The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regiment) is part of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

and functions as a specialist

corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...

. Founded by royal warrant in 1942, the Corps carries out soldiering tasks relating to the delivery of air power. Examples of such tasks are non-combatant evacuation operation (NEO), recovery of downed aircrew (joint personnel recovery – JPR), and in-depth defence of airfields by way of aggressively patrolling and actively seeking out infiltrators in a large area surrounding airfields. In addition the RAF Regiment provides Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs) to the British Army and Royal Marines, and provides flight size commitment to the Special Forces Support Group. The RAF Regiment Gunners are personnel trained in various disciplines such as infantry tactics, force protection, field craft, sniper, support special forces operations,

CBRN Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defence (CBRN defence) are protective measures taken in situations in which chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear warfare (including terrorism) hazards may be present. CBRN defence consi ...

(chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear) defence, equipped with advanced vehicles and detection measures. RAF Regiment instructors are responsible for training all Royal Air Force personnel in basic force protection such as first aid, weapon handling and CBRN skills. The regiment and its members are known within the RAF as "The Regiment", "Rock Apes" or "Rocks". After basic training at RAF Halton, and a 20-week gunner course at

RAF Honington Royal Air Force Honington or more simply RAF Honington is a Royal Air Force station located south of Thetford near Ixworth in Suffolk, England. Although used as a bomber station during the Second World War, RAF Honington is now the RAF Regim ...

, its members are trained and equipped to prevent a successful enemy attack in the first instance; minimise the damage caused by a successful attack; and ensure that air operations can continue without delay in the aftermath of an attack.

History

Formation

The genesis of the RAF Regiment was the creation of No. 1 Armoured Car Company RAF, formed in Egypt in 1921 for operations in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

, followed shortly afterwards by No. 2 Armoured Car Company RAF and No. 3 Armoured Car Company RAF. These were equipped with Rolls-Royce armoured cars and carried out policing operations throughout the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

in the 1920s.

Second World War

In 1941 during the

Second World War 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 ...

German airborne forces invaded Crete, then held by Greek, British and Commonwealth forces. The German invasion succeeded in major part because of the failure of the Allied land forces to recognise the strategic importance of the airfields, and hence to defend them adequately. In consequence the RAF base at Maleme was taken largely intact by German paratroop and glider forces, albeit with heavy casualties. The Germans were then reinforced by air behind allied lines. This led eventually to the loss of the whole island and substantial Allied losses in what became known as the

Battle of Crete The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...

. Disappointed with the failure of the British Army to recognise the importance of airfields in modern warfare, Prime Minister Churchill made the RAF responsible for the defence of its own bases and the RAF Regiment was formed on 1 February 1942, with its first headquarters established at RAF Belton Park,

Grantham Grantham () is a market and industrial town in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road. It lies some 23 miles (37 km) south of the Lincoln and ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

. From the start it had 66,000 personnel drawn from the former Defence Squadrons Nos. 701–850. The new regiment was made up of field squadrons equipped with

Morris Light Reconnaissance Car Morris Light Reconnaissance Car (LRC) was a British light armoured car for reconnaissance use produced by Morris Motors Limited and used by the British during the Second World War. The Nuffield Group had been brought in to supplement producti ...

Humber Light Reconnaissance Car The Humber Light Reconnaissance Car, also known as Humberette or Ironside, was a British armoured car produced during the Second World War. Design Produced by the Rootes Group, the Humber Light Reconnaissance Car was an armoured car based ...

s and

Otter Light Reconnaissance Car The Otter Light Reconnaissance Car (known officially by the British as Car, Light Reconnaissance, Canadian GM (R.A.C.) was a light armoured car produced in Canada during the Second World War for British and Commonwealth forces. History The Otte ...

s. The light anti-aircraft squadrons were originally armed with

Hispano 20 mm cannon The HS.404 is an autocannon originally designed and produced by Spanish/French company Hispano-Suiza in the mid-1930s. It was widely used as an aircraft, naval and land-based weapon by French, British, American and other military services, par ...

and then the

Bofors 40 mm Bofors 40 mm gun is a name or designation given to two models of 40 mm calibre anti-aircraft guns designed and developed by the Swedish company Bofors: *Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun - developed in the 1930s, widely used in World War II and into the 1990s ...

anti-aircraft gun. Its role was to seize, secure and defend airfields to enable air operations to take place. Several

parachute A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, who ...

squadrons were formed to assist in the capture of airfields, a capability retained by No. II Squadron. It mounted the

King's Guard The King's Guard and King's Life Guard (called the Queen's Guard and the Queen's Life Guard when the reigning monarch is female) are the contingents of infantry and cavalry soldiers charged with guarding the official royal residences in the ...

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 ...

for the first time on 1 April 1943. During the War the RAF Regiment grew to a force of over 80,000 men. In late June 1944, with the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

fighting in Normandy where it was sustaining heavy losses and at the same time suffering from a severe shortage of manpower, it was decided to transfer 25,000

officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

and

men A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chro ...

of the RAF Regiment to the army, mostly to the infantry and the Foot Guards, to be retrained. The Second World War campaign in north-eastern India and northern Burma was fought in jungle and mountains with few or non-existent roads and which facilitated the infiltration of enemy patrols behind front lines. This was overcome by holding defensive "boxes" mainly or entirely supplied by air. The defence of forward airfields close to the main army concentrations was vital to this tactic. A training school and depot for the RAF Regiment was established at

Secunderabad Secunderabad, also spelled as Sikandarabad (, ), is a twin cities, twin city of Hyderabad and one of the six zones of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Telangana. It ...

in October 1942, to retrain former ground defence airmen. It had an assault course considered tougher than anything the army had in India. Six field squadrons and seventy AA flights were initially formed, containing 160 officers and 4,000 other ranks. Until mid-1944 the AA flights were equipped only with light machine guns, then with Hispano 20 mm cannon for the rest of the war. Regiment units defended airfields and forward mobile radar units in

Arakan Arakan ( or ) is a historic coastal region in Southeast Asia. Its borders faced the Bay of Bengal to its west, the Indian subcontinent to its north and Burma proper to its east. The Arakan Mountains isolated the region and made it accessi ...

in the Arakan Campaign in late 1942 and early 1943. During the

Battle of Imphal ) , partof = the Operation U-Go during the Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian theatre of World War II , image = Imphalgurkhas.jpg , image_size = 300 , caption = Gurkhas advancing with Grant tanks ...

all supplies and reinforcements had to be flown in between 29 March and 22 June 1944 with RAF Regiment units providing vital airfield defence. Following the failure of the Japanese

Operation U-Go The U Go offensive, or Operation C (ウ号作戦 ''U Gō sakusen''), was the Japanese offensive launched in March 1944 against forces of the British Empire in the northeast Indian regions of Manipur and the Naga Hills (then administered as part ...

it was decided to pursue the shattered remnants of the Japanese 15th Army into Burma during the

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...

, in average rainfall of per day and rifle flights were sometimes attached to advancing Indian Army and British East African units, to gain experience in the jungle. Units of 1307 Wing were flown into the newly captured and tactically vital

Meiktila Meiktila (; ) is a city in central Burma on the banks of Meiktila Lake in the Mandalay Region at the junctions of the Bagan-Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila-Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar Ai ...

airfield on 1 March 1945. Only a roughly box, shared with the army and some United States anti-aircraft artillery, could be held at night and the airfield had to be cleared of enemy each morning before flying could start. As one of the RAF Regiment's proudest battle honours, this three-week battle destroyed the Japanese hold on northern Burma. The RAF Regiment fought as field, armoured car and light anti-aircraft (LAA) squadrons and flights in North Africa, the Middle East, Italy, the Balkans and North Western Europe, as well as 68 LAA squadrons defending the UK against V1 attacks as part of

Operation Diver Operation Diver was the British codename for countermeasures against the V-1 flying bomb campaign launched by the German in 1944 against London and other parts of Britain. Diver was the codename for the V-1, against which the defence consisted o ...

, alongside the Royal Artillery's heavy anti-aircraft and LAA batteries. Amongst other things, RAF Regiment units were the first British forces to reach Paris, amongst the first to enter Brussels, and Squadron Leader Mark Hobden and his force arrested

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then ...

's successor as Fuhrer, Grand Admiral

Karl Doenitz Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austri ...

, at his HQ in

Flensburg Flensburg (; Danish, Low Saxon: ''Flensborg''; North Frisian: ''Flansborj''; South Jutlandic: ''Flensborre'') is an independent town (''kreisfreie Stadt'') in the north of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg is the centre of the ...

. On 26 November 1944, a Me 262A-2a Sturmvogel of III/KG51 based at Hopsten/Rheine near Osnabruck was the first confirmed ground-to-air kill of a jet combat aircraft. The 262 was shot down by a 40/L60 40mm Bofors gun of B.11 Detachment of 2875 Squadron RAF Regiment, at the RAF forward airfield of Helmond, near Eindhoven. Others were lost to ground fire on 17 and 18 December when the same airfield was attacked at intervals by a total of eighteen Me 262s and the guns of Nos. 2873 and 2875 squadrons RAF Regiment damaged several, causing at least two of them to crash within a few miles of the airfield. In February 1945, Sergeant Pollards's B.6 gun detachment of 2809 Squadron RAF Regiment shot down another Me 262 over the airfield of Vokel. The final appearance of Me 262s over Vokel was in 1945, when yet another fell to 2809's guns. RAF Regiment Otter at Prkos Airfield IWM CL 3485

RAF Regiment Otter at Prkos Airfield IWM CL 3485

On 5 December 1944, twelve RAF Regiment squadrons deployed onto various airfields in southern Greece. They became engaged in fighting with Greek Communist Forces (ELAS) which wished to depose the Greek government at that time. No. 2848 Field Squadron was the first RAF unit to arrive in

West Berlin West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was under mi ...

in 1945 to secure Luftwaffe Flugplatz Gatow.

Post-war

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

became Air Commodore-in-Chief of the regiment in 1947. He later decided to present his

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 ...

in 1952, on the 10th anniversary of the RAF Regiment's founding. The king, however, died around this time and

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 ...

instead presented the

Queen'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 ...

a year later. The

unilateral declaration of independence A unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) is a formal process leading to the establishment of a new state by a subnational entity which declares itself independent and sovereign without a formal agreement with the state which it is secedi ...

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

in November 1965 necessitated support to

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

, which desperately needed air defence. In a rapid response,

Javelin A javelin is a light spear designed primarily to be thrown, historically as a ranged weapon, but today predominantly for sport. The javelin is almost always thrown by hand, unlike the sling, bow, and crossbow, which launch projectiles with th ...

fighters were deployed and an RAF Regiment squadron was also deployed from the United Kingdom to provide ground defence. The agility of the Regiment was demonstrated in its ability to embark 51 Squadron RAF Regiment in six hours from the call to deploy. At the eastern end of the Empire, flights from RAF Regiment squadrons based in Singapore deployed to Hong Kong in 1968 to help maintain security and confidence. The RAF Regiment continued to be involved in Hong Kong into the mid-1970s providing protection at both

RAF Kai Tak RAF Kai Tak was a Royal Air Force (RAF) station in Hong Kong, based at Kai Tak Airport. It was opened in 1927 and used for seaplanes. The RAF flight operated a few land based aircraft as well as having spare aircraft for naval units. History ...

and at the radar station at

Tai Mo Shan Tai Mo Shan is the highest mountain, peak in Hong Kong, with an elevation of . It is located at approximately the geographical centre of the New Territories. The Tai Mo Shan Country Park covers an area of around Tai Mo Shan. It is located ...

In 1974, the

Rapier A rapier () or is a type of sword with a slender and sharply-pointed two-edged blade that was popular in Western Europe, both for civilian use (dueling and self-defense) and as a military side arm, throughout the 16th and 17th centuries. Impor ...

surface-to-air missile system entered service with the RAF Regiment, and equipped four squadrons protecting four RAF airfields in Germany. Detachments from the German Rapier Squadrons, particularly from

RAF Gutersloh The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

, deployed to San Carlos beach-head during the

Falklands conflict The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland I ...

to provide anti-aircraft cover. Light armoured squadrons, equipped with

FV101 Scorpion The FV101 Scorpion is a British armoured reconnaissance vehicle, and also a light tank. It was the lead vehicle and the fire support type in the Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked), CVR(T), family of seven armoured vehicles. Manufactured by ...

and

FV107 Scimitar The FV107 Scimitar is an armoured tracked military reconnaissance vehicle (sometimes classed as a light tank) used by the British Army. It was manufactured by Alvis in Coventry. It is very similar to the FV101 Scorpion, but mounts a high-velo ...

light tracked vehicles continued to be operated into the 1980s. Also from the 1980s units such as 19 Squadron were equipped with Rapier and tasked with defending USAF airbases such as

RAF Upper Heyford RAF Upper Heyford was a Royal Air Force station located north-west of Bicester near the village of Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire, England. In the Second World War the airfield was used by Bomber Command. During the Cold War, Upper Heyford was one ...

. In July 2004 it was announced that the role of providing ground-based air defence was to be transferred to the British Army's

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

and the four Royal Air Force Regiment air defence squadrons were to be disbanded. In 2011, as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review, it was announced that from December 2011, the

role undertaken by the

Joint CBRN Regiment The Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment was a specialist expeditionary unit of the British armed forces. Personnel of the Joint CBRN Regiment were trained in the detection, identification and monitoring of nuclear, biolo ...

, a combined Army/RAF unit, would be transferred to the RAF Regiment (as lead service) under the new Defence CBRN Wing, formed from 26 Squadron, 27 Squadron and 2623 (Auxiliary) Squadron. The army retained involvement through the continued use of the

Royal Yeomanry The Royal Yeomanry (RY) is the senior reserve light cavalry regiment of the British Army. Equipped with Supacat Jackal variants, their role is to conduct mounted and dismounted formation reconnaissance. The Regimental Headquarters is located in ...

to provide trained battlefield casualty replacements. In 2016, this decision was reversed with the announcement the CBRN role would be handed back to the British Army in 2020. In November 2013, The Queen's Colour (63), 1 and 27 Squadron had their new colours presented. However 16, 37 and 48 squadrons were disbanded. In July 2017,

Prince Harry Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger son of Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. He is fifth in the line of succ ...

visited RAF Honington on behalf of

The Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

to present a new

Colour Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...

to the RAF Regiment. The new colour was to celebrate the 75th birthday of the formation of the Regiment in 1942.

Structure in 1989

The structure in 1989 was as follows: *

Commandant-General of the RAF Regiment The Commandant-General of the RAF Regiment (CG RAF Regt) is the Royal Air Force commander of the RAF Regiment. The post was established in January 1942 immediately prior to the creation of the RAF Regiment. The first two holders of the post wer ...

RAF Catterick Royal Air Force Catterick or RAF Catterick is a former Royal Air Force airfield located near Catterick, North Yorkshire in England. It is located alongside the A6055 road on the outskirts of Catterick Village. Although initially a flying stati ...

** RAF Fire Service, RAF Catterick **

No. 3 Wing RAF Regiment This is a list of units of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The RAF Regiment is the ground fighting force of the Royal Air Force and is charged mainly with protecting military airfields, among other duties. First formed in 1942 to protect the airfi ...

, administrative control of unassigned UK-based squadrons *** No. 3 Squadron RAF Regiment,

RAF Aldergrove Joint Helicopter Command Flying Station Aldergrove or more simply JHC FS Aldergrove is located south of Antrim, Northern Ireland and northwest of Belfast and adjoins Belfast International Airport. It is sometimes referred to simply as Alde ...

, (Field) ***

No. 27 Squadron RAF Regiment No. 27 Squadron RAF Regiment was a CBRN squadron of the RAF Regiment in the Royal Air Force with the ''Defensores Defendo'' (I defend the defenders). It disbanded in October 2021. History No. 27 Squadron RAF Regiment was formed on 3 Septem ...

, RAF Leuchars, (Air Defence, 8x Rapier launch stations) *** No. 48 Squadron RAF Regiment,

RAF Lossiemouth Royal Air Force Lossiemouth or more commonly RAF Lossiemouth is a military airfield located on the western edge of the town of Lossiemouth in Moray, north-east Scotland. Lossiemouth is one of the largest and busiest fast-jet stations in the R ...

, (Air Defence, 8x Rapier launch stations) ***

No. 58 Squadron RAF Regiment This is a list of units of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The RAF Regiment is the ground fighting force of the Royal Air Force and is charged mainly with protecting military airfields, among other duties. First formed in 1942 to protect the air ...

, (Light Armour, 15x

Spartan Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta refe ...

, 6x

Scorpion Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always end ...

) **

No. 4 Wing RAF Regiment This is a list of units of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The RAF Regiment is the ground fighting force of the Royal Air Force and is charged mainly with protecting military airfields, among other duties. First formed in 1942 to protect the airfi ...

RAF Wildenrath Royal Air Force Wildenrath, commonly known as RAF Wildenrath, was a Royal Air Force (RAF) military airbase near Wildenrath in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, that operated from 1952 to 1992. Wildenrath was the first of four 'clutch' stations ...

, administrative control of West Germany-based Rapier squadrons defending

Royal Air Force Germany The former Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG) was a command of the Royal Air Force and part of British Forces Germany. It consisted of units located in Germany, initially as part of the occupation following the Second World War, and later as part o ...

airfields ***

No. 16 Squadron RAF Regiment No. 16 Squadron RAF Regiment was a field squadron of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The squadron operated mostly outside the United Kingdom since its formation in 1948 until 2006 when it was disbanded. It started out as a field squadron before bec ...

, (Air Defence, 8x

launch stations) *** No. 26 Squadron RAF Regiment,

, (Air Defence, 8x Rapier launch stations) ***

No. 37 Squadron RAF Regiment No. 37 Squadron RAF Regiment was a Ground Based Aircraft Defence (GBAD) squadron of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The squadron operated mostly outside the United Kingdom since its formation in 1951 until 2006 when it was disbanded. It started out a ...

RAF Bruggen Royal Air Force Brüggen, more commonly known as RAF Brüggen, in Germany was a major station of the Royal Air Force until 15 June 2001. It was situated next to the village of Elmpt, approximately west of Düsseldorf on the Dutch-German bo ...

, (Air Defence, 8x Rapier launch stations) ***

No. 63 Squadron RAF Regiment The numero sign or numero symbol, №, (also represented as Nº, No, No. or no.), is a typographic abbreviation of the word ''number''(''s'') indicating ordinal numeration, especially in names and titles. For example, using the numero sign, t ...

RAF Gütersloh Royal Air Force Gütersloh, more commonly known as RAF Gütersloh, was a Royal Air Force Germany military airfield, the nearest Royal Air Force airfield to the East/West German border, in the vicinity of the town of Gütersloh. It was const ...

, (Air Defence, 8x Rapier launch stations) **

No. 5 Wing RAF Regiment This is a list of units of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The RAF Regiment is the ground fighting force of the Royal Air Force and is charged mainly with protecting military airfields, among other duties. First formed in 1942 to protect the air ...

RAF Hullavington RAF Hullavington was a Royal Air Force station located at Hullavington, near Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. The station opened in June 1937 and was predominantly used for various training purposes. It closed on 31 March 1992 when it was transfe ...

, administrative control of field squadrons supporting the UK's Harrier Force ***

No. 2 Squadron RAF Regiment The II Squadron RAF Regiment is a parachute-trained Field Squadron of RAF Regiment based at RAF Brize Norton. Early history The unit was formed as Number 2 Armoured Car Company RAF at Heliopolis, Egypt on 7 April 1922 and placed under the com ...

, (Light Armour / Paratroopers, 15x Spartan, 6x Scorpion) ***

No. 15 Squadron RAF Regiment No. 15 Squadron RAF Regiment is a field squadron of the RAF Regiment in the Royal Air Force. Its mission is protection of RAF bases from ground attack. The squadron's headquarters is at RAF Marham, having moved from RAF Honington. History The s ...

, (Light Armour, 15x Spartan, 6x Scorpion) ** No. 6 Wing RAF Regiment,

RAF West Raynham Royal Air Force West Raynham or more simply RAF West Raynham is a former Royal Air Force station located west of West Raynham, Norfolk and southwest of Fakenham, Norfolk, England. The airfield opened during May 1939 and was used by RAF Bomb ...

, administrative control of UK-based Rapier squadrons defending

US Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

Third Air Force The Third Air Force (Air Forces Europe) (3 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). Its headquarters is Ramstein Air Base, Germany. It is responsible for all U.S. air forces in ...

airfields in the UK ***

No. 19 Squadron RAF Regiment This is a list of units of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The RAF Regiment is the ground fighting force of the Royal Air Force and is charged mainly with protecting military airfields, among other duties. First formed in 1942 to protect the airfi ...

RAF Brize Norton Royal Air Force Brize Norton or RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, about west north-west of London, is the largest station of the Royal Air Force. It is close to the village of Brize Norton, and the towns of Carterton and Witney. The station ...

, (Air Defence, 12x Rapier launch stations, defending

and

RAF Fairford Royal Air Force Fairford or more simply RAF Fairford is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station in Gloucestershire, England which is currently a standby airfield and therefore not in everyday use. Its most prominent use in recent years has been as an ...

) ***

No. 20 Squadron RAF Regiment No. 20 Squadron RAF Regiment, formed approximately 1985, disbanded 1 April 1995 (re numbered as Number 15 Sqn RAF Regiment manning FSC Rapier). Based at RAF Honington, equipped with Rapier Field Standard B1(M). As part of 6 Wing RAF Regiment, i ...

, (Air Defence, 8x Rapier launch stations, defending

RAF Alconbury Royal Air Force Alconbury or more simply RAF Alconbury is an active Royal Air Force station near Huntingdon, England. The airfield is in the civil parish of The Stukeleys, close to the villages of Great Stukeley, Little Stukeley, and Alconbur ...

RAF Bentwaters Royal Air Force Bentwaters or more simply RAF Bentwaters, now known as Bentwaters Parks, is a former Royal Air Force station about northeast of London and east-northeast of Ipswich, near Woodbridge, Suffolk in England. Its name was taken fro ...

and

RAF Woodbridge Royal Air Force Woodbridge or RAF Woodbridge, is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Woodbridge in the county of Suffolk, England. Constructed in 1943 as a Royal Air Force (RAF) military airfield during the Second World War to a ...

) ***

No. 66 Squadron RAF Regiment This is a list of units of the Royal Air Force Regiment. The RAF Regiment is the ground fighting force of the Royal Air Force and is charged mainly with protecting military airfields, among other duties. First formed in 1942 to protect the airfi ...

, (Air Defence, 8x Rapier launch stations, defending

RAF Mildenhall Royal Air Force Mildenhall or RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located near Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as a Royal Air Force station, it primarily supports United States Air Force (USAF) operations, ...

and

RAF Lakenheath Royal Air Force Lakenheath or RAF Lakenheath is a Royal Air Force station near the village of Lakenheath in Suffolk, England, UK, north-east of Mildenhall and west of Thetford. The base also sits close to Brandon. Despite being an RAF sta ...

) ** 33 Wing,

, administrative control of West Germany-based light armour squadrons defending

airfields ***

No. 1 Squadron RAF Regiment No. 1 Squadron RAF Regiment is a field squadron of the RAF Regiment in the Royal Air Force. Its mission is protection of RAF bases from ground attack, and patrolling a large area around main operating bases abroad, in order to defend aircraft o ...

RAF Laarbruch Royal Air Force , more commonly known as RAF ICAO EDUL (from 1 January 1995 ETUL) was a Royal Air Force station, a military airfield, located in Germany on its border with the Netherlands. The Station's motto was (). The site now operates ...

, (Light Armour, 15x Spartan, 6x Scorpion) *** No. 34 Squadron RAF Regiment,

RAF Akrotiri RAF Akrotiri ( el, Βασιλική Πολεμική Αεροπορία Ακρωτηρίου) is a large Royal Air Force base on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. It is located in the Western Sovereign Base Area, one of two areas which compr ...

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

(Light Armour, 15x Spartan, 6x Scorpion) ***

No. 51 Squadron RAF Regiment No. 51 Squadron RAF Regiment is a field squadron of the RAF Regiment in the Royal Air Force. Its mission is protection of RAF bases from ground attack. History The history of No. 51 Squadron goes back to 1947 when it was formed at RAF Celle ne ...

, (Light Armour, 15x Spartan, 6x Scorpion) Additionally the

Royal Auxiliary Air Force The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), formerly the Auxiliary Air Force (AAF), together with the Air Force Reserve, is a component of His Majesty's Reserve Air Forces (Reserve Forces Act 1996, Part 1, Para 1,(2),(c)). It provides a primary rein ...

Regiment fielded the following reserve squadrons: * No. 2503 (County of Lincoln) Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

RAF Scampton Royal Air Force Scampton or RAF Scampton is a Royal Air Force station located adjacent to the A15 road near to the village of Scampton, Lincolnshire, and north-west of the city of Lincoln, England. RAF Scampton stands on the site of a First ...

, (Field) * No. 2620 (County of Norfolk) Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

RAF Marham RAF Marham is a Royal Air Force station and military airbase near the village of Marham in the English county of Norfolk, East Anglia. It is home to No. 138 Expeditionary Air Wing (138 EAW) and, as such, is one of the RAF's "Main Operating ...

, (Field) * No. 2622 (Highland) Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

, (Field) * No. 2623 (East Anglian) Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

, (Field) * No. 2624 (County of Oxford) Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

, (Field, assigned to support the Harrier Force in West Germany) * No. 2625 (County of Cornwall) Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

RAF St Mawgan Royal Air Force St Mawgan or more simply RAF St Mawgan is a Royal Air Force station near St Mawgan and Newquay in Cornwall, England. In 2008 the runway part of the site was handed over to Newquay Airport. The remainder of the station continues t ...

, (Field) * No. 2729 (City of Lincoln) Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

RAF Waddington Royal Air Force Waddington otherwise known as RAF Waddington is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located beside the village of Waddington, south of Lincoln, Lincolnshire in England. The station is the RAF's Intelligence Surveillance Target ...

, ( SHORAD) * No. 2890 Squadron RAuxAF Regiment,

, ( SHORAD, formed 1 October 1989)

Organisation and role

The RAF Regiment comes under command of 2 Group, Air Command. Its members are organised into seven regular

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, ...

s, - Nos 1, 2, 15, 27, 34, 51 and 63/Queen's Colour Squadron - of which six are field squadrons and 27 is the specialist CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear) units under the umbrella of the defence CBRN Wing (No 20 Wing RAF Regiment -see note below), plus six

(RAuxAF) Regiment (RAuxAF Regt) squadrons. These are intended to counter ground-based threats to overseas/deployed RAF assets and, to this end, are trained as mobile infantry to move on foot, or in helicopters and protected mobility vehicles, to defend airfields and landing sites. The large area surrounding airfields (regularly up to 140 km square) means RAF Regiment rifle flights (platoons) often spend long periods of time deployed on the ground deterring and detecting potential attackers. Leaving aside those injured, seriously or otherwise, five RAF Regiment gunners were killed in Iraq (one in a firefight, three, including a member of the RAuxAF, in a single mortar strike, and one in a road traffic incident) and five were killed in Afghanistan (one due to hostile fire, four due to IEDs, including one 51 year old member of the RAuxAF, the oldest member of the British Armed Forces to die in Afghanistan) with an additional man dying in an accident in Cyprus after leaving Afghanistan. Additionally, over the same period, three

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

es have been awarded to RAF Regiment members for conspicuous bravery. Four RAF Regiment personnel were killed by the IRA, all in 1988 and 1989 - one killed by hostile fire in Northern Ireland, the rest by snipers or car bombs in Europe. Royal Air Force Regiment in Afghanistan

The field squadrons are 171 strong making them larger than an infantry

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

in the

but, critically, due to the nature of their structure, a key limitation is that they are only able to operate up to Company/Squadron level and so cannot bring the same 'Mass' to bear of an Infantry Regiment or Battlegroup. Not all personnel on an RAF Regiment squadron are trained gunners but can be involved in specialist support services such as administrators and drivers. A typical RAF Regiment squadron has support elements from the RAF but these personnel do not always deploy on patrols and other combat operations. Formerly, all RAF Regiment personnel were men, as it was British government policy that women could not serve in close combat units. However, the intention was that by the end of 2018, women would be allowed to apply for these roles, with the RAF recruitment website 'looking forward' to female applications for the RAF Regiment. A review in 2017 determined that, although the Regiment was deemed to be the Royal Air Force's infantry, it was more alike to the

Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the component of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 Tank and the Scimitar Reconnaissance Vehicle. It includes most of the A ...

in terms of risk. As a result, women will be allowed into the RAF Regiment from September 2017, which is a full year before other infantry units. In January 2020, the first female recruit to complete the 20-week training course passed out of RAF Honington. , there are approximately 1,850 regulars. In March 2021, it was announced that the regular force is expected to be reduced by 300 personnel by 2023.

Current RAF Regiment units

*Field Squadrons ** 1 Squadron (based at

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

) ** II Squadron (Parachute) (based at

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

) ** 15 Squadron (based at

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

) ** 34 Squadron (based at

RAF Leeming Royal Air Force Leeming or RAF Leeming is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located near Leeming, North Yorkshire, England. It was opened in 1940 and was jointly used by the RAF and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Between 1950 and 1991, it ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

) ** 51 Squadron (based at

Moray Moray () gd, Moireibh or ') is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Between 1975 ...

) ** 63 Squadron (Queen's Colour Squadron) (based at

RAF Northolt ("Ready to carry or to fight") , pushpin_map = Greater London , pushpin_label = RAF Northolt , pushpin_map_caption = Shown within Greater London , coordinates = , type = Royal Air Force station , code = , site_area = , height = , owners ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

) *Other units **Force Protection *** RAF Force Protection - HQ at

*** No. 2 Force Protection Wing -

*** No. 3 Force Protection Wing -

*** No. 5 Force Protection Wing -

*** No. 7 Force Protection Wing -

RAF Coningsby Royal Air Force Coningsby or RAF Coningsby , is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located south-west of Horncastle, and north-west of Boston, in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It is a Main Operating Base of the RAF and ho ...

*** No. 8 Force Protection Wing -

Regiment Squadrons **504

County of Nottingham Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The tradition ...

Squadron RAuxAF egiment Flight only**603

City of Edinburgh The City of Edinburgh Council is the local government authority for the city of Edinburgh, capital of Scotland. With a population of in mid-2019, it is the second most populous local authority area in Scotland. In its current form, the counci ...

Squadron RAuxAF egiment Flight only**609

West Riding The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

Squadron RAuxAF (Ground Defence) ** 2503 Squadron (Ground Defence) ** 2620 Squadron (Ground Defence) ** 2622 Squadron (Ground Defence) ** 2623 Squadron (Ground Defence) ** 2624 Squadron (Ground Defence)

Origin of the "Rock Ape" nickname

In the past the nickname "Rock Ape" has been attributed to their traditional role guarding areas of

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 ...

, but this is not so. The term came into use after an accident in the Western Aden Protectorate in November 1952. Two RAF Regiment officers serving with the

Aden Protectorate Levies The Aden Protectorate Levies (APL) were an Arab military force raised for the local defence of the Aden Protectorate under British rule. The Levies were drawn from all parts of the Protectorate and were armed and officered by the British militar ...

at Dhala decided to amuse themselves by going out to shoot some of the

hamadryas baboon The hamadryas baboon (''Papio hamadryas'' ) is a species of baboon within the Old World monkey family. It is the northernmost of all the baboons, being native to the Horn of Africa and the southwestern region of the Arabian Peninsula. These re ...

s (locally referred to as "rock apes"). The officers drew rifles and split up to hunt the apes. In the semi-darkness one of the officers fired at a moving object in the distance. When he reached the target he discovered he had shot the other officer. After emergency treatment

Flight Lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth countries. It has a NATO rank code of OF-2. Flight lieutenant is abbreviated as Flt Lt in the India ...

Percy Henry Mason survived to return to service a few months later. When asked by a board of inquiry why he had fired at his friend the officer replied that his target had "looked just like a rock ape" in the half light. The remark soon reverberated around the RAF and it was not long before the term was in general use.

Notable former members

* British comedian

Tony Hancock Anthony John Hancock (12 May 1924 – 25 June 1968) was an English comedian and actor. High-profile during the 1950s and early 1960s, he had a major success with his BBC series ''Hancock's Half Hour'', first broadcast on radio from 1954, ...

joined the RAF Regiment in 1942. * British football manager

Brian Clough Brian Howard Clough ( ; 21 March 1935 – 20 September 2004) was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is one of four managers to have won the Englis ...

served with the RAF Regiment during his national service.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * *

External links

Official RAF Regiment homepageThe Official RAF Regiment Association website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raf Regiment Military units and formations established in 1942 *

History

Formation

Second World War

Post-war

Structure in 1989

Organisation and role

Current RAF Regiment units

Origin of the "Rock Ape" nickname

Notable former members

See also

References

Bibliography

External links