The King's Colour Squadron, formerly the Queen's Colour Squadron, is the unit of the Royal Air Force charged with the safe-keeping of the

King's Colour In military organizations, the practice of carrying colours (or colors), standards, flags, or guidons, both to act as a rallying point for troops and to mark the location of the commander, is thought to have originated in Ancient Egypt some ...

for the Royal Air Force in the United Kingdom. Since its formation, it has been formed exclusively by Officers and Gunners of No. 63 Squadron RAF Regiment. The Squadron is tasked with representing the Royal Air Force at events and ceremonies, both at home and abroad. In addition to Royal Air Force events, the Squadron has the privilege of mounting the King's Guard at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...

, Windsor Castle and

The Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...

each year, and regularly has the honour of welcoming visiting heads of state on their arrival to the United Kingdom. The Squadron also supports State ceremonial tasks. This routinely includes providing ceremonial guards for the

State Opening of Parliament The State Opening of Parliament is a ceremonial event which formally marks the beginning of a session of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It includes a speech from the throne known as the King's (or Queen's) Speech. The event takes place ...

, the National Service of Remembrance parade at the Cenotaph, and large UK hosted events such as the G7 Summit in Cornwall in 2021. The Squadron is also responsible for the ceremonial repatriation of serving Royal Air Force personnel from overseas and members of the Royal Family; in 1997, following the untimely death of

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

, the Squadron provided the bearer party that recovered the coffin from Paris. The Squadron provided the Bearer Party and Guard of Honour when an RAF C-17 delivered

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

's coffin to London from Scotland on her death in September 2022.

History

The Royal Air Force formed a ceremonial drill unit based at the Royal Air Force Depot at Uxbridge, Middlesex, in the early 1920s and first performed public duties when it mounted the King’s Guard at Buckingham Palace on 1 April 1943 for King George VI. This honour was bestowed upon the Royal Air Force which, at the time, whilst eligible to mount the guard due to being a formed military unit for 25 years, were ineligible due to not being an infantry unit. This led to the Royal Air Force Regiment, despite being only created by

Royal Warrant A royal warrant is a document issued by a monarch which confers rights or privileges on the recipient, or has the effect of law. Royal warrant may refer to: * Royal warrant of appointment, warrant to tradespeople who supply goods or services to a r ...

a year prior, mounting the King’s Guard on behalf of the Royal Air Force, a duty which it has carried out every year since. Buckingham-Wachabloesung 30

In 1960, the RAF Drill Unit was charged with the task of guarding and escorting the Queen's Colour for the Royal Air Force in the United Kingdom, and was renamed the Queen's Colour Squadron. It was a pure ceremonial unit for 30 years, providing the sole escort to the Colour, and famed for its displays of continuity drill, which are performed without a single word of command. The most notable displays include the Royal British Legion's Festival of Remembrance and Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. More recently, Hong Kong, also the Squadron was privileged to take part in the

RAF Regiment The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regiment) is part of the Royal Air Force and functions as a specialist corps. Founded by royal warrant in 1942, the Corps carries out soldiering tasks relating to the delivery of air power. Examples of such ta ...

’s 80th anniversary parade held at

. This saw all Squadrons of the RAF Regiment parading their Standards on the forecourt of the palace, during a unique

Changing of the Guard Guard mounting, changing the guard, or the changing of the guard, is a formal ceremony in which sentries performing ceremonial guard duties at important institutions are relieved by a new batch of sentries. The ceremonies are often elaborate a ...

ceremony consisting of the Old and New Guard being formed entirely of Queen’s Colour Squadron personnel, all under the watchful eye of The Duke of Kent. The 1990 Options for Change defence reforms led to the Squadron being given an operational role as a field Squadron in addition to its ceremonial role. For this, it was given the 'number plate' of No 63 Squadron, being renamed The Queen's Colour Squadron RAF 63 Squadron RAF Regiment. Alongside members of the ship's company from HMS Illustrious, and those of the Black Watch, 12 serving members of the QCS were the last military presence in Hong Kong before it was handed back in 1997. Also in 1997, eight members of the squadron were provided to be coffin-bearers at RAF Northolt on the repatriation of Diana, Princess of Wales, after her death in Paris. The Squadron provided the Bearer Party and Guard of Honour when an RAF plane delivered Queen Elizabeth II's coffin to RAF Northolt at London from Scotland following her death in September 2022. Following the accession of King Charles III, The Queen's Colour Squadron became the custodians of The King's Colour for the Royal Air Force in the United Kingdom, the squadron name was changed to King's Colour Squadron on 27 October 2022.

References

External links

King's Colour Squadron Official SiteQueen's Colour Squadron Precision drill at Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2004Official RAF Regiment homepage
{{Air force infantry Military units and formations established in 1943 British ceremonial units Royal Air Force Regiment squadrons Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the Falklands War

History

See also

References

External links