Country United Kingdom Role Quick Reaction Alert | Branch Royal Air Force Garrison/HQ RAF Lossiemouth | |
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Active 31 January 1914–present Nickname(s) "The Flying Can Openers" | ||
No. 6 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 at RAF Lossiemouth. It was previously equipped with the Jaguar GR.3 in the close air support and tactical reconnaissance roles, and was posted to RAF Coltishall, Norfolk until April 2006, moving to RAF Coningsby until disbanding in May 2007. The squadron officially reformed as a Typhoon squadron on 6 September 2010.
Contents
First World War
No. 6 Squadron's motto Oculi Exercitus (The Eyes of the Army) and the badge depicting an eagle attacking a serpent were gained as a result of fighter defence of army units during the First World War.
The squadron was formed on 31 January 1914, at Farnborough as No. 6 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps. Its first squadron commander was Major John Becke. The squadron had an initial aircraft inventory of two Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2s and two Farmans, with the squadron also initially incorporating a flight operating man-lifting kite.
The bird depicted on the squadron badge is a falcon, with the snake serving two purposes, one the then (First World War) obvious anti-Central Powers symbolism, the second to circumvent the rules about squadron badges featuring a squadron's number. The cunningly coiled snake (rumoured to have been cooked up by No. 6 Squadron members Louis Strange and Lanoe Hawker) neatly sidestepped the regulations.
The squadron were pioneers in military aviation, being blessed with the presence of Louis Strange and Lanoe Hawker VC - the former an "ideas man" - almost a mad professor - the latter a skilled engineer who became the first British flying ace. Their dual talents led to some ingenious mountings for machine guns, the use of which won Hawker the first air combat Victoria Cross for his actions on 25 July 1915 and nearly cost Strange his life, when he reached up to change the drum on a Lewis gun he had mounted on the top plane of his Martinsyde (long before the Foster Mount became de rigueur) and the machine flipped on its back, threw Strange from the cockpit and went into a flat spin from 10,000 ft (3,000 m). Strange, hanging for dear life to the drum of the Lewis gun, managed to get back into the cockpit and right the aircraft within 500 ft (150 m) of the ground. He returned to the aerodrome and quietly disappeared, sleeping for the best part of 24 hours, telling no-one of the incident. Unfortunately for Strange, the German machine he had been firing at witnessed the whole incident and assumed that their brave attacker had perished. As was the custom, they dropped a wreath and with it a letter describing the manner of Strange's death and a bashful Strange found his escapade written into aviation history. Needless to say, his next invention was a pilot's safety harness!
Strange went on to be decorated for bravery in combat in both world wars and help to initiate, develop and organise the UK's sole parachute training facility at RAF Ringway near Manchester in 1940, and then the catapult Hurricane system (CAM ship). Hawker died in 1916, after an epic one-to-one battle with Baron von Richthofen.
Other members of No. 6 Squadron RFC included several men who went on to find fame in the Second World War, including Hugh Dowding.
Inter-war years
Following the Armistice, the squadron transferred to Iraq, arriving in July 1919. Operating in the army co-operation role in Northern Iraq, it was equipped with Bristol Fighters.
The squadron remained there for ten years before moving to Egypt in 1929. At the same time, it re-equipped with Fairey Gordons and assumed the bomber role, Hawker Harts replacing these in 1935. Following problems in Palestine, the squadron relocated there in 1938, reverting to the army co-operation role with Hawker Hardys, adding Gloster Gauntlets and Westland Lysanders later.
Second World War
During the early part of the Second World War, the squadron operated in the army co-operation role with Westland Lysanders from Palestine, but detached aircraft to the Western Desert until 1941 when Hawker Hurricanes were on strength. Co-operation with ground units was vital during sorties around this time. During one mission, Flight Lieutenant McFall, carrying out a Lysander reconnaissance, located the enemy unit and then landed beside Allied gun batteries in order to direct the fire.
Further action in the desert on anti-tank duties continued from 1942 until the end of the North African campaign. Flying the tank-busting, 40 mm cannon-firing Hawker Hurricane Mk. IID, the squadron excelled over the desert, destroying many Axis armoured targets. This is where they earned the nickname "The Flying Tin Openers".
One of the flight commanders, Flight Lieutenant 'Pip' Hillier was awarded the DFC after some 13 confirmed tank 'kills'. Unfortunately, he was killed in August 1942 whilst demonstrating the squadrons tactics to the press, having served with the squadron since 1938 in Palestine. His DFC citation in the London Gazette states:
Flight Lieutenant Philip Snowdon-Alexander HILLIER (41409) No. 6 Squadron. .. In June, 1942, this officer participated in 2 sorties against a column of enemy armoured vehicles near Sidi Rezegh. On his first sortie, in the face of heavy fire, he made 4 low level attacks on the target, hitting several tanks. On his second sortie, he flew so low that part of the tail, unit snapped off on the turret of one of the vehicles he attacked.Despite the damage sustained to his aircraft he flew it safely to base. Flight Lieutenant Hillier played a gallant part in the operations which were attended with much success.
In the spring of 1944, the squadron moved to a coastal field south-east of Termoli, Italy. The squadron flew Hurricane Mk.IVs equipped with rocket projectiles. Moored Axis ships were attacked at Yugoslav harbours and the Dalmatian islands. They were strongly defended by anti-aircraft gunners on Siebel ferries with their multiple guns, as the ships were being used to supply the German forces. Squadron detachments were also made to Bastia in Corsica, Araxos near Patras in Greece, Brindisi, and near Ancona. A fixed 44-gallon extra petrol tank under the port wing increased the Hurricanes' duration to almost three hours at 160 mph cruising speed. The airfield on Vis (island) was extensively used as an advanced base from May 1944 to February 1945, usually to top up tanks before each armed reconnaissance. Occasionally, inland targets like barracks and headquarters were attacked. Combined operations with Tito's forces were also carried out.
Post-Second World War/Cold War
In July 1945, the squadron moved to Palestine. They cooperated with the police, patrolling the Kirkuk-to-Haifa oil pipeline to prevent terrorist attacks. The squadron remained in the Middle East until 1969. During this period, the squadron went from being equipped with Hurricanes (and for a brief period four Spitfires due to a lack of available Hurricanes) to Hawker Tempest Mk. VIs and subsequently De Havilland Vampire FB.5s. In January 1950 the squadron moved to RAF Habbaniya in Iraq with many moves back and forth between RAF Habbaniya and RAF Shaibah in Iraq, RAF Abu Sueir and RAF Deversoir in the Suez Canal Zone, RAF Nicosia in Cyprus, RAF Mafraq and RAF Amman in Jordan and detachments throughout the Middle East. During the early 1950s the squadron developed a close relationship with Jordan and King Talal and King Hussein. Throughout this period, it continued to operate Vampires and a twin-seat Gloster Meteor T.7 until re-equipped with De Haviland Venom FB1 in February 1954 and the Venom FB4 in June 1955.
In 1956, after a brief period back at RAF Habbaniya in Iraq the squadron returned to Cyprus and operated from RAF Akrotiri. From there it attacked Egyptian airfields during the Suez Crisis. In 1957, the squadron again re-equipped, this time with English Electric Canberras, which it continued to operate from Akrotiri until 1969.
Having been located outside of the UK for 50 years, the squadron returned in 1969 and was the first to receive the Phantom FGR2 at RAF Coningsby the same year, before re-equipping with the Jaguar GR1 and T2 at RAF Lossiemouth in 1974. The squadron then moved to RAF Coltishall, being declared operational in the tactical nuclear role with twelve aircraft and eight WE.177 nuclear bombs until 1994, when the squadron's nuclear role was terminated and the weapons withdrawn.
Post-Cold War
The squadron continued at RAF Coltishall in its non-nuclear role until Coltishall closed on 1 April 2006, and the squadron moved to RAF Coningsby. The squadron's aircraft were deployed to the Gulf as part of Operation Granby (Gulf War), for which it received battle honours, and later as part of the Northern No-Fly-Zone. The squadron deployed to Italy for operations over Bosnia from 1993.
The squadron was the last to fly the SEPECAT Jaguar, and was disbanded on 31 May 2007. The Jaguar's intended replacement in RAF service was the Eurofighter Typhoon. The RAF announced that No. 6 Squadron was to be the fourth operational front-line squadron equipped with the Typhoon and the first with Tranche 2 aircraft, initially scheduled to reform in 2008 at RAF Leuchars in Fife. However, this was delayed until 2010, with the squadron reforming at RAF Leuchars on 6 September 2010, when a closed standing-up ceremony was performed to mark the squadron's reforming, including the arrival of the new Typhoon aircraft in 6 Squadron colours from RAF Coningsby. It has taken over the role of Quick Reaction Alert for the north of the United Kingdom from No. 111 Squadron RAF, the RAF's last Panavia Tornado F3 squadron, in March 2011. In November 2011 four Typhoons from No. 6 Squadron flew to RMAF Butterworth to participate in aerial wargames for the 40th anniversary of the Five Power Defence Arrangements. In August 2013, several Typhoons from No. 6 were exercising with HMS Dragon and US fighters in the Gulf. In June 2014, the squadron began to move to its new home in RAF Lossiemouth.