No. 206 Squadron is a Test and Evaluation Squadron of 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) an ...

. Until 2005 it was employed in the

maritime patrol {{Unreferenced, date=March 2008 Maritime patrol is the task of monitoring areas of water. Generally conducted by military and law enforcement agencies, maritime patrol is usually aimed at identifying human activities. Maritime patrol refers to ac ...

role with the Nimrod MR.2 at

RAF Kinloss Royal Air Force Kinloss or RAF Kinloss is a former Royal Air Force (RAF) station located near the village of Kinloss, on the Moray Firth in the north east of Scotland. The RAF station opened on 1 April 1939 and served as a training establishme ...

, Moray. It was announced in December 2004 that 206 Squadron would disband on 1 April 2005, with half of its crews being redistributed to Nos.

120 120 may refer to: *120 (number), the number * AD 120, a year in the 2nd century AD *120 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC *120 film, a film format for still photography * ''120'' (film), a 2008 film * 120 (MBTA bus) * 120 (New Jersey bus) * 120 (Ken ...

and

201 Year 201 ( CCI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Fabianus and Arrius (or, less frequently, year 954 ''Ab urbe condit ...

Squadrons, also stationed at Kinloss. This was a part of the UK Defence Review called ''

Delivering Security in a Changing World The 2003 Defence White Paper, titled ''Delivering Security in a Changing World'', set out the future structure of the British military, and was preceded by the 1998 Strategic Defence Review (SDR) and the 2002 SDR New Chapter, which responded to t ...

''; the Nimrod MR.2 fleet was reduced in number from 21 to 16 as a consequence.

History

Formation and early years

No. 206 Squadron was formed on 31 December 1916 as No. 6 Squadron, Royal Naval Air Service, a fighter unit operating Nieuport 17s and later

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the ...

s over the Western Front before disbanding on 27 August 1917.Lewis 1959, p. 71. The squadron was reformed on 1 January 1918 as a

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped from an air ...

and

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

unit, operating Airco DH9s. With the establishment of the RAF in 1918 the squadron was renumbered No. 206 Squadron, RAF, being used for photo-reconnaissance in support of the British Second Army and for bombing support during the Allies final offensive. Following the

Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...

it was used to operate an air mail service for the British occupying army in Germany, before being deployed to Helwan,

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

in June 1919. It was renumbered as 47 Squadron on 1 February 1920.Ashworth 1989, p. 192.

Flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

Major (later Group Captain) Ernest Norton served in the squadron during World War I.

Interbellum and World War II

The squadron was reformed at

RAF Manston Royal Air Force Manston or more simply RAF Manston is a former Royal Air Force station located in the north-east of Kent, at on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site was split between a commercial airport Kent International Airpo ...

from a flight of No. 48 Squadron on 15 June 1936, with

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 the new

RAF 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 ...

.Halley 1973, p. 71. It moved to

RAF Bircham Newton Royal Air Force Bircham Newton or more simply RAF Bircham Newton is a former Royal Air Force station located south east of Docking, Norfolk and north east of King's Lynn, Norfolk, England. History The site was first used during the First Wo ...

on 30 July that year.Halley 1973, p. 84. It initially operated as a training squadron, but later assigned to

s.Halley 1973, p. 72. On the outbreak of 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 ...

, the Squadron entered into a routine of patrols with its Ansons from Bircham Newton with detachments at other bases around the United Kingdom, including RAF Carew Cheriton in South Wales and

RAF Hooton Park Royal Air Force Hooton Park or more simply RAF Hooton Park, on the Wirral Peninsula, Cheshire, is a former Royal Air Force station originally built for the Royal Flying Corps in 1917 as a training aerodrome for pilots in the First World War. D ...

on the Mersey. The squadron attacked German submarines on two occasions in September, with no effect (the anti-submarine bombs used by the RAF at the time were ineffective weapons - one friendly-fire incident in December 1939 resulted in a direct hit on the conning tower of the British submarine HMS ''Snapper'' with the sole damage being four broken light bulbs).Halley 1973, pp. 73–74. The squadron's Ansons also occasionally encountered German maritime reconnaissance aircraft. On 8 November, one shot down a

Heinkel He 115 The Heinkel He 115 was a three-seat World War II ''Luftwaffe'' seaplane. It was used as a torpedo bomber and performed general seaplane duties, such as reconnaissance and minelaying. The aircraft was powered by two 960 PS (947 hp, 720&n ...

floatplane. On the same day, a different Anson engaged and hit two

Dornier Do 18 The Dornier Do 18 was a development of the Do 16 flying boat. It was developed for the ''Luftwaffe'', but ''Luft Hansa'' received five aircraft and used these for tests between the Azores and the North American continent in 1936 and on their ma ...

, probably shooting one down.Halley 1973, p. 73. In March 1940, the squadron began to re-equip with the

Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson is a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built by the American Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. It was initially put into service by the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and p ...

, flying the first patrols using the new aircraft on 12 April.Halley 1973, p. 74. It converted to the Boeing Fortress Mk.II in July 1942, allowing long range patrols over the Atlantic, moving to the

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

during October 1943, before returning to the United Kingdom for re-equipping with the Consolidated Liberator Mk.VI, later augmented by the Liberators Mk.VIII.Ashworth 1989, pp. 192–193. The Squadron's Liberators were based at

RAF St Eval Royal Air Force St. Eval or RAF St. Eval was a Royal Air Force station for the RAF Coastal Command, southwest of Padstow in Cornwall, England, UK. St Eval's primary role was to provide anti-submarine and anti-shipping patrols off the south wes ...

until after D-Day, when the unit moved North to RAF Leuchars. A section was detached to West Africa for anti-submarine and convoy patrols as No. 200 Squadron RAF. Detachments also operated from bases such as

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

and

RAF Aldergrove Joint Helicopter Command Flying Station Aldergrove or more simply JHC FS Aldergrove is located south of Antrim, Northern Ireland and northwest of Belfast and adjoins Belfast International Airport. It is sometimes referred to simply as Alde ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

. The squadron was disbanded on 25 April 1946. 206 Squadron was a successful anti-submarine unit, accounting for nine U-boats destroyed during the Second World War.

Post-war

The squadron was reformed on 17 November 1947, flying Avro York C.1 transport aircraft, but again disbanded on 31 August 1949. It was soon reformed on 1 December 1949, flying

Douglas Dakota The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in ...

s, the military transport version of the well-known Douglas DC-3 airliner. This lasted only till 20 February 1950 however. Reformed yet again on 27 September 1952 as a maritime reconnaissance squadron, it was equipped with

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 ...

s and based at

in Cornwall. The squadron moved to

in Scotland in July 1965 and was re-equipped with the jet-powered

Hawker-Siddeley Nimrod The Hawker Siddeley Nimrod is a retired maritime patrol aircraft developed and operated by the United Kingdom. It was an extensive modification of the de Havilland Comet, the world's first operational jet airliner. It was originally designed ...

in November 1970. It continued to operate the Nimrod until disbanding on 1 April 2005.

Present

On 1 April 2009, the Heavy Aircraft Test & Evaluation Squadron at Boscombe Down ( Air Space Warfare Centre) gained the 206 Squadron numberplate, as 206 (Reserve) Squadron. Currently split between RAF Boscombe Down and RAF Brize Norton with 'B Flt' C130 specialists moved from RAF Lyneham in June 2011 to their new home at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire to continue the Hercules Test and Evaluation process.

Aircraft operated

References

Bibliography

* Ashworth, Chris. ''Encyclopedia of Modern Royal Air Force Squadrons''. Wellingborough, UK: Patrick Stevens Limited, 1989. . * Bowyer, Michael J.F and John D.R. Rawlings. ''Squadron Codes, 1937–56''. Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1979. . * Flintham, Vic and Andrew Thomas. ''Combat Codes: A Full Explanation and Listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied Air Force Unit Codes Since 1938''. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd., 2003. . * Franks, Norman. ''Nieuport Aces of World War I''. Osprey Publishing, 2000. , . * Halley, James J. ''Famous Maritime Squadrons of the RAF, Volume 1''. Windsor, Berkshire, UK: Hylton Lacy Publishers Ltd., 1973. . * Halley, James J. ''The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988''. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. . * Jefford, C.G. ''RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912''. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd., 2001. . * Lewis, Peter. ''Squadron Histories: R.F.C, R.N.A.S and R.A.F., 1912–59''. London: Putnam, 1959. * Moyes, Philip J.R. ''Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 1964 (new edition 1976). . * Neistle, Axel. ''German U-Boat Losses during World War II'' (1998) Greenhill Books. * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. . * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 1969 (new edition 1976, reprinted 1978). . * Westrop, Mike. ''History of no. 6 Squadron Royal Naval Air Service in World War I''. Atglen, Pennsylvania; Schiffer Publishing, 2006. .

External links

No. 206 Squadron

RAF Davidstow Moor
{{DEFAULTSORT:No. 206 Squadron Raf Military units and formations established in 1916 206 Squadron 06 Squadron Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the Falklands War 1916 establishments in the United Kingdom