The 1st Squadron () is a Recce squadron in the Air Component of the

Belgian Armed Forces The Belgian Armed Forces (; , ) are the combined national military forces of Belgium. The Monarchy of Belgium, King of the Belgians is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The Belgian Armed Forces was established after Belgium Belgian Rev ...

. Based at

Florennes air base Florennes Air Base (), also known as Base Jean Offenberg, is a Belgian Air Component (formerly the Belgian Air Force) military airbase, compliant to Standardization agreement, STANAG 3712 category 8 (and category 5 during quick reaction alert op ...

, it is part of the 2nd Tactical Wing and operates the General Dynamics F-16 Block 20 MLU Fighting Falcon. The ''1re Escadrille de Chasse'' was the first fighter squadron of the

Belgian Air Component The Belgian Air and Space Component (, ) is the Air force, air arm of the Belgian Armed Forces, and until January 2002 it was officially known as the Belgian Air Force (; ). It was founded in 1909 and is one of the world's oldest air services. ...

. The squadron was founded during World War I, reorganized into a dedicated fighter unit, and became part of a fighter wing before war's end.

History

The origins

The ''1re Escadrille de Chasse'' was founded in February 1916 as the first dedicated squadron of the Aviation Militaire Belge. It drew upon the men and equipment of the previously existing provisional Escadrille I. In August 1917, upon receiving the new Hanriot-Dupont 1 aircraft, the first version of the famous “Thistle” symbol was designed by

André de Meulemeester Lieutenant André Emile Alphonse De Meulemeester was a Belgian flying ace during World War I. He was credited with eleven confirmed and nineteen unconfirmed aerial victories. Family André De Meulemeester was the son of brewer Victor De Meuleme ...

as the squadron's insignia, to be painted on the aircraft. He also selected the squadron motto “ Nemo me impune lacessit” or “No-one can challenge me unpunished”. In March 1918, it would be reorganized into the ''9ème Escadrille''.Pieters p. 14, 23–24

Aerodromes / Airbases

Coxyde Koksijde (; ; ) is a town and a municipality in Belgium. It is located on the North Sea coast in the southwest of the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises apart from Koksijde, the villages of Oostduinkerke, Saint-Ides ...

: February 1916 - June 1916 * Les Moeres: June 1916 - March 1918Pieters, pp. 23–24 * Florennes : 1947 - 1971 * Bierset : 1971 - 1989 * Florennes : 1989 - Present

Notable personnel

* Fernand Jacquet * Jan Olieslagers *

Willy Coppens Willy Omer François Jean baron Coppens de Houthulst, DSO MC (6 July 1892 – 21 December 1986) was Belgium's leading fighter ace and the champion " balloon buster" of World War I. He was credited with 37 confirmed victories and six prob ...

Aircraft used

Nieuport 10 The Nieuport 10 (or Nieuport XB in contemporary sources) is a French First World War sesquiplane that filled a wide variety of roles, including reconnaissance, fighter and trainer. Design and development In January 1914, designer joined the '' ...

* Nieuport Scout *

Nieuport 16 The Nieuport 16 C.1 (or Nieuport XVI C.1 in contemporary sources)The C in the designation indicates that it is a ''chasseur'' or fighter, and the 1 indicates the number of crew members. was a French World War I single-seat sesquiplane fighter air ...

Nieuport 17 The Nieuport 17 C.1 (or Nieuport XVII C.1 in contemporary sources) is a French sesquiplane fighter aircraft, fighter designed and manufactured by the Nieuport company during World War I. An improvement over the Nieuport 11, it was a little large ...

* Hanriot HD.1 *

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 b ...

*Spitfire Mk.XIV * F-84 E/G/F * Mirage 5BA *F-16

Operations

At the start of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Belgium was neutral. An overwhelming invasion by the

German army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

left Belgium partially occupied by the end of 1914, with its preserved territory shielded by deliberate defensive flooding at Nieuwpoort by the Belgians. As a result, the Aviation Militaire Belge was based in the diminished remnant of a small country, and performed largely in a static defensive mode.
Captain Fernand Jacquet and Lieutenant Louis Robin scored the squadron's first victory on 20 May 1916. It would claim 52 aerial victories and be credited with 15, at a blood cost of five Belgian pilots

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

and one accidental death.

Present day

After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the modern Belgian Air Force was founded in 1946. The "Thistle" was accorded to 351 Squadron of 161st Wing at Florennes air base. On 10 January 1948 this unit became 1st Squadron of 2nd Wing. From that day to the present, the squadron shares the identity and the traditions of the ''1ère Escadrille de Chasse'' of 1917 . In July 1971, 1 Squadron leaves Florennes for Bierset, to constitute 3rd Wing together with 8 Squadron. Designated to transform to the F-16, the unit swaps bases with 42 Squadron of Florennes in 1989.

Aircraft used

* Spitfire XIV *

F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superio ...

Blasons Familiers p.35

References

* Champagne, Jacques P. & Detournay, Gaston L. ''Blasons Familiers d'une Chevalerie Nouvelle''. Editions CARACTERE - Arlon * Mangin, Jean A. & Champagne, Jacques P & Van Den Rul, Marcel A. ''Sous nos ailes''. G. Everling - Arlon (1977) * Pieters, Walter M. ''Above Flanders' Fields: A Complete Record of the Belgian Fighter Pilots and Their Units During the Great War, 1914-1918''. Grub Street, 1998. , * ''Air Action 19''. Guhl & Associés, 1990. ISSN 0992-065X.

Endnotes

{{reflist Fighter Squadron, 1 Military units and formations established in 1913 1913 establishments in Belgium