| No. 96 Squadron RAF | |
|---|---|
|
File:No. 92 Squadron RAF.jpg Official Squadron Badge of No. 96 Squadron RAF | |
| Active |
8 October 1917 - 4 July 1918 28 September 1918 - November 1918 18 December 1940 - 12 December 1944 21 December 1944 - 1 June 1946 17 November 1952 - 21 January 1959 |
| Country |
 United Kingdom |
| Branch |
8 October 1917 - 1 April 1918: post-April 1918: |
| Role |
Training unit Night Fighter unit Transport unit |
| Garrison/HQ |
RAF Wyton RAF Cranage RAF Wrexham RAF Honiley RAF Ford RAF Odiham RAF Leconfield RAF Cairo West RAF Kai Tak RAF Ahlhorn RAF Geilenkirchen |
| Motto(s) | (Latin): Nocturni obambulamus (English: We prowl by night) |
| Insignia | |
| Identification symbol | A lion passant facing to the sinister with ten stars representing the constellation of Leo |
| Identification symbol |
December 1940 - December 1944: ZJ |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Bomber | December 1944-April 1945: Handley Page Halifax |
| Fighter |
December 1940 - March 1942: Hawker Hurricane February 1941 - June 1942: Boulton Paul Defiant May 1942 - June 1943: Bristol Beaufighter June 1943 - December 1944: de Havilland Mosquito |
No. 96 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron. The squadron served on the Western Front during World War II and the Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II. No. 96 Squadron served in a variety of roles such as night fighter cover and transportation. It was disbanded in 1959, when its personnel was assigned to No. 3 Squadron.
History[]
No. 96 Squadron was formed on October 8, 1917 at Lincolnshire as an aircrew training unit of the Royal Flying Corps, the air force of the British Army during most of World War I.[1] The unit was disbanded on July 4, 1918 but was reformed at St. Ives, Cambridgeshire on September 28, 1918 as a ground attack squadron of the Royal Air Force.[1]
The headquarters of the squadron at that time were located at RAF Wyton. On November 11, 1918 an armistice between the Allies and the German Empire was signed, marking the end of World War I. As a consequence No. 96 Squadron was disbanded by the end of November, 1918 before becoming operational.[1]
World War II[]
On December 18 No. 422 Flight squadron, a night fighter unit stationed at RAF Shoreham was renamed to No. 96 Squadron. The squadron's headquarters were located at RAF Cranage in Cheshire. The Squadron moved to Bilaspur in India in May 1945.
Post World War II[]
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Aircraft operated[]
| Dates | Aircraft | Variant | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1918[2] | Sopwith Salamander | Single-engined ground attack biplane | |
| 1940-1941[2] | Hawker Hurricane | I | Single-engined fighter |
| 1941-1942[2] | Boulton Paul Defiant | I | Single-engined fighter |
| 1941-1942[2] | Hawker Hurricane | IIC | Single-engined fighter |
| 1942[2] | Boulton Paul Defiant | IA and II | Single-engined fighter |
| 1942-1943[2] | Bristol Beaufighter | IIF and VIF | Twin-engined ground attack |
| 1943-1944[2] | de Havilland Mosquito | XIII | Twin-engined light bomber |
| 1944-1945[2] | Handley Page Halifax | III | Four-engined heavy bomber |
| 1945-1946[2] | Douglas Dakota | Twin-engined transport | |
| 1952-1959[2] | Gloster Meteor | NF11 | Twin-engined jet night-fighter |
| 1958-1959[2] | Gloster Javelin | FAW4 | Twin-engined jet fighter/interceptor |
See also[]
References[]
Notes[]
Bibliography[]
- Jefford, C.G. (1988). RAF Squadrons. Airlife Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
- "History of No. 96 Squadron". Royal Air Force. http://www.raf.mod.uk/history_old/h96.html. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
External links[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to No. 96 Squadron RAF. |
The original article can be found at No. 96 Squadron RAF and the edit history here.