945) * Squadron Leader R S Nash (21 April 1945) * Squadron Leader H R Allen (9 January 1946) * Squadron Leader C H MacFie (26 October 1946) * Flight Lieutenant N H D Ramsey (acting) (7 May 1947) * Squadron Leader T R Burne (15 July 1947) * Major R Olds (

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

) (4 February 1949) * Squadron Leader T R Burne (1 October 1949) * Major D F Smith (USAF) (10 January 1950) * Squadron Leader J L W Ellacombe (18 August 1950) * Squadron Leader R B Morison (21 November 1952) * Squadron Leader D I Smith (27 July 1953) * Squadron Leader F W Lister (1 December 1953) * Flight Lieutenant H Irving (acting) (1 June 1955) * Squadron Leader R S Kingsford (8 August 1956) * Squadron Leader L de Garis, AFC (5 July 1958) * Squadron Leader J J Phipps (1 December 1958) * Squadron Leader P V Pledger (1 January 1961) * Squadron Leader F L Travers-Smith (1 January 1963) * Squadron Leader D C G Brook (28 December 1964) * Squadron Leader G. Jones (1 November 1966) * Squadron Leader L A B Baker (20 September 1968) *

Wing Commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

J A Mansell (10 April 1969) * Squadron Leader L A B Baker (21 May 1969) * Wing Commander D Allison (4 August 1969) * Squadron Leader L A B Baker (October 1969) * Wing Commander K W Hayr (1 January 1970) * Wing Commander E J E Smith (6 January 1972) * Wing Commander P P W Taylor (3 December 1973) * Wing Commander J G Saye (9 July 1976) * Wing Commander R B Duckett (17 July 1978) * Wing Commander P T Squire (26 March 1981) * Wing Commander J D L Feesey (23 December 1983) * Wing Commander I M Stewart (13 June 1986) * Wing Commander I R Harvey (3 October 1988) * Wing Commander C C N Burwell (17 May 1991) * Wing Commander D Walker (29 April 1994) * Wing Commander M A Leakey (18 March 1996) * Wing Commander I Cameron (acting) (26 November 1997) * Wing Commander A Golledge (9 January 1998) * Wing Commander S M Bell (26 October 1999) * Wing Commander M E Sampson (June 2004) * Wing Commander K A Lewis (1 November 2006) * Wing Commander D F Haines (31 October 2008) * Wing Commander M Flewin (15 September 2012) * Wing Commander M Sutton (9 October 2014)

Notes

References

Citations

Bibliography

* Ashworth, Chris. ''Encyclopedia of Modern Royal Air Force Squadrons''. Wellingborough, UK:PSL, 1989. . * Bowyer, Michael J.F and John D.R. Rawlings. ''Squadron Codes, 1937–56''. Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1979. . * Bruce, J. M. ''The Aeroplanes of the Royal Flying Corps (Military Wing)''. London: Putnam, 1982. . * Evans, Andy. ''BAE/McDonnell Douglas Harrier''. Malborough, Wiltshire, UK: The Crowood Press, 1998. . * Flintham, Vic and Andrew Thomas. ''Combat Codes: A Full Explanation and Listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied Air Force Unit Codes Since 1938''. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlif Publishing Ltd., 2003. . * Franks, Norman and Mike O'Connor. ''Number One in War and Peace: The History of No. 1 Squadron, 1912–2000''. London: Grub Street, 2000. . * Halley, James J. ''Famous Fighter Squadrons of the RAF: Volume 1''. Windsor, UK: Hylton Lacey, 1971. . * Halley, James J. ''The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988''. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. . * Jefford, C.G. ''RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912''. Shrewsbury: Airlife Publishing, 1998 (second edition 2001). . * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. . * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 1969 (new edition 1976, reprinted 1978). . * Shaw, Michael. ''No. 1 Squadron''. Shepperton, Surrey, UK: Ian Allan Ltd., 1986. . * Shaw, Michael. ''Twice Vertical: The History of No. 1 Squadron Royal Air Force''. London: Macdonald & Company Ltd, 1971. . * Shores, Christopher; Franks, Norman & Guest, Russell. ''Above The Trenches: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the British Empire Air Forces 1915–1920''. London: Grub Street, 1990. .

External links

Official websiteNo.1 (F) Sqn Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:001 Squadron Raf Military units and formations established in 1911 Royal Flying Corps squadrons Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the Falklands War Military units and formations disestablished in 2011 RAF squadrons involved in the Battle of Britain 1911 establishments in the United Kingdom