408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron (408 THS) (french: 408^e Escadron tactique d'hélicoptères) is a unit of 1 Wing, Kingston. It is co-located with

1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (1 CMBG; French: '')'' is a Canadian Forces brigade group that is part of the 3rd Canadian Division of the Canadian Army. Originally headquartered at CFB Calgary, it is currently based in CFB Edmonton i ...

at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Edmonton. Equipped with 16

CH-146 Griffon The Bell CH-146 Griffon is a multi-role utility helicopter designed by Bell Helicopter Textron as a variant of the Bell 412EP for the Canadian Armed Forces. The CH-146 is used in a wide variety of roles, including aerial firepower, reconnaissa ...

helicopters, it rotates a high combat-readiness level with 400 Squadron (

CFB Borden Canadian Forces Base Borden (also CFB Borden, French: Base des Forces canadiennes Borden or BFC Borden), formerly RCAF Station Borden, is a large Canadian Forces base located in Ontario. The historic birthplace of the Royal Canadian Air Force, CF ...

, Ontario) and 430 Squadron (

CFB Valcartier Canadian Forces Base Valcartier (CFB Valcartier), now re-designated 2 Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier (2 CDSB Valcartier), is a Canadian Forces base located in the municipality of Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier, north northwest of Quebe ...

, Quebec). Its primary role is in support of contingency operations and vanguard brigades requiring tactical helicopter resources. No. 408 Squadron's mandate also includes supporting

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

and

NATO peacekeeping Although the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was present throughout the Cold War as the opposite to the Warsaw Pact, and conducted joint military exercises, no military operations took place. All military NATO operations have occurred ...

operations, land force training, and support to other government departments. For example, 408 Squadron's eight Griffons were assigned to support the Canadian contingent in the

Balkan The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

s in 1999. Their job was to ferry small teams of paratroopers, infantrymen, and tankers to certain areas to check out water reservoirs, power grids, suspected weapons caches, minefields, and mass grave sites.

History

RCAF Lancaster Mk II RAF Linton-on-Ouse WWII HU 56276

No. 408 Squadron's history dates back to 24 June 1941, when

RAF Bomber Command RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the strategic bombing of Germany in World War II. From 1942 onward, the British bo ...

's directive called for the formation of 408 Squadron as part of

No. 5 Group RAF No. 5 Group was a Royal Air Force bomber group of the Second World War, led during the latter part (February 1943 – 1945) by AVM Sir Ralph Cochrane. History Overview The Group was formed on 1 September 1937, with its headquarters at RAF Mild ...

. It was to be the second

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

(RCAF)

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...

squadron formed overseas. Goose Squadron, as it was to become known, was initially based at

RAF Lindholme Royal Air Force Station Lindholme or more simply RAF Lindholme is a former Royal Air Force station in South Yorkshire, England. It was located south of Thorne and north east of Doncaster and was initially called RAF Hatfield Woodhouse. Ea ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and equipped with

Handley Page Hampden The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden is a British twin-engine medium bomber that was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was part of the trio of large twin-engine bombers procured for the RAF, joining the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley and Vickers ...

s. During the war, the Goose Squadron converted aircraft several times. No 408 would change from Hampden aircraft to the Halifax, and then to the Lancaster in August 1943 after moving to

RAF Linton-on-Ouse RAF Linton-on-Ouse was a Royal Air Force (RAF) station at Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire, England, north-west of York. It had satellite stations at RAF Topcliffe and Dishforth Airfield (British Army). The station opened in 1937. With the ...

and becoming part of No. 6 Group. It flew 4,610 sorties and dropped 11,340 tons of bombs. A total of 170 aircraft were lost and 933 personnel were killed, listed as missing in action (MIA) or prisoners of war (POW). Squadron members won two hundred decorations, and 11 battle honours for its wartime operations. On 5 September 1945 No 408 Squadron was officially disbanded. On 10 January 1949, Goose Squadron was reformed at

RCAF Station Rockcliffe The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environme ...

, Ontario. Equipped with eight Lancaster Mark X photographic aircraft, it was tasked with the mapping of Canada, specifically the far North. In 1962, the squadron formed a flight of

Canadair CT-133 Silver Star The Canadair CT-133 Silver Star (company model number CL-30) is the Canadian license-built version of the Lockheed T-33 jet trainer aircraft, in service from the 1950s to 2005. The Canadian version was powered by the Rolls-Royce Nene 10 turboj ...

aircraft and given the additional task of photo reconnaissance missions in support of army exercises. On February 29, 1964, the Lancaster aircraft were retired and replaced with

Dakotas The Dakotas is a collective term for the U.S. states of North Dakota and South Dakota. It has been used historically to describe the Dakota Territory, and is still used for the collective heritage, culture, geography, fauna, sociology, econom ...

. The Goose Squadron was moved to

Rivers, Manitoba Rivers is an unincorporated urban community in the Riverdale Municipality within the Canadian province of Manitoba. It is located northwest of Brandon, above sea level. It is within the Westman Region (Southwestern Manitoba). Agriculture, health ...

, and re-designated as a transport support and area reconnaissance squadron. On May 1, 1964, RCAF Station Rivers Transport Support Flight with its C-119 Boxcars was transferred into 408 Squadron. In 1965, the Boxcars were replaced by CC-130 Hercules aircraft. As the decade drew to a close, 408 Squadron was once again redesignated. On October 1, 1968, it started its long history with 10 Tactical Air Group as a "Tactical Fighter Squadron". During this post-war era, the squadron flew seven different aircraft: the Lancaster,

Cansos The ''canso'' or ''canson'' or ''canzo'' () was a song style used by the troubadours. It was, by far, the most common genre used, especially by early troubadours, and only in the second half of the 13th century was its dominance challenged by a ...

, Norseman, Dakotas, Boxcars, T-33s, and

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

aircraft. Late in 1970, the squadron was once more disbanded. On January 1, 1971, 408 Squadron was once again re-activated at Namao in

Edmonton, Alberta Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anchor ...

, as a tactical helicopter squadron (THS) and equipped with CH-135 Twin Huey and CH-136

Kiowa Kiowa () people are a Native American tribe and an indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colorado in the 17th and 18th centuries,Pritzker 326 and eve ...

helicopters. Its primary tasking is to provide tactical aviation to the army. The mission includes air mobile assault,

air ambulance Air medical services is a comprehensive term covering the use of air transportation, aeroplane or helicopter, to move patients to and from healthcare facilities and accident scenes. Personnel provide comprehensive prehospital and emergency and cri ...

, air observation, reconnaissance insertions, troop movement, airborne command and control platform and dropping

paratrooper A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during World ...

s. In September 1996, the squadron was re-equipped with CH-146 Griffon helicopters. Personnel from 408 Squadron deployed to Afghanistan nearly continually from 2006 until 2011. Initially forming a Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (TUAV) detachment using the CU-161 Sperwer. From 2008, 408 members were deployed to Kandahar airfield operating the

and CH-147D helicopters as part of the Joint Task Force Afghanistan Air Wing. The primary role of the JTF-A Air Wing was to provide transportation, reconnaissance, armed escort, and fire support to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). In July 2018, 408 THS deployed to Mali as part of Task Force Mali on Operation Presence. In Mali, 408 THS operated the CH-146 Griffon in the armed escort role, providing support to MEDEVAC and utility missions. 408 THS completed its tour in Mali in January 2019, having participated in seven medical evacuation missions

Aircraft

Handley Page Handley Page Limited was a British aerospace manufacturer. Founded by Frederick Handley Page (later Sir Frederick) in 1909, it was the United Kingdom's first publicly traded aircraft manufacturing company. It went into voluntary liquidation a ...

Hampden *

Halifax B Mk II, III, V, VII *

Avro AVRO, short for Algemene Vereniging Radio Omroep ("General Association of Radio Broadcasting"), was a Dutch public broadcasting association operating within the framework of the Nederlandse Publieke Omroep system. It was the first public broad ...

Lancaster Mk II, X * Consolidated

PBY Canso The Consolidated PBY Catalina is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft that was produced in the 1930s and 1940s. In Canadian service it was known as the Canso. It was one of the most widely used seaplanes of World War II. Catalinas served wit ...

Noorduyn Noorduyn is a Canadian manufacturer of aircraft products and accessories, specializing in high performance composites. It is headquartered in Montreal, and has offices worldwide serving the commercial, business and military aviation markets. Th ...

Norseman *

Canadair Canadair Ltd. was a civil and military aircraft manufacturer in Canada. In 1986, its assets were acquired by Bombardier Aerospace, the aviation division of Canadian transport conglomerate Bombardier Inc. Canadair's origins lie in the establishm ...

CT-133 Silver Star The Canadair CT-133 Silver Star (company model number CL-30) is the Canadian license-built version of the Lockheed T-33 jet trainer aircraft, in service from the 1950s to 2005. The Canadian version was powered by the Rolls-Royce Nene 10 turboj ...

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals *Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil W ...

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota, ...

Fairchild Fairchild may refer to: Organizations * Fairchild Aerial Surveys, operated in cooperation with a subsidiary of Fairey Aviation Company * Fairchild Camera and Instrument * List of Sherman Fairchild companies, "Fairchild" companies * Fairchild Fa ...

C-119 Boxcar * Lockheed CC-130 Hercules *

Bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inter ...

CH-135 Twin Huey The Bell UH-1N Twin Huey is a medium military helicopter designed and produced by the American aerospace manufacturer Bell Helicopter. It is a member of the extensive Huey family, the initial version was the CUH-1N Twin Huey (later CH-135 Twin ...

CH-136 Kiowa The Bell OH-58 Kiowa is a family of single-engine single-rotor military helicopters used for observation, utility, and direct fire support. It was produced by the American manufacturer Bell Helicopter and is closely related to the Model 206A ...

Images

File:408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron.jpg, 408 Squadron hangar exterior, 2011 File:CH-135139TwinHuey01A.JPG,

Bell CH-135 Twin Huey The Bell UH-1N Twin Huey is a medium military helicopter designed and produced by the American aerospace manufacturer Bell Helicopter. It is a member of the extensive Huey family, the initial version was the CUH-1N Twin Huey (later CH-135 Twin ...

serving with 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron on Exercise RV85 during 1985 File:408SqnFieldRV83.JPG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron Headquarters on Exercise RV83, Camp Wainwright, 1983 File:BellCH136Kiowa01.JPG,

Bell CH-136 Kiowa The Bell OH-58 Kiowa is a family of single-engine single-Helicopter rotor, rotor military helicopters used for observation, utility, and direct fire support. It was produced by the American manufacturer Bell Helicopter and is closely related t ...

of 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron Camp Wainwright 1984 File:Canadair CT-133 Silver Star, older RCAF colour at the Alberta Aviation Museum.JPG, Canadair CT-133 Silver Star, older RCAF colours at the Alberta Aviation Museum

Badges

Image:408SqnCrest.JPG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron official badge c. 1985 Image:408SqnBadge.JPG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron unofficial badge from c. 1950–85 Image:408SqnAnniversary.JPG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron unofficial 40th anniversary badge worn 1981–83 Image:408LOHFltBadge.JPG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron LOH Flight badge worn by

crews c. 1990. The tri-colour design represents the three combat arms of infantry, armour, and artillery. Image:408UTTHFltBadge.JPG, 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron UTTH Flight badge worn by

crews c. 1990. The badge is based on the shield of the province of

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Image:RCAF 408 Sqn Crest Craft back-stamp, circa 1960s.jpg, 408 Squadron uniform patch manufactured by Crest Craft. Probably made in the mid to late 1960s and used during C-130 Hercules era.

References

RCAF/DND - Squadron history

External links

*
RCAF/DND - Squadron history
{{RCAF Squadrons Canadian Forces aircraft squadrons Royal Canadian Air Force squadrons