Southern Air Command was a

formation Formation may refer to: Linguistics * Back-formation, the process of creating a new lexeme by removing or affixes * Word formation, the creation of a new word by adding affixes Mathematics and science * Cave formation or speleothem, a secondar ...

of the

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

, active from the early 1980s to the early 1990s. Throughout its existence, it had its headquarters at Silvermine, in the

Cape Province The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...

Coastal Command

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 opposi ...

, a predecessor formation had been Coastal Command. 27 Squadron was formed from 33 Flight at St Albans in Port Elizabeth on 1 July 1942 and was deployed as a torpedo bomber / coastal reconnaissance squadron patrolling the South African coast flying aged

Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engined, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCA ...

s as part of Coastal Command. The command consisted of

27 Squadron SAAF 27 Squadron was established as a World War II maritime patrol squadron of the South African Air Force. It was disbanded after the war and resurrected in the same role from 1951 to 1958. Its final period of service was from 1962 to 1990 when it was ...

Walvis Bay Walvis Bay ( en, lit. Whale Bay; af, Walvisbaai; ger, Walfischbucht or Walfischbai) is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies. It is the second largest city in Namibia and the largest coastal city in the country. The ci ...

and Rooikop and a detachment at Aus;

6 Squadron SAAF 6 Squadron was a South African Air Force unit first formed just before World War II. It was disbanded and re-created a number of times, until finally disbanded in October 1990. The squadron was formed in Cape Town in April 1939 and was equipped ...

at Eerste River;

23 Squadron SAAF 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

at Darling;

25 Squadron SAAF 25 Squadron was a maritime patrol and later medium bomber squadron of the South African Air Force during World War II. It was re-constituted twice between 1951 and 1990 as a medium transport squadron and was finally disbanded in October 1990. His ...

at Port Elizabeth and East London;

22 Squadron SAAF 22 Squadron is a squadron of the South African Air Force. It is currently a maritime helicopter squadron operating Lynx and Oryx helicopters for the South African Navy. Originally formed in 1942, the squadron is the only current maritime he ...

at Lombazi and Matubatuba; 29 Squadron SAAF also at Lombazi and

10 Squadron SAAF 10 Squadron was a squadron of the South African Air Force. It was formed as a fighter bomber unit on 1 April 1939 and was deployed in a coastal defence role as part of Coastal Command SAAF until 1943. It was disbanded after the threat of Japane ...

at Durban and Isipingo. By the end of World War II, SAAF aircraft in conjunction with British and Dutch aircraft stationed in South Africa, had intercepted seventeen enemy ships, assisted in the rescue of 437 survivors of sunken ships and attacked 26 of the 36 enemy submarines that operated around the South African coast and had flown 15,000 coastal patrol sorties by August 1945.

Maritime Command and Southern Command

After a reorganisation in the early 1980s that ended the existence of Maritime Air Command SAAF, the command was created. It included nine squadrons (three reserve), based at

AFS Port Elizabeth Air Force Station Port Elizabeth is a South African Air Force facility situated on the north-eastern side of the Chief Dawid Stuurman International Airport main runway. It was downgraded from an Air Force Base in the early 1990s. It is home to C ...

, Cape Town Airport, and AFB Ysterplaat. These squadrons included two of

Aermacchi MB.326 The Aermacchi or Macchi MB-326 is a light military jet trainer designed in Italy. Originally conceived as a two-seat trainer, there have also been single and two-seat light attack versions produced. It is one of the most commercially successf ...

s, 35 Squadron SAAF (

Avro Shackleton The Avro Shackleton is a British long-range maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) which was used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the South African Air Force (SAAF). It was developed by Avro from the Avro Lincoln bomber, which itself had been a develo ...

(

Piaggio P.166 The Piaggio P.166 is an Italian twin-engine pusher-type utility aircraft developed by Piaggio Aero. The aircraft model name was Portofino, and is also known as Albatross in South African military service. Design and development The basic P.16 ...

of Wasps and Alouettes,

30 Squadron SAAF 30 Squadron SAAF was a squadron of the South African Air Force. It was established in 1944 and saw service as a medium bomber squadron in Italy during the Second World War. After the war, the squadron was disbanded and was resurrected in 1980 as ...

of Super Frelons and Pumas, 16 Squadron SAAF (Alouettes),

flying Dakotas from Ysterplaat, and 88 Maritime Training School (Ysterplaat). By the early 1990s the command had shrunk to four squadrons - two of Dakotas (25 and 35 Squadrons), 27 Squadron with Piaggio P.166As, and a squadron of

Aérospatiale Alouette III The Aérospatiale Alouette III (, ''Lark''; company designations SA 316 and SA 319) is a single-engine, light utility helicopter developed by French aircraft company Sud Aviation. During its production life, it proved to be a relatively popular r ...

s.Lindsey Peacock, 'The World's Air Forces,' p.152.

Notes

References

* {{cite book, last=Martin, first=H.J. (Lt-Gen), title=South Africa at War: Military and Industrial Organisation and Operations in connection with the conduct of War: 1939-1945 (South African Forces World War II: Volume VII), year=1979, publisher=Purnell, location=Cape Town, isbn=0-86843-025-0, author2=Orpen, N.D., page=282 * Peacock, Lindsay, and Bob Munro. The World's Air Forces: An Illustrated Review of the Air Forces of the World. Salamander Books, 1991. Air force units and formations of South Africa Disbanded military units and formations in Cape Town Military units and formations established in the 1980s Military units and formations disestablished in 1993

Coastal Command

Maritime Command and Southern Command

See also

Notes

References