No. 666 Squadron was a Royal Air Force Air Observation Post (AOP) squadron associated with the Canadian 1st Army and later part of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. Numbers 651 to 663 Squadron of the RAF were

Air Observation Post Air Observation Post (AOP) is an aeroplane or helicopter used in the role of artillery spotter by the British Army and Commonwealth forces. In this role, either the pilot of the aircraft or another crew member acts as an observer watching for tar ...

units working closely with

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 ...

units in artillery spotting and liaison. A further three of these squadrons, 664–666, were manned with Canadian personnel. Their duties and squadron numbers were transferred to the Army with the formation of the

Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps: * Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army * Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941) * United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...

on 1 September 1957

History

Formation and World War II

No. 666 Squadron RCAF was first formed on 5 March 1945 at

RAF Andover RAF Andover is a former Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force station in England, west of Andover, Hampshire. As well as RFC and RAF units, units of the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps, Royal Canadian Air Force, United States Army Air ...

as an air observation post (AOP) squadron associated with the

Canadian 1st Army The First Canadian Army (french: 1reArmée canadienne) was a field army and a formation of the Canadian Army in World War II in which most Canadian elements serving in North-West Europe were assigned. It served on the Western Front from July 194 ...

. After a period working together with the Canadian army and later with the occupation forces in Germany the squadron disbanded on 30 September 1946.

Post-war

As the number was not transferred to the Canadian authorities, it was revived post-war when the squadron was reformed as No. 666 (Scottish) Squadron RAuxAF, part of the

RAuxAF 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 ...

on 1 May 1949 at

Scone A scone is a baked good, usually made of either wheat or oatmeal with baking powder as a leavening agent, and baked on sheet pans. A scone is often slightly sweetened and occasionally glazed with egg wash. The scone is a basic component ...

. Equipped with

Auster AOP.6 The Auster AOP.6 was a British military air observation aircraft produced by Auster Aircraft Limited to replace the numerous wartime Taylorcraft Auster aircraft then in-service. History The Auster AOP.6 (Auster Model K) was designed as a succe ...

aircraft, the squadron's headquarters was located at RAF Perth/Scone, with three detached flights, Nos. 1966, 1967 and 1968 Flight RAF at respectively RAF Perth/Scone,

RAF Renfrew Renfrew Airport was the domestic airport serving the city of Glasgow until it was decommissioned in 1966. It was located in the Newmains area of Renfrew, approximately 2 kilometres east of Abbotsinch Airfield which would eventually replace it. ...

(later

RAF Abbotsinch gd, Port-adhair Eadar-nàiseanta Ghlaschu , image = Glasgow Airport logo.svg , image-width = 200 , image2 = GlasgowAirportFromAir.jpg , image2-width = 250 , IATA = GLA , ICAO = EGPF , type = Public , owner = AGS Airports , hub = *eas ...

) and

RAF Turnhouse Royal Air Force Turnhouse or more simply RAF Turnhouse is a former Royal Air Force Sector Station located in Edinburgh, Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of G ...

, before it was disbanded on 10 March 1957 by transferring to the

Present

The squadron was represented by 666 Squadron of 7 (Volunteer) Regiment,

until 1 April 2009.

Aircraft operated

Squadron bases

Fictional service

A fictional 666 Squadron featured in the Air Ace Picture Library story '' The Bomber Barons''. This 666 Squadron was a bomber unit founded at the outbreak of

World War II 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 opposing ...

, operating

Handley Page Hampden The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden is a British twin-engine medium bomber that was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was part of the trio of large twin-engine bombers procured for the RAF, joining the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley and Vickers ...

s (September 1939 – December 1940), Avro Manchesters (January 1941 – 1942), Avro Lancasters (1942–1944) and

Avro Vulcan The Avro Vulcan (later Hawker Siddeley Vulcan from July 1963) is a jet-powered, tailless, delta-wing, high-altitude, strategic bomber, which was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1956 until 1984. Aircraft manufacturer A.V. Roe an ...

s (1960s – 1982). Air Ace Picture Library Holiday Special 1982. In the long-running series of '

Biggles James Bigglesworth, nicknamed "Biggles", is a fictional pilot and adventurer, the title character and hero of the ''Biggles'' series of adventure books, written for young readers by W. E. Johns (1893–1968). Biggles made his first appearance ...

' books by W.E. Johns, 666 Squadron, RAF, is the Special Duties squadron led by the eponymous hero James Bigglesworth during World War II. In the

Charles Stross Charles David George "Charlie" Stross (born 18 October 1964) is a British writer of science fiction and fantasy. Stross specialises in hard science fiction and space opera. Between 1994 and 2004, he was also an active writer for the magazine '' ...

novel " The Fuller Memorandum" 666 Squadron is a secret RAF unit involved on occult activities.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

History of No. 666 Squadron at Army Air Corps website

History of 666 Squadron
{{DEFAULTSORT:No. 666 Squadron Raf 666 Squadron Military units and formations established in 1949