No. 270 Squadron RAF

No. 270 Squadron RAF
Short Sunderland
Active	6 October 1918 - 15 September 1919 12 November 1942 – 30 June 1945
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Type	Flying squadron
Role	Maritime patrolandanti-submarine warfare
Part of	West Africa Command

No. 270 Squadron RAFwas aRoyal Air Forcesquadron which disbanded at the end of June 1945. It operated both in theFirstandSecond World War,mainly as an anti-shipping and anti-submarine squadron. It initially formed during October 1918 lasting around eleven months and disbanded in September 1919, merging intoNo. 269 Sqn.It reformed in November 1942.

First World War

No. 270 Squadron was formed atAlexandriainEgyptfrom three flights (354, 355 and 356), on 6 October 1918.(Nos 354, 355 & 356 (Flying Boat) Flights were planned to be formed at Alexandria, on 6 October 1918.Seaplane Squadron, Alexandria was a designation for the merging of 354, 355, and 356 Coastal Patrol Flights prior to becoming 270 Squadron)It was equipped withfloatplanesandflying boats,operating withFelixstowe F.3,Sopwith BabyandShort Type 184.The main role was coastalreconnaissancewhich it continued to do until it was disbanded on 15 September 1919 when it was absorbed into269 Squadron.

Second World War

The squadron was re-formed on 12 November 1942 atRAF Jui,inSierra Leone,withConsolidated CatalinaIB an American flying boat andamphibious aircraft.It flew sorties into the mid-AtlanticoffWest Africaonanti-submarinepatrols,sinking a U-boat in January 1943. It was also tasked with finding ships trying to break the blockade on Vichy France ports.The squadron had detachments atRAF Bathurst,inthe Gambia,andFisherman's Lake,in westernLiberia.

In July 1943 the squadron moved toLagos,inNigeria,to be based atRAF Apapaand at the end of that year it re-equipped with the four-enginedShort Sunderlandflying boatpatrol bomber.The squadron operated detachments atRAF Jui,AbidjanandLibreville.No. 270 Squadron was disbanded, after the war in the Atlantic had ended, on 30 June 1945 at Apapa, Nigeria.

Aircraft operated

Dates	Aircraft	Variant	Notes
1918	Short 184		Single-engined torpedo seaplane
1918	Felixstowe F.3		Twin-engined reconnaissance flying boat
1918	Sopwith Baby		Single-engined seaplane
1942–1944	Consolidated Catalina	IB	Twin-engined flying boat
1943–1945	Short Sunderland	III	Four-engined flying boat

References

Bibliography

• The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982–1985).Orbis Publishing. 1985.
• Jefford, C. G. (1988).RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912.Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing.ISBN1-85310-053-6.
• Jefford, C. G. (2001).RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912.Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing.ISBN1-84037-141-2..

External links

• No 266 – 270 Squadron Histories