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No. 692 Squadron RAF

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No. 692 (Fellowship of the Bellows) Squadron RAF
Active1 January 1944 – 20 September 1945
CountryUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom
BranchRoyal Air Force
RoleLight Bomber Squadron
Part ofNo. 8 Group RAF,Bomber Command
Nickname(s)Fellowship of the Bellows
Motto(s)Latin:Polus Dum Sidera Pascet
(Translation: "So long as the sky shall feed the stars" )[1][2]
Commanders
Notable
commanders		S/Ldr.(then) S.D. Watts, the first pilot to drop a 4,000 lbs "Cookie".[1]
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldryIn front of a pair of wings conjoined in base, a dagger, point downwards[1][2]
Squadron CodesP3(Jan 1944 – Jun 1945)[3][4][5]
Aircraft flown
Bomberde Havilland Mosquito

No. 692 Squadron RAFwas a light bomber squadron of theRoyal Air Forceduring theSecond World War.

History

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Loading a 4,000-lb "Cookie" onto a Mosquito B Mk IV atRAF Graveley

The squadron was formed on 1 January 1944 atRAF Graveley,Huntingdonshireas a light bomber unit,[2]equipped withMosquito Mk.IVbombers, as part of theLight Night Striking ForceofNo. 8 Group RAFinBomber Command.It re-equipped with Mosquito Mk.XVI bombers from March 1944 and by June 1944 the squadron had completely switched over to the newer variant.[2][6]

It was the first squadron to carry 4,000 lb bombs in Mosquitos,[1]used in an attack onDüsseldorf.[7]The squadron was also the first Mosquito unit to carry out minelaying operations.[7]Most operations were at low level, including one mission when the squadron dropped 4,000 lb bombs into the mouth of tunnels in the Ardennes.[1]At the end of thewarthe squadron was disbanded on 20 September 1945 atRAF Gransden Lodge,Cambridgeshire.[2][8] The squadron had carried out 3,237 operational sorties (though one source claims a far lower number of sorties, 1,457[9]) for the loss of 17 aircraft.[10]

Aircraft operated

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Aircraft operated by no. 692 Squadron RAF, data from[2][6][8]
From To Aircraft Variant
January 1944 June 1944 de Havilland Mosquito Mk.IV
March 1944 September 1945 de Havilland Mosquito Mk.XVI

Commanding officers

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Though bearing the squadron markings of571 Squadronhere, this aircraft, Mosquito Mk.XVI ML963, was first issued to109 Squadronon 9 March 1944, going on to 692 squadron on the 24 of the same month.
Officers commanding no. 692 Squadron RAF, data from[9]
From To Name
January 1944 March 1944 W/Cdr.W.G. Lockhart,DSO,DFC
March 1944 July 1944 W/Cdr. S.D. Watts, DFC (RNZAF)
July 1944 September 1945 W/Cdr. J. Northrop, DFC,AFC

Squadron Airfields

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Stations and airfields used by No. 692 Squadron RAF, data from[2][6][8]
From To Name Remark
1 January 1944 4 June 1944 RAF Graveley,Huntingdonshire Formed here
4 June 1944 20 September 1945 RAF Gransden Lodge,Cambridgeshire Disbanded here

See also

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References

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Notes

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  1. ^abcdeMoyes 1976,p. 291.
  2. ^abcdefgHalley 1988,p. 457.
  3. ^Bowyer & Rawlings 1979,p. 84.
  4. ^Bowyer 1984,p. 142.
  5. ^Flintham & Thomas 2003,p. 96.
  6. ^abcMoyes 1976,p. 292.
  7. ^abBowyer 1984,p. 132.
  8. ^abcJefford 2001,p. 106.
  9. ^abBowyer 1984,p. 135.
  10. ^Falconer 2003,p. 257.

Bibliography

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  • Bowman, Martin (1997).Mosquito Bomber/Fighter-Bomber Units, 1942–45.Botley, Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing.ISBN978-1-85532-690-3.
  • Bowyer, Chaz (1984).Mosquito Squadrons of the Royal Air Force.Shepperton, Surrey, UK: Ian Allan Ltd.ISBN0-7110-1425-6.
  • Bowyer, Michael J.F.; Rawlings, John D.R. (1979).Squadron Codes, 1937–56.Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd.ISBN0-85059-364-6.
  • Falconer, Jonathan (2003).Bomber Command Handbook, 1939–1945.Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK: Sutton Publishing.ISBN0-7509-3171-X.
  • Flintham, Vic; Thomas, Andrew (2003).Combat Codes: A Full Explanation and Listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied Air Force Unit Codes since 1938.Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd.ISBN1-84037-281-8.
  • Halley, James J. (1988).The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988.Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd.ISBN0-85130-164-9.
  • Jefford, C.G. (2001).RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912(2nd ed.). Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd.ISBN1-85310-053-6.
  • Moyes, Philip J.R. (1976).Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft.London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd.ISBN0-354-01027-1.
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