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RAF Gibraltar (also formerly known as North Front) is a
Royal Air Force station The Royal Air Force (RAF) operates several stations throughout the United Kingdom and overseas. This includes front-line and training air bases, support, administrative and training stations with no flying activity, unmanned airfields used fo ...
on
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 = Gibr ...
. No military aircraft are currently stationed there, but RAF,
Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...
and aircraft of other
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...
nations will periodically arrive for transient stopovers, exercises, or other temporary duty. Administered by
British Forces Gibraltar British Forces Gibraltar is the British Armed Forces stationed in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. Gibraltar is used primarily as a training area, thanks to its good climate and rocky terrain, and as a stopover for aircraft and ships ...
, the station is a joint civil-military facility that also functions as the Rock's civilian airport –
Gibraltar Airport Gibraltar International Airport or North Front Airport is the civilian airport that serves the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. The runway is owned by the Ministry of Defence for use by the Royal Air Force as RAF Gibraltar. Civilian o ...
, with the civilian airport's passenger terminal building and apron facilities located on the north side of the runway while the apron and hangar of RAF Gibraltar are located on the south side of the runway.


History


Early history

A
Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...
seaplane base was opened at Gibraltar during the First World War. The airport was constructed 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
when Gibraltar was an important naval base for the British. Originally opened in 1939, it was only an emergency
airfield An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...
for the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...
's
Fleet Air Arm The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wi ...
. However, the
runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt, concrete ...
was later extended by
reclaiming In linguistics, reappropriation, reclamation, or resignification is the cultural process by which a group reclaims words or artifacts that were previously used in a way disparaging of that group. It is a specific form of a semantic change (i. ...
some land from the
Bay of Gibraltar The Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeciras), is a bay at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula. It is around long by wide, covering an area of some , with a depth of up to in the centre of the bay. It opens to the south into the Strait ...
using rock blasted from the
Rock of Gibraltar The Rock of Gibraltar (from the Arabic name Jabel-al-Tariq) is a monolithic limestone promontory located in the British territory of Gibraltar, near the southwestern tip of Europe on the Iberian Peninsula, and near the entrance to the Medite ...
while carrying out works on military tunnels. This last major extension of the runway allowed larger aircraft to land at Gibraltar. At this time the airfield completely obliterated the former Gibraltar
horse racing track A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also use ...
. On 25 September 1939, No. 200 (Coastal) Group RAF was formed as a subordinate formation to HQ RAF Mediterranean in control of No. 202 Squadron RAF. The Group's function was the control of
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) an ...
units operating from Gibraltar. In late 1940 the Group was transferred to
Coastal Command RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was founded in 1936, when the RAF was restructured into Fighter, Bomber and Coastal Commands and played an important role during the Second World War. Maritime Aviation ...
. Later a joint RN/RAF Area Combined Headquarters was formed which commenced operations in early 1942. RAF North Front opened in 1942 and RAF New Camp opened around the same time. RAF New Camp was built on reclaimed land in the harbour next to
Montagu Bastion The Montagu Bastion is one of many bastions which were designed to protect Gibraltar. Montagu was joined to Orange Bastion by a curtain wall known as Montagu Curtain and this bastion was protected by the Montagu Counterguard. History Montagu ...
and was the site for a slipway and hangar for flying boats and RAF motor launches. The airfield played a major part in
Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – 16 November 1942) was an Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of securing victory in North Africa while al ...
, the Anglo-American invasion of French North Africa ( French colonial possessions in
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
,
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
and
Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to A ...
) in November 1942. Following the major reorganization of the Allied air forces at the
Casablanca Conference The Casablanca Conference (codenamed SYMBOL) or Anfa Conference was held at the Anfa Hotel in Casablanca, French Morocco, from January 14 to 24, 1943, to plan the Allied European strategy for the next phase of World War II. In attendance were ...
in January 1943, RAF Gibraltar became a major sub-command of the
Mediterranean Air Command The Mediterranean Air Command (MAC) was a World War II Allied air-force command that was active in the North African and Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) between February 18 and December 10, 1943 . MAC was under the command of Air Chi ...
under Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Tedder in February 1943.
Anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typ ...
was a major priority of RAF Gibraltar during the later years of the Second World War and some of their aircraft were equipped with special detectors to locate German
U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...
s in the relatively shallow waters around Gibraltar. United States Navy
Fleet Air Wing 15 A Patrol Wing (PatWing) was a United States Navy aviation unit with the commander of a Patrol Wing known as the Commodore, the ComPatWing or COMPATWING. From 1 November 1942 to 30 June 1973 Patrol Wings were designated "Fleet Air Wings". On 26 Mar ...
based at
Port Lyautey Kenitra ( ar, القُنَيْطَرَة, , , ; ber, ⵇⵏⵉⵟⵔⴰ, Qniṭra; french: Kénitra) is a city in north western Morocco, formerly known as Port Lyautey from 1932 to 1956. It is a port on the Sebou river, has a population in 201 ...
coordinated its antisubmarine warfare operations with RAF Gibraltar and assigned a ZP-14 Squadron
blimp A blimp, or non-rigid airship, is an airship (dirigible) without an internal structural framework or a keel. Unlike semi-rigid and rigid airships (e.g. Zeppelins), blimps rely on the pressure of the lifting gas (usually helium, rather than hy ...
pilot/liaison officer to Gibraltar.


Post-war

On 29 May 1945 the Area Combined Headquarters was shut down and most of the personnel sent home. Weather flights from Gibraltar were maintained at the end of the war by
No. 520 Squadron RAF No. 520 Squadron RAF was a meteorological squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. History The squadron was formed at RAF Gibraltar on 20 September 1943 from 1403 Flight. Equipped with Lockheed Hudsons, it was tasked with c ...
flying Halifaxes. This was superseded by a detachment of No. 518 Squadron RAF from Aldergrove, and then by the arrival of
No. 224 Squadron RAF No. 224 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force squadron that saw service in both the First and Second World Wars. History It was formed on 1 April 1918, at Alimini, Italy from part of No. 6 Wing RNAS, equipped with the de Havilland DH.4. In Jun ...
. Initially the squadron dispatched a detachment in May 1948, but the whole squadron moved to Gibraltar in August 1951. It was re-equipped with Avro Shackletons. The station officially became "RAF Gibraltar" in 1966. The RAF camp, now known as
Devil's Tower Camp Devil's Tower Camp is a military installation located just south-east of Gibraltar International Airport on the isthmus between Spain and Gibraltar. History The site dates back to 1713 when Spain ceded land to the United Kingdom under the Treaty ...
, which was increasingly used by 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 Gurkha ...
in the 1960s and 1970s, became the home of the Royal Gibraltar Regiment. By the 1980s RAF Gibraltar was increasingly being used as a Forward Operating Base for middle east operations. On 4 February 2011, the new RAF headquarters in Gibraltar was officially opened by The Chief of Joint Operations, Air Marshal Sir
Stuart Peach Air Chief Marshal Stuart William Peach, Baron Peach, (born 22 February 1956) is a retired senior Royal Air Force officer. After training as a navigator, Peach commanded IX (Bomber) Squadron and then became Deputy Station Commander RAF Brugge ...
. In 2016 a major runway resurfacing project was completed ensuring both military and civilian flights could continue.


Units stationed


Commanding officers

*Air Vice-Marshal Sturley Simpson – AOC, AHQ Gibraltar, December 1941 to Feb 1944 *Air Vice Marshal William Elliot – AOC, RAF Gibraltar, Feb 1944 to June 1944 *Air Vice Marshal Alick Stevens – AOC, RAF Gibraltar, June 1944 to August 1945


Gibraltar squadrons

*
No. 224 Squadron RAF No. 224 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force squadron that saw service in both the First and Second World Wars. History It was formed on 1 April 1918, at Alimini, Italy from part of No. 6 Wing RNAS, equipped with the de Havilland DH.4. In Jun ...
(Disbanded)


Gallery

File:RAF_Gibraltar_control_tower.jpg, The modern day control tower of RAF Gibraltar/Gibraltar Airport File:Gib Airport Runway.jpg, The runway of RAF Gibraltar/Gibraltar Airport looking from East to West File:Lockheed Hudson of No 233 Squadron RAF (August 1942).png, A Lockheed Hudson of No. 233 Squadron RAF leaves its dispersal at Gibraltar for a reconnaissance sortie, in August 1942. File:USN ZP-14 Blimp at RAF Gibraltar 1944.jpg, Goodyear ZNP-K ships of United States Navy Blimp Squadron ZP-14 coordinated their anti-submarine warfare operations with RAF Gibraltar in 1944.


Panoramic view


See also

* List of Royal Air Force commands


References


Further reading

*


External links

*
UK Military Aeronautical Information Publication – Gibraltar (LXGB)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibraltar British Forces Gibraltar Royal Air Force stations in Europe Royal Air Force stations of World War II in Europe 1942 establishments in Gibraltar