22 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

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

. It is currently a maritime

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

squadron operating Lynx and Oryx helicopters for the

South African Navy The South African Navy (SA Navy) is the naval warfare branch of the South African National Defence Force. The Navy is primarily engaged in maintaining a conventional military deterrent, participating in counter-piracy operations, fishery prot ...

. Originally formed in 1942, the squadron is the only current maritime helicopter squadron of the SAAF. It has been involved with many rescues, some gaining international attention as well as arctic base support.

History

The squadron was formed in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

on 1 July 1942 by renaming 31 Flight to 22 (Torpedo-Bomber-Reconnaissance) Squadron. It was equipped with ex- SAA

Junkers Ju 86 The Junkers Ju 86 was a German monoplane bomber and civilian airliner designed in the early 1930s, and employed by various air forces on both sides during World War II. The civilian model Ju 86B could carry ten passengers. Two were delivered to S ...

s as well as a number of

Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engined, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) a ...

s, and was assigned to anti-submarine, coastal reconnaissance and convoy support duties.Green 1968, p.42. It had a relatively unremarkable period of duty in

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 ...

, being engaged mainly in coastal patrols as part of

Coastal Command SAAF The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...

. In mid 1945 it was flying

Lockheed Ventura The Lockheed Ventura is a twin-engine medium bomber and patrol bomber of World War II. The Ventura first entered combat in Europe as a bomber with the RAF in late 1942. Designated PV-1 by the United States Navy (US Navy), it entered combat in 1 ...

s from

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

, under the control of

AHQ Malta Air Headquarters Malta (AHQ Malta or Air H.Q. Malta) was an overseas command of the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. It was established on 28 December 1941 by renaming RAF Mediterranean under Air Vice Marshal Hugh Pughe Lloyd, ...

Valletta Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an Local councils of Malta, administrative unit and capital city, capital of Malta. Located on the Malta (island), main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, i ...

, but it left for home in July.Sir David Lee, Wings in the Sun, 1989, 197. It was disbanded at Idku in Egypt on 24 October 1945. Following the war, it was briefly recreated in 1954 and equipped with

s, but disbanded again soon thereafter. The latest chapter in the squadron's history began on 1 January 1964, when it was recreated at AFB Ysterplaat as 22 Flight and equipped with the newly delivered

Westland Wasp The Westland Wasp is a small 1960s British turbine powered, shipboard anti-submarine helicopter. Produced by Westland Helicopters, it came from the same P.531 programme as the British Army Westland Scout, and is based on the earlier piston-e ...

helicopter, becoming a full squadron in May 1976. In 1978, it received a complement of

Aérospatiale Alouette III The Aérospatiale Alouette III (, ''Lark''; company designations SA 316 and SA 319) is a single-engine, light utility helicopter developed by France, French aircraft company Sud Aviation. During its production life, it proved to be a relatively p ...

s. At the end of the 1980s, the Westland Wasps were withdrawn from service, but the squadron received a number of

Aérospatiale Puma Aérospatiale (), sometimes styled Aerospatiale, was a French state-owned aerospace manufacturer that built both civilian and military aircraft, rockets and satellites. It was originally known as Société nationale industrielle aérospatiale ( ...

s in 1991 when it was amalgamated with 31 Squadron. The Pumas were later replaced with the Atlas Oryx M2. This squadron is the sole maritime helicopter squadron of the SAAF, and therefore provides all helicopters, air and ground crew for operation aboard

vessels. It has previously been tasked with supporting South Africa's

Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...

research station Research stations are facilities where scientific investigation, collection, analysis and experimentation occurs. A research station is a facility that is built for the purpose of conducting scientific research. There are also many types of resear ...

, and therefore operated two specially modified Atlas Oryx M2 helicopters, suitable for use in the extreme conditions. One of the M2s was

written off A write-off is a reduction of the recognized value of something. In accounting, this is a recognition of the reduced or zero value of an asset. In income tax statements, this is a reduction of taxable income, as a recognition of certain expenses ...

after a

crash landing An emergency landing is a premature landing made by an aircraft in response to an emergency involving an imminent or ongoing threat to the safety and operation of the aircraft, or involving a sudden need for a passenger or crew on board to term ...

in July 2004. Wasp helicopters from the squadron were involved in the rescue of

personnel in the South Atlantic following the sinking of the

SAS President Kruger SAS ''President Kruger'' was the first of three President-class Type 12 frigates built in the United Kingdom for the South African Navy (SAN) during the 1960s. The ship spent most of her career training and made visits to foreign ports in Afr ...

in 1982. The squadron also gained international recognition in 2002 during the high-profile rescue of the ''

Magdalena Oldendorff MV ''Captain Kurbatskiy'' (''Капитан Курбацкий'') was a Russian SA-15 type cargo ship originally known as ''Nizhneyansk'' (''Нижнеянск'') after a port of the same name. The ship was delivered from Valmet Vuosaari shipya ...

'' which was trapped in the Antarctic ice. 22 Squadron's two Oryx M2s were embarked aboard the '' S. A. Agulhas'' for the successful operation. Apart from official military support the squadron is involved in

mountain rescue Mountain rescue refers to search and rescue activities that occur in a mountainous environment, although the term is sometimes also used to apply to search and rescue in other wilderness environments. This tends to include mountains with tech ...

and

air-sea rescue Air-sea rescue (ASR or A/SR, also known as sea-air rescue), and aeronautical and maritime search and rescue (AMSAR) by the ICAO and International Maritime Organization, IMO, is the coordinated search and rescue (SAR) of the survivors of emergenc ...

operations,

fire fighting Firefighting is the act of extinguishing or preventing the spread of unwanted fires from threatening human lives and destroying property and the environment. A person who engages in firefighting is known as a firefighter. Firefighters typicall ...

crime prevention Crime prevention is the attempt to reduce and deter crime and criminals. It is applied specifically to efforts made by governments to reduce crime, enforce the law, and maintain criminal justice. Studies Criminologists, commissions, and research b ...

and

humanitarian relief Humanitarian aid is material and logistic assistance to people who need help. It is usually short-term help until the long-term help by the government and other institutions replaces it. Among the people in need are the homeless, refugees, and v ...

in the event of disasters. The squadron's Alouette IIIs were retired in August 2007. The first of four Westland Super Lynx 300 helicopters for use aboard the South African Navy's new

Valour class frigate The ''Valour'' class is a class of frigates built for the South African Navy. Part of the MEKO family of warships, the German shipbuilder Blohm+Voss officially designate the class as the MEKO A-200SAN. Designed as a multiple purpose, multi ca ...

s, was delivered on 13 July 2007. It was accompanied to AFB Ysterplaat on its first flight 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 ...

by two Oryx and an

Alouette III Alouette or alouettes may refer to: Music and literature * "Alouette" (song), a French-language children's song * Alouette, a character in ''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar'' Aerospace * SNCASE Alouette, a utility helicopter developed in France i ...

Previous aircraft operated

Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma The Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma is a four-bladed, twin-engined medium transport/utility helicopter that was designed and originally produced by the French aerospace manufacturer Sud Aviation. It is capable of carrying up to 20 passengers as well as ...

Notes

References

*Green, William. ''War Planes of the Second World War: Volume Ten Bombers and Reconnaissance Aircraft''. London:Macdonald, 1968. *

External links

22 Squadron home pageSouth African Super Lynx 300 at 2007 Paris Air ShowRock is hard; people are soft (article about helicopter-based Search & Rescue in South Africa
{{DEFAULTSORT:22 Squadron Saaf Squadrons of the South African Air Force Military units and formations in Cape Town Military units and formations established in 1942 Maritime history of South Africa

History

Previous aircraft operated

See also

Notes

References

External links