413 Transport And Rescue Squadron
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413 Transport and Rescue Squadron is an
air force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...
squadron of the
Canadian Armed Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
. It was originally a
flying boat A flying boat is a type of seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in having a fuselage that is purpose-designed for flotation, while floatplanes rely on fuselage-mounted floats for buoyancy. Though ...
squadron of the
Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...
during the Second World War. It currently operates the
C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...
and the CH-149 Cormorant in transport plus search and rescue roles at CFB Greenwood.


History

No. 413 Squadron was created as the third RCAF squadron attached to
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 ...
and equipped with
PBY Catalina The Consolidated Model 28, more commonly known as the PBY Catalina (U.S. Navy designation), is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft designed by Consolidated Aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s. In U.S. Army service, it was designated as the O ...
flying boats. 413 Squadron flew reconnaissance and anti-submarine operations over the North Atlantic under Coastal Command until beginning the move to Ceylon in March 1942.No. 413 (Tusker) Squadron
accessed September 2020.
It probably came under command of Air Forces in India once the squadron fully arrived in April at
Koggala Koggala (; ) is a small coastal town, situated at the edge of a lagoon on the south coast of Sri Lanka, located in Galle District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. Koggala is bounded on one side by a reef, and on the oth ...
. The squadron gained fame for the actions of Squadron Leader Leonard Birchall, who detected a large Japanese task force approaching Ceylon. This allowed time for the defenders to prepare, and foiled what could have been a major blow to the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
in the
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
. The squadron made reconnaissance flights over the Indian Ocean until 1945. It was stood down in January 1945 and sent back to the UK to reequip, in possible preparation for transfer to
RAF Bomber Command RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the Strategic bombing during World War II#Europe, strategic bombing of Germany in W ...
. However nothing came of this and the squadron was disbanded in February 1945 at Bournmoth. Reformed at RCAF Rockcliffe on April 1, 1947, it took over the duties of No. 13 (Photographic) Squadron. It operated in this role until November 1, 1950. The squadron reformed again on August 1, 1951, as a fighter squadron at CFB Bagotville. First equipped with Harvards and Vampires while awaiting the
F-86 Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Sov ...
. In 1953 they deployed to
Zweibrücken Zweibrücken (; ; , ; literally translated as "Two Bridges") is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach (Blies), Schwarzbach River. Name The name ''Zweibrücken'' means 'two bridges'; older forms of the name include Middl ...
, Germany as part of 3 Wing. The squadron stood down on April 7, 1957, and was then reformed on May 1 operating the
Avro CF-100 The Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck (affectionately known as the "Clunk") is a Canadian twinjet interceptor/ fighter designed and produced by aircraft manufacturer Avro Canada. It has the distinction of being the only Canadian-designed fighter to en ...
Canuck at Bagotville. The squadron again disbanded on December 30, 1961. The squadron was reactivated at CFB Summerside on July 8, 1968, in its current role of a Transportation and Rescue Squadron. With the closure of Summerside, the squadron relocated to CFB Greenwood on June 10, 1991. The CH-113 Labrador was used during this time. On July 13, 2006, 413 Squadron suffered the first fatal crash of a Cormorant in Canadian service when a
CH-149 The AgustaWestland CH-149 Cormorant is the air-sea rescue variant of the AgustaWestland AW101 (formerly EH101) helicopter for the Canadian Armed Forces. Developed by AgustaWestland in Italy (now merged as part of Leonardo), the CH-149 is a med ...
(Aircraft 149914) based at CFB Greenwood crashed while conducting a night training exercise near
Canso, Nova Scotia Canso is an unincorporated community and former incorporated town in Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Canso lies on the far north eastern tip of mainland Nova Scotia at the mouth of Chedabucto Bay. It was incorporated as a town ...
. Killed in the incident were Sgt. Duane Brazil, 39; Master Cpl. Kirk Noel, 33; and Cpl. Trevor McDavid, 31, four other crew members were injured. On August 21, 2015, LCol Scott Murphy handed over command of 413 Sqn to LCol James Marshall.


Operations

413 Transport and Rescue Squadron (TRS) conducts search and rescue and airlift throughout an 1,800,000 square mile area in eastern Canada. The unit is made up of approximately 200 personnel including aircrew, an aircraft maintenance section and administrative support. As the primary air search and rescue unit on Canada's East Coast, 413 Squadron crews cover an area extending from the south of Nova Scotia, north to Iqaluit on Baffin Island as far west as Quebec City and east out to the middle of the Atlantic. The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, Halifax (JRCC) operationally controls one Hercules and four Cormorant aircraft for primary Search and Rescue response. 413 Squadron has crews on standby 24-hours a day to respond to marine vessels or aircraft in distress, to carry out medical evacuations, or search for missing persons year round. 413 Squadron has an intimate working relationship with the non-profit
Civil Air Search and Rescue Association The Civil Air Search and Rescue Association or CASARA, is a Canada-wide volunteer aviation association dedicated to the promotion of aviation safety, and to the provision of air search support services to Canada's National Search and Rescue Progr ...
(CASARA) in the Maritimes and Newfoundland/Labrador. Both the Hercules and the Cormorant carry out annual visits to each of the zones in the Halifax Search and Rescue Region to assist in the training of CASARA member as spotters. 413 Squadron is also tasked by
1 Canadian Air Division 1 Canadian Air Division (1 Cdn Air Div) () is the operational-level command and control formation of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Prior to 2006 the official abbreviation for the division was 1 CAD. It is commanded by an air force major-ge ...
(1 CAD) to provide one Hercules for global strategic transport. Missions include humanitarian airlift and support of other units of the Canadian Forces. Generally the destinations are in North America, the Caribbean, or Western Europe, but could be anywhere in the world.


References

;Notes ;Bibliography * Baker, D.J. ''A History of 413 Squadron''. Renfrew, Ontario: General Store Publishing House, 1997. . * Halley, James J. ''The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1981-1988''. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. . * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. . pp. 238–239. * * *


External links

* {{Canadian Armed Forces Royal Canadian Air Force squadrons Canadian Forces aircraft squadrons Military of British Ceylon Military units and formations established in 1968