The designation No. 69 Squadron has been used by 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 ...

for two quite different units. No. 3 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps was formed at

Point Cook, Victoria Point Cook is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Wyndham local government area. Point Cook recorded a population of 66,781 at the 2021 census. Point Cook ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 1916. To avoid confusion with No. 3 Squadron, RFC, it was known to the British military as "No. 69 Squadron RFC", although this terminology was never accepted by the squadron or the Australian Imperial Force. The squadron was "re-formed" on 10 January 1941 during

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 opposin ...

, when No. 431 (General Reconnaissance) Flight RAF, briefly re-designated as No. 1431 Flight RAF. on

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

became No. 69 Squadron. It carried out strategic reconnaissance missions mainly using

Martin Maryland The Martin Model 167 Maryland was an American medium bomber that first flew in 1939. It saw action in World War II with France and the United Kingdom. Design and development In response to a December 1937 United States Army Air Corps requiremen ...

s until May 1942 when Spitfires began to carry out all reconnaissance missions. These were later supplemented by

Martin Baltimore The Martin 187 Baltimore was a twin-engined light attack bomber built by the Glenn L. Martin Company in the United States as the A-30. The model was originally ordered by the French in May 1940 as a follow-up to the earlier Martin Maryland, then ...

s for shipping reconnaissance and anti-submarine patrols until April 1944 when the Squadron returned to the UK. No. 69 re-assembled 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 ...

on 5 May 1944 as part of No. 34 Wing of the Second Tactical Air Force equipped with

Vickers Wellington The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engined, long-range medium bomber. It was designed during the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey. Led by Vickers-Armstrongs' chief designer Rex Pierson; a key feature of the aircraft is its g ...

XIIIs for night reconnaissance duties, beginning operations on the eve of D-Day, using flares to locate enemy troop movements. In September the Squadron moved to France and Belgium until 7 May 1945, the Squadron disbanding on 7 August 1945. On 8 August 1945, 613 Squadron at Cambrai-Epinoy, France, was renumbered No. 69 Squadron, flying Mosquito FB.VI fighter-bombers until it was again disbanded on 31 March 1946. The next day, 180 Squadron was renumbered No. 69 at Wahn again equipped with Mosquito light bombers until again disbanded on 6 November 1947. The squadron flew 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 ...

in Germany briefly from 1954. No. 69 had been reformed on 5 May 1954 at

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 ...

as a

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

reconnaissance unit and remained in Germany until renumbered 39 Squadron on 1 July 1958.

References

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External links

069 Squadron Aircraft squadrons of the Royal Air Force in World War II Reconnaissance units and formations of the Royal Air Force {{RAF-stub

See also

References

Bibliography

External links