The Royal Air Squadron (RAS) is a flying club in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

founded in 1966 by

Peter Vanneck Air Commodore Sir Peter Beckford Rutgers Vanneck (7 January 1922 – 2 August 1999) was a British Royal Navy officer, fighter pilot, engineer, stockbroker and politician. He made notable contributions to Anglo-French relations as Lord Mayor o ...

, the Hon. Hugh Astor and Anthony Cayzer - friends who shared a passionate interest in flying light aircraft.

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

was the Squadron's Air Commodore. Two of the earliest members were Second World War heroes

Sir Douglas Bader Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader, (; 21 February 1910 – 5 September 1982) was a Royal Air Force flying ace during the Second World War. He was credited with 22 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probables, one shared ...

and Hugh Dundas. Others included Sir Max Aitkin,

Tommy Sopwith Sir Thomas Octave Murdoch Sopwith, CBE, Hon FRAeS (18 January 1888 – 27 January 1989) was an English aviation pioneer, businessman and yachtsman. Early life Sopwith was born in Kensington, London, on 18 January 1888. He was the eig ...

, Kenneth McAlpine, John Houlder and Lord Waterpark. The RAS was founded as "The Air Squadron" in 1966. In 2016 the association was granted the right to use the title "Royal". The RAS has gone on various group flights in several countries - including: Russia, Jordan, Tanzania, USA, Pakistan, South Africa, Serbia, Ukraine. The RAS sponsors several awards, listed as follows by the awarding institution.

British Aerobatic Association The British Aerobatic Association (BAeA) handles all domestic aerobatic competitions in the United Kingdom. History It was formed on 1 May 1974. Its members teach and fly aerobatics at many airfields around the United Kingdom, for example the ...

: *The Air Squadron Trophy.

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 ...

Air Cadets: *The Air Squadron Trophy: Awarded annually to the Best RAF Section participating in the Ground Training Competition. *The Sir John Thomson (RAF) Memorial Sword. *The

Geoffrey de Havilland Captain Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, (27 July 1882 – 21 May 1965) was an English aviation pioneer and aerospace engineer. The aircraft company he founded produced the Mosquito, which has been considered the most versatile warplane ever built,D ...

Flying Foundation Medal for CCF Achievement.

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

*The Air Squadron Sword of Honour is awarded every six months to the top officer cadet.

United States 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 ...

: *The Air Squadron Millennium Sword of Friendship. The sword is kept in the Pentagon and awarded to the top Air Force cadet each year.Official website of the United States Air Force
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References

{{Reflist

External links

Official website
Aviation organisations based in the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1966 Organisations based in the United Kingdom with royal patronage 1966 establishments in the United Kingdom

See also

References

External links