No. 258 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron during the First and Second World Wars.
History
First World War
No. 258 Squadron was first formed 25 July 1918 from 523, 525 and 529 Special Duties Flights at Luce Bay near Stranraer, Scotland under the control of
No. 25 Group RAF. It was equipped with
De Havilland DH.6 biplanes and carried out anti-submarine patrols over the Irish Sea. It was disbanded on 5 March 1918.
World War II
The squadron was reformed on 20 November 1940 at
RAF Leconfield
Royal Air Force Leconfield or more simply RAF Leconfield is a former Royal Air Force station located in Leconfield (near Beverley), East Riding of Yorkshire, England.
The site is now used by the MoD Defence School of Transport Leconfield or ...
, Yorkshire as a fighter squadron equipped with
Hawker Hurricanes
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 ...
, commanded by
Wilfred Clouston. First based at
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 initia ...
they relocated to
RAF Jurby, Isle of Man. By April 1941, No. 258 Squadron's time at Jurby had come to an end, and they transferred to
RAF Valley
Royal Air Force Valley or more simply RAF Valley ( cy, Llu Awyr Brenhinol Y Fali) is a Royal Air Force station on the island of Anglesey, Wales, and which is also used as Anglesey Airport. It provides both basic and advanced fast-jet training ...
[ ] and thence to
RAF Kenley
The former Royal Air Force Station Kenley, more commonly known as RAF Kenley was an airfield station of the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War and the RAF in the Second World War. It played a significant role during the Battle of Britai ...
in preparation to take the offensive to the enemy.
In October they were stood down to prepare for a move to the Far East. After a few days in Singapore, they were withdrawn to Sumatra and then Java, where they suffered many losses either killed or captured by the Japanese. The survivors transferred their aircraft to No. 605 Squadron and most attempted to escape by ship to Australia, but all the ships were sunk en route with no survivors.
The squadron was again reformed 1 March 1942 from G Squadron at
Ratmalana Airport
Colombo International Airport, Ratmalana ( si, කොළඹ ජාත්යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළ, රත්මලාන, translit=Koḷam̆ba Jātyantara Guvantoṭupaḷa, Ratmalāna; ta, கொழும்பு ...
, near Colombo, Ceylon but suffered severe losses during the
Japanese carrier strike on 5 April 1942. After a spell in Burma (under
Neil Cameron) the squadron was withdrawn to be re-equipped with American
Republic P-47 Thunderbolts. In June 1945 it then began training for the invasion of Malaya but on the Japanese surrender, the squadron was finally disbanded on 31 December 1945.
The squadron was largely manned by
Royal New Zealand Air Force pilots.
See also
*
List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons
Squadrons are the main form of flying unit of the Royal Air Force (RAF). These include Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) squadrons incorporated into the RAF when it was formed on 1 April 1918, during the First World ...
References
Bibliography
*
External links
RAF History 258 Sqdn
{{DEFAULTSORT:No. 258 Squadron Raf
258 squadron
Military of British Ceylon
Military units and formations of Ceylon in World War II
Military units and formations established in 1918
Military units and formations disestablished in 1918
Military units and formations established in 1940
Military units and formations disestablished in 1941
Military units and formations established in 1942
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945