No. 903 Expeditionary Air Wing is an

Expeditionary Air Wing On 1 April 2006 Expeditionary Air Wings (EAWs) were formed at nine of the RAF's Main Operating Bases. Each EAW has its own identity and is led by the Station Commander, supported by his Station management team. The deployable elements of the st ...

of the Royal Air Force. It is currently based at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus and is tasked with conducting operations against ISIL in Iraq &

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

It was activated during 2003 as part of a modernisation package to make the RAF more deployable on an expeditionary basis. It was stationed at

Camp Bastion Camp Shorabak (formerly Camp Bastion) is a former British Army airbase, located northwest of the city of Lashkargah in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The camp was situated in a remote desert area, far from population centres. The camp was built ...

in Afghanistan controlling RAF operations at the air base there between Summer 2009 and November 2014. It used to report to

No. 83 Expeditionary Air Group No. 83 Expeditionary Air Group is a group within the Royal Air Force, currently based at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar. Originally formed in 1943, during the Second World War it formed part of the 2nd Tactical Air Force (2TAF) and was known as No ...

History

Second World War

The wing was active from 1 December 1944 to 31 October 1945 as a tactical wing, part of No. 224 Group RAF,

Third Tactical Air Force The RAF Third Tactical Air Force (Third TAF), which was formed in South Asia in December 1943, was one of three tactical air forces formed by the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. It was made up of squadrons and personnel from t ...

. It was formed at Chittagong Airfield from RAF HQ Patenga. In December 1944 it was temporarily at Comilla with

No. 67 Squadron RAF The name No. 67 Squadron has been used by the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Air Force for two quite different units. History World War I During the First World War, No. 1 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps – formed at Point Cook in Janua ...

(

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 ...

);Woodburn Kirby, Vol IV, Appendix 4, "Outline Order of Battle of Air Command, South East Asia, 12th December 1944". In May 1945, the Wing provided close support to ground forces as they recaptured Rangoon before being redeployed to attack concentrations of Japanese forces remaining in Burma. On 12 September No. 903 Wing was stationed at Kallang, the old civil airport of Singapore City when Lord Louis Mountbatten accepted the formal surrender of all Japanese forces in south-east Asia. It included

No. 31 Squadron RAF Number 31 Squadron, known as ''the Goldstars'', was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The Squadron lays claim to being the first military unit to fly in India, where it was based from 1915 to 1947. Throughout the Cold War, No. 31 Squadron was ...

( Douglas Dakota).Woodburn Kirby, Vol V, Appendix 21: "Outline Order of Battle, RAF Malaya, 1st October 1945". On 31 October 1945 No 903 Wing was disbanded, becoming Station Headquarters Kallang.

Operation Telic

The wing was re-commissioned into service during 2003 and sent to

Contingency Operating Base Basra Basrah International Airport ( ar, مطار البصرة الدولي, Maṭār al-Baṣrah ad-Duwaliyy) is the second largest international airport in Iraq, and is located in the southern city of Basra. History Construction The airport was bu ...

as part of

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 ...

. The wing stayed at Basra until May 2009.

Operation Herrick

During mid-2009 the wing was moved to

, Afghanistan as part of Operation Herrick. It consisted of: * Westland Sea Kings operated by

845 __NOTOC__ Year 845 ( DCCCXLV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Byzantine–Arab War: A prisoner exchange occurs between the Byzant ...

, 846,

854 __NOTOC__ Year 854 ( DCCCLIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Emperor Lothair I meets his (half) brothers (Louis the German and Charles the Bald ...

& 857 Naval Air Squadrons. * An RAF Force Protection Wing *

Thales Watchkeeper WK450 The Thales Watchkeeper WK450 is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for all weather, intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTAR) use by the British Army. It is provided under an £800 million contract with UAS Tactica ...

's operated by

32nd Regiment Royal Artillery 32 Regiment Royal Artillery ("The Wessex Gunners") is a regiment in the Royal Artillery, part of the British Army and is equipped with the Lockheed Martin Desert Hawk III and PUMA 2 miniature unmanned aerial vehicles. 32nd Regiment is the only R ...

47th Regiment Royal Artillery 47 Regiment Royal Artillery is a regiment of the Royal Artillery in the British Army. It is equipped with the Thales Watchkeeper WK450. It is located at Horne Barracks, Larkhill in Wiltshire. It falls under command of 1st Aviation Brigade. Hi ...

. It also supported the following: *

Joint Helicopter Force (Afghanistan) Joint Helicopter Command (JHC) is a tri-service organisation uniting battlefield military helicopters of the British Armed Forces for command and coordination purposes. History Background Over the years, the grouping of all battlefield suppor ...

that consisted of: ** AgustaWestland Apache's operated by 3 and 4 Regiments Army Air Corps. ** Chinooks operated by No. 1310 Flight RAF. ** Merlin HC2s operated by 28(AC) and 78 Squadrons RAF. ** Elements of

Tactical Supply Wing The Tactical Supply Wing (TSW) is a helicopter support unit of the Royal Air Force, based at MOD Stafford (also known as Beacon Barracks) in Staffordshire. The wing specialises in the refuelling of helicopters in the field. History The Tact ...

. * Visiting Air Mobility aircraft including: **

Airbus Voyager The Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) is a European aerial refuelling and military transport aircraft based on the civilian Airbus A330. A total of 16 countries have placed firm orders for approximately 68 aircraft, of which 51 ha ...

KC2 and KC3s operated by

No. 10 Squadron RAF Number 10 Squadron is a Royal Air Force squadron. The squadron has served in a variety of roles (observation, bombing, transport and aerial refuelling) over its 90-year history. It currently flies the Airbus Voyager KC2/KC3 in the transport/tan ...

and 101 Squadron RAF. ** Lockhead Tristar aircraft operated by 216 Squadron RAF. **

Boeing C-17A Globemaster III The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft that was developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) from the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two ...

's operated by

No. 99 Squadron RAF Number 99 Squadron is a squadron (aviation), squadron of the Royal Air Force which operates the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III strategic/tactical transport aircraft from RAF Brize Norton. The squadron conducts global deployments on behalf of the B ...

. ** Hercules C-130J's operated by 24, 30, 47 & 70 Squadrons RAF. Camp Bastion was handed over to the ANSF as the United Kingdom withdraws from Afghanistan and 903 EAW was stood down in November 2014.

Operation Shader

In December 2015 the Wing reformed at RAF Akrotiri to replace No 140 EAW as part of Operation Shader. It consists of: * Elements of the RAF Typhoon Force (9 x Typhoon FGR.4 multirole fighter aircraft (6 active, 3 reserve)) * Elements of the RAF Air Mobility Force: ** 2 x Hercules C5 transport aircraft (1 withdrawn during 2014) ** 2 x Voyager KC3 tanker aircraft * Elements of the RAF ISTAR Force Aircraft have been using RAF Akrotiri as their home base whilst carrying out these operations. In February 2019, the Tornado force (previously involving up to 10 strike aircraft on rotation) returned to RAF Marham for retirement. Their role in theatre is being undertaken by the Typhoon detachment.

Sentry AEW1 The Boeing E-3 Sentry is an American airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by Boeing. E-3s are commonly known as AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System). Derived from the Boeing 707 airliner, it provides all-weath ...

AEW&C aircraft from No. 8 Squadron were previously employed on operations. However, the aircraft was withdrawn from RAF service in 2021. The previously employed

Sentinel R1 The Raytheon Sentinel is an airborne battlefield and ground surveillance aircraft formerly operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF). While based on the Bombardier Global Express ultra long-range business jet, the prime contractor for the Sentine ...

ISTAR aircraft from No. V(AC) Squadron was similarly retired in March 2021.

Commanders

* Group Captain Paul Burt (Op TELIC 9/10 May-Nov 2007) * Group Captain

Mike Wigston Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Wigston, (born 25 February 1968) is the senior officer in the Royal Air Force, serving as Chief of the Air Staff since 26 July 2019. He previously served as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff from 2017 to 2018, an ...

(Nov 2007 - Apr 2008) * Group Captain Andrew (during 2008). * Wing Commander Ian Richardson (during 2009). * Wing Commander Mark Flewin (2014). * Group Captain Charles Dickens (2019). * Group Captain Andrew Coope (Oct 18 - Mar 19) * Group Captain Jonathon Moreton (Apr 19 - Oct 19). * Group Captain Ian Townsend (Oct 19 - Feb 20). * Wing Commander Calvin Bailey (Feb 20 - Jul 20). * Wing Commander Dutch Holland (Jul 21 - Jan 22).

References

{{RAF Wings

E 903 E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plura ...