No. 2 Squadron RAF
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| No. II (AC) Squadron | |
|---|---|
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| Active | 13 May 1912 (RFC) |
| Role | Reconnaissance |
| Garrison/HQ | RAF Marham |
| Equipment | Tornado GR4A |
| Motto | "Hereward" (Guardian of the Army) |
| Battle honours | Western Front 1914-1918, Neuve Chappelle, Ypres 1915, Somme 1916, France and Low Countries 1939-1940, Dunkirk, Normandy 1944, Arnhem, Gulf 1991, Iraq 2003 |
| Insignia | |
| Identification symbol |
Three concentric circles over all a Wake knot |
No. II (AC) Squadron of the Royal Air Force is currently one of two RAF squadrons oerating in the reconnaissance role with the Tornado GR4A and GR4 and is based at RAF Marham, Norfolk.
Contents |
[edit] History
Formed on 13 May 1912, along with 1 Sqn and 3 Sqn, 2 Sqn was a founder member of the Royal Flying Corps. Starting a role which continues to this day, the squadron spent World War I on reconnaissance duties in France flying, amongst other aircraft, the BE. 2.
The squadron gained the AC in its title in the inter-war years, flying Army Co-operation (AC) sorties during the troubles around the partition of Ireland in the early 1920s. After time in China during 1927 the Squadron re-equipped with the Armstrong Whitworth Atlas again on Army Co-operation work.
At the outbreak of World War II the unit was flying Lysanders. In France until the Dunkirk evacuation, the squadron equipped with fighters - the Tomahawk in 1940, the Mustang in 1942 and Spitfire Mk 14s in 1944
In July 1944, II (AC) Sqn returned to France, and the reconnaissance role, with Spitfire PR Mk 11s as part of the Army of Occupation.
The squadron spent much of the Cold War in Germany, flying various fighter types, including latterly Phantoms and then Jaguars. Along with the rest of the RAF, II (AC) Sqn withdrew from Germany in the late 1990s - moving to RAF Marham with its Tornado GR1As. These were upgraded to the latest GR4 standard, with which the squadron deployed at part of Operation Telic over Iraq in 2003.
[edit] Previous Aircraft Operated
[edit] Accolades
- 2nd Lt William Rhodes-Moorhouse, of 2 Sqn, was the first British airman to be awarded the Victoria Cross, during a raid on Kortrijk, Belgium on 26 April 1915.
- No 2 Sqn became the first RFC Squadron to cross the Channel to France, at the outbreak of World War I
