No. 60 Squadron RAF
Encyclopedia
No. 60 Squadron of the Royal Air Force
was formed in 1916 at Gosport
. It is currently part of the Defence Helicopter Flying School
based at RAF Shawbury
in Shropshire
.
The Squadron crest is a markhor
's head and was approved by King George VI in December 1937. Chosen to commemorate many years of service in North-West India, the markhor being a mountain goat frequenting the Khyber Pass
. The horns of a markhor were presented to the Squadron in 1964.
The Squadron motto is Per ardua ad aethera tendo - 'I strive through difficulties to the sky'.
on 30 April 1916, barely a month had passed before the unit and its Morane Scouts were despatched to France
. After suffering heavy losses during the Battle of the Somme, the Squadron re-equipped with Nieuport Scouts and soon acquired a first-class reputation for itself. On 2 June 1917, Captain
WA "Billy" Bishop
received the Victoria Cross
for his solo attack on a German aerodrome destroying three enemy aircraft in the air and several 'probables' on the ground before returning unhurt in a badly damaged aircraft. A month later, S.E.5
fighters arrived and these remained with the Squadron until it was disbanded on 22 January 1920.
The squadron claimed 320 aerial victories. Twenty-six flying aces served in the squadron during the war; notable among them were Victoria Cross winner Albert Ball
,
Frank O. Soden,
Harold A. Hamersley
,
James Belgrave
,
Alfred William Saunders
,
Alexander Beck
,
William J. A. Duncan,
Robert L. Chidlaw-Roberts
,
John Doyle
,
future Air Commodore
Keith Caldwell
,
Gordon Duncan
,
Herbert Hegarty
,
Alan Duncan Bell-Irving
,
John Griffith
,
Spencer B. Horn
,
William Molesworth
,
Sydney Pope
,
William M. Fry,
Alan Scott
, and
Robert Kenneth Whitney
.
in India
on 1 April 1920, the Squadron, now equipped with de Havilland bombers, began an association with the Middle and Far East that was to last for 48 years. Between the wars, the unit found itself involved in many conflicts along the North West Frontier
, flying Airco DH.9A
and Westland Wapiti
general-purpose aircraft until Bristol Blenheim
s arrived six months before the start of World War II
.
fighter-bombers, attacking targets in Burma until May 1945 when American-built Thunderbolt fighters arrived.
and was soon in action against Indonesia
n rebels. A year later, No 60 transferred to Singapore
prior to converting to Supermarine Spitfire
F18s and these were employed in attacks against Communist guerrillas in Malaya
until the arrival of Vampires
in late 1950 and then Venoms
in 1955.
By the time Meteor
night-fighters arrived in October 1959, the unit had returned to RAF Tengah in Singapore. A change followed in July 1961 when Javelin
fighters arrived and these remained until April 1968 when the Squadron was disbanded. On 3 February 1969, the Royal Air Force Communications Squadron based at RAF Wildenrath
in Germany was retitled No 60 Squadron and the unit found itself flying ancient Pembroke
transports until more modern Andovers arrived in 1987. As with many other Germany-based units, the end of the cold war saw many moves. No 60 disbanded at Wildenrath on 1 April 1992 but reformed two months on 1 June 1992 at RAF Benson
in Oxfordshire
with Westland Wessex
helicopters. This proved a short-lived stay and the Squadron was disbanded on 31 March 1997 and the numberplate passed on to the RAF element of the Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury on 1 May 1997.
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
was formed in 1916 at Gosport
Gosport
Gosport is a town, district and borough situated on the south coast of England, within the county of Hampshire. It has approximately 80,000 permanent residents with a further 5,000-10,000 during the summer months...
. It is currently part of the Defence Helicopter Flying School
Defence Helicopter Flying School
The Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury, a Royal Air Force station near Shrewsbury, England, trains aircrew from all three of the Armed Forces.-Squadrons:The DHFS has three flying squadrons:...
based at RAF Shawbury
RAF Shawbury
RAF Shawbury is a Royal Air Force station by the village of Shawbury near Shrewsbury, Shropshire.The station at Shawbury was first used for military flying training in 1917 by the Royal Flying Corps, but it was returned to agricultural use in 1920. In 1938 it was reactivated as a training...
in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
.
The Squadron crest is a markhor
Markhor
The Markhor is a large species of wild goat that is found in northeastern Afghanistan, Pakistan , India, southern Tajikistan and southern Uzbekistan...
's head and was approved by King George VI in December 1937. Chosen to commemorate many years of service in North-West India, the markhor being a mountain goat frequenting the Khyber Pass
Khyber Pass
The Khyber Pass, is a mountain pass linking Pakistan and Afghanistan.The Pass was an integral part of the ancient Silk Road. It is mentioned in the Bible as the "Pesh Habor," and it is one of the oldest known passes in the world....
. The horns of a markhor were presented to the Squadron in 1964.
The Squadron motto is Per ardua ad aethera tendo - 'I strive through difficulties to the sky'.
World War I service
Formed at GosportGosport
Gosport is a town, district and borough situated on the south coast of England, within the county of Hampshire. It has approximately 80,000 permanent residents with a further 5,000-10,000 during the summer months...
on 30 April 1916, barely a month had passed before the unit and its Morane Scouts were despatched to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. After suffering heavy losses during the Battle of the Somme, the Squadron re-equipped with Nieuport Scouts and soon acquired a first-class reputation for itself. On 2 June 1917, Captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
WA "Billy" Bishop
Billy Bishop
Air Marshal William Avery "Billy" Bishop VC, CB, DSO & Bar, MC, DFC, ED was a Canadian First World War flying ace, officially credited with 72 victories, making him the top Canadian ace, and according to some sources, the top ace of the British Empire.-Early life:Bishop was born in Owen Sound,...
received the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
for his solo attack on a German aerodrome destroying three enemy aircraft in the air and several 'probables' on the ground before returning unhurt in a badly damaged aircraft. A month later, S.E.5
Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 was a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. Although the first examples reached the Western Front before the Sopwith Camel and it had a much better overall performance, problems with its Hispano-Suiza engine, particularly the geared-output H-S...
fighters arrived and these remained with the Squadron until it was disbanded on 22 January 1920.
The squadron claimed 320 aerial victories. Twenty-six flying aces served in the squadron during the war; notable among them were Victoria Cross winner Albert Ball
Albert Ball
Albert Ball VC, DSO & Two Bars, MC was an English fighter pilot of the First World War and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that can be awarded to members of the British or Commonwealth armed forces...
,
Frank O. Soden,
Harold A. Hamersley
Harold A. Hamersley
Harold Alan Hamersley MC was an Australian World War I flying ace credited with 13 confirmed aerial victories. He later went on to serve in the Royal Air Force following the war, serving in India and reaching the rank of group captain before retiring.-World War I service:Hamersely was born on 6...
,
James Belgrave
James Belgrave
Captain James Dacres Belgrave was a World War I flying ace credited with 18 aerial victories.-Reference:...
,
Alfred William Saunders
Alfred William Saunders
Captain Alfred William Saunders was an Irish-born World War flying ace. While flying for the Royal Air Force, he was credited with 12 official aerial victories and won the DFC. He remained in the RAF postwar, serving until 1927.-World War I:...
,
Alexander Beck
Alexander Beck
Captain Alexander Beck was an Anglo-Argentinian aviator during World War I. He was an underage enlistee who went on to become a flying ace credited with 11 official aerial victories.-Early life:...
,
William J. A. Duncan,
Robert L. Chidlaw-Roberts
Robert L. Chidlaw-Roberts
Captain Robert Leslie Chidlaw-Roberts was a British World War I flying ace credited with ten aerial victories.Chidlaw-Roberts joined the Royal Flying Corps in 1915. His first aerial duty was six months spent as an observer/gunner with 2 Squadron...
,
John Doyle
John Doyle (aviator)
John E. Doyle DFC was a British World War 1 pilot credited with 9 confirmed victories. He was shot down on September 6, 1918 and taken prisoner and his right leg, which had become gangrenous from a bullet wound in his ankle, was amputated at the upper thigh...
,
future Air Commodore
Air Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Keith Caldwell
Keith Caldwell
Air Commodore Keith Logan "Grid" Caldwell CBE, MC, DFC & Bar was a New Zealand fighter ace of the Royal Flying Corps in World War I who also rose to the rank of Air Commodore in the Royal New Zealand Air Force during World War II.-Early life:Born in Wellington, the son of David Robert Caldwell and...
,
Gordon Duncan
Gordon Duncan (aviator)
Flight Commander Gordon Metcalfe Duncan DFC was a Scottish flying ace of the Royal Flying Corps in World War 1.Early life...
,
Herbert Hegarty
Herbert Hegarty
Captain Herbert George Hegarty was a World War I flying ace credited with eight aerial victories.-Reference:...
,
Alan Duncan Bell-Irving
Alan Duncan Bell-Irving
Air Commodore Alan Duncan Bell-Irving began his military aviation career as a Canadian flying ace in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I. He served in the RCAF during World War II....
,
John Griffith
John Griffith (aviator)
Lieutenant John Sharpe Griffith was a World War I flying ace credited with seven aerial victories. Post war, he flew for the White Army forces in Russia. He returned to service during World War II, and finally retired in 1956.-World War I:...
,
Spencer B. Horn
Spencer B. Horn
Captain Spencer Bertram Horn was a World War I flying ace credited with thirteen aerial victories.Horn was the youngest of seven children born to Penelope Elizabeth Belt and William Austin Horn...
,
William Molesworth
William Molesworth (aviator)
Major William Earle Molesworth was a World War I flying ace credited with 18 aerial victories.Molesworth attended Marlborough College from 1908 - 1912. He then moved on to RMC Sandhurst from 1912 - 1914. On 8 August 1914, he was commissioned second lieutenant in the Royal Munster Fusiliers. He went...
,
Sydney Pope
Sydney Pope
Lieutenant Sydney Leo Gregory Pope was a World War I flying ace credited with six aerial victories. He made the Royal Air Force his career, serving up until World War II. Retired 1946 after serving in Bomber command B5 Group...
,
William M. Fry,
Alan Scott
Alan Scott (British Army officer)
Group Captain Alan John Lance Scott CB MC AFC was an officer in the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force during World War I and the following years....
, and
Robert Kenneth Whitney
Robert Kenneth Whitney
Robert Kenneth Whitney DFC was a Canadian First World War flying ace, officially credited with 5 victories.Whitney joined 60 Squadron on 21 February 1918; they were equipped with Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5as. He did not win until 7 July, when he set a DFW reconnaissance afire. He destroyed...
.
The interwar years
Reformed at LahoreLahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
on 1 April 1920, the Squadron, now equipped with de Havilland bombers, began an association with the Middle and Far East that was to last for 48 years. Between the wars, the unit found itself involved in many conflicts along the North West Frontier
North-West Frontier (military history)
The North-West Frontier was the most difficult area, from a military point of view, of the former British India in the Indian sub-continent. It remains the frontier of present-day Pakistan, extending from the Pamir Knot in the north to the Koh-i-Malik Siah in the west, and separating the...
, flying Airco DH.9A
Airco DH.9A
The Airco DH.9A was a British light bomber designed and first used shortly before the end of the First World War. Colloquially known as the "Ninak" , it served on in large numbers for the Royal Air Force following the end of the war, both at home and overseas, where it was used for colonial...
and Westland Wapiti
Westland Wapiti
The Westland Wapiti was a British two-seat general purpose military single-engined biplane of the 1920s. It was designed and built by Westland Aircraft Works to replace the Airco DH.9A in Royal Air Force service....
general-purpose aircraft until Bristol Blenheim
Bristol Blenheim
The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...
s arrived six months before the start of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
World War II
After moving to Burma in February 1941, the Squadron suffered heavily at the hands of the advancing Japanese forces and was eventually declared non-operational and moved to India a year later. During 1943, No 60 Squadron converted to Hawker HurricaneHawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...
fighter-bombers, attacking targets in Burma until May 1945 when American-built Thunderbolt fighters arrived.
Post World War II
Shortly after the Japanese surrender, the Squadron moved to JavaJava
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
and was soon in action against Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n rebels. A year later, No 60 transferred to Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
prior to converting to Supermarine Spitfire
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...
F18s and these were employed in attacks against Communist guerrillas in Malaya
Federation of Malaya
The Federation of Malaya is the name given to a federation of 11 states that existed from 31 January 1948 until 16 September 1963. The Federation became independent on 31 August 1957...
until the arrival of Vampires
De Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British jet-engine fighter commissioned by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Following the Gloster Meteor, it was the second jet fighter to enter service with the RAF. Although it arrived too late to see combat during the war, the Vampire served...
in late 1950 and then Venoms
De Havilland Venom
The de Havilland DH 112 Venom was a British postwar single-engined jet aircraft developed from the de Havilland Vampire. It served with the Royal Air Force as a single-seat fighter-bomber and two-seat night fighter....
in 1955.
By the time Meteor
Gloster Meteor
The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...
night-fighters arrived in October 1959, the unit had returned to RAF Tengah in Singapore. A change followed in July 1961 when Javelin
Gloster Javelin
The Gloster Javelin was an "all-weather" interceptor aircraft that served with Britain's Royal Air Force in the late 1950s and most of the 1960s...
fighters arrived and these remained until April 1968 when the Squadron was disbanded. On 3 February 1969, the Royal Air Force Communications Squadron based at RAF Wildenrath
RAF Wildenrath
The former Royal Air Force Station Wildenrath, commonly known as RAF Wildenrath, was a Royal Air Force military airbase which opened on 15 January 1952. Wildenrath was the first of four 'Clutch' stations built for the RAF in Germany during the early 1950s...
in Germany was retitled No 60 Squadron and the unit found itself flying ancient Pembroke
Percival Pembroke
-See also:-Bibliography:* The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft London: Orbis Publishing, 1985.* Jackson, A.J. British Civil Aircraft since 1919 . London: Putnam, 1974. ISBN 0-370-10014-X....
transports until more modern Andovers arrived in 1987. As with many other Germany-based units, the end of the cold war saw many moves. No 60 disbanded at Wildenrath on 1 April 1992 but reformed two months on 1 June 1992 at RAF Benson
RAF Benson
RAF Benson is a Royal Air Force station near Benson in South Oxfordshire, England. It is home to the Royal Air Force's support helicopters, the Aérospatiale Puma and the EH-101 Merlin, known as the Puma HC.Mk 1 and the Merlin HC.Mk 3 and Mk 3a....
in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
with Westland Wessex
Westland Wessex
The Westland Wessex is a British turbine-powered version of the Sikorsky S-58 "Choctaw", developed under license by Westland Aircraft , initially for the Royal Navy, and later for the Royal Air Force...
helicopters. This proved a short-lived stay and the Squadron was disbanded on 31 March 1997 and the numberplate passed on to the RAF element of the Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury on 1 May 1997.