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64 Squadron
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64 Squadron - A Brief History: Back to Top |
The Squadron was formed formed as a training unit on 1st August, 1916, at Sedgeford, it was equipped with FE2bs. It received DH5 fighters in June 1917 and in October moved to France to began operations. The DH5s were replaced by SE5As in March 1918, and conducted both fighter and ground-attack operations for the remainder of the war. It returned to Narborough in February 1919, where it disbanded on 31st December of the same year. The squadron was reformed at Heliopolis on 1st March, 1936, as a Demon fighter squadron, its aircraft having already been sent out and operated as extra flights of No's 6 and 208 Squadrons. It was immediately involved in the Abyssinian crisis carrying out attacks against enemy (Italian) airfields and providing fighter cover to refuelling bombers. With the crisis over the squadron returned to the Martlesham Heath to become part of the UK air defences. Turret Demons began arriving in February 1938, and Blenheim fighters in December, by which time the squadron was based at Church Fenton. From here it carried out coastal patrols before moving up to Evanton for defence of the fleet. The squadron converted to Spitfires in April 1940, just in time to assist with air cover for the Dunkirk evacuation and later took part in the Battle of Britain. From early 1941 the squadron then began a series of moves between Scotland and the south, providing defensive cover whilst up north and carrying out offensive operations from southern bases, equipped with various marks of Spitfire. However, in November 1944, the squadron converted to Mustangs and began long-range support duties to Bomber Command daylight raids. With the war in Europe over, the squadron settled at Horsham St Faith, where it received the De Havilland Hornet long-range fighter in May 1946. In August it moved to its new base of Linton-on-Ouse, where it remained until August 1951, when it took its Meteors, received in April, to Duxford. Duxford remained its base for ten years, with the squadron converting to the night fighter role there in 1956. In September 1958 the squadron adopted the all-weather fighter role when it received Javelins. These were taken to Singapore in April 1965, where it provided all-weather cover until disbanding on 16th June, 1967. Since then the squadron has been the 'Shadow'/Reserve identity of No 228 OCU, first at Coningsby from 16th May 1968, and then Leuchars, to where the OCU moved on 22nd April, 1987. When the OCU disbanded on 31st January, 1991, so did No 64 Squadron. |
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64 Squadron Codes: Back to Top XQ (February 1939 - September 1939) SH (September 1939 - April 1951) Note: Aircraft recognition codes were changed from 3rd September 1939 as a measure against German intelligence. |
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Aircraft Back to Top |
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Type 300 - "Spitfire" Mark I This was basically the same airframe as the prototype allowing for changes to facilitate a production line. The all up weight was increased to 5,720 lb, and a 998 HP Merlin II (later 953 HP Merlin 3) fitted. The airscrew was initially 2-blade fixed pitch, but was soon changed to a 2-pitch 3-blade design from either De Havilland or Rotol. Armament was eight 0.303 Browning machine guns. Terminology will change frequently through these descriptions, as it did originally, and one of these changes involved the Mk 1b Spitfire. The (b) suffix usually denotes a particular wing variant, but since there was only one wing type in this Mark, it refers to a limited number of airframes armed with 20 mm cannon. |
Type 329 - "Spitfire" Mark II The major change from the Mark I was the use of the 1,050 HP Merlin XII with higher supercharger gearing and a Coffman cartridge starter, enabling a level airspeed of 354 mph (570 kph) to be achieved. Fitted with a Rotol contant-speed 3-blade propeller. 921 were produced. The first Mark IIs were delivered to 611 Squadron in August 1940. |
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Type 349 - "Spitfire" Mark Vb With the arrival of the Me (Bf)109F an interim aircraft was produced by adding the latest Merlin to a strengthened airframe. They were powered by a 1,230 HP Merlin 45 or 46, with a maximum all-up weight of 6,170 lb. 3 patterns of wing were introduced:
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The Bristol Blenheim The Blenheim was a British high-speed light bomber used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was later adapted into a successful heavy fighter. A Canadian-made variant named the Bolingbroke was used as an anti-Submarine and training aircraft. It was the first British aircraft to have all-metal stressed skin construction and one of the first to utilize retractable landing gear, flaps, powered gun turret and variable-pitch propellers. When it first flew as Britain First at Filton on 12 April 1935, it proved to be faster than any fighter in service with the Royal Air Force at the time. The Air Ministry was obviously interested in such an aircraft, and quickly sent out Specification B.28/35 for prototypes of a bomber version of the Bristol called the Type 142M (M for "military"). |
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| The aircraft was all-metal with twin Bristol Mercury VIII radial engines of 860 hp (640 kW) each. It carried a crew of three – pilot, navigator/bombardier and gunner/wireless operator and was armed with a forward firing 0.303 inch (7.7 mm) machine gun outboard of the port engine and a 0.303 inch machine gun in a semi-retracting dorsal turret firing to the rear. A 1,000-lb (454 kg) bomb load was carried in the internal bay. To achieve its relatively high speed, the Blenheim had a very small fuselage. Pilot's quarters on the left side of the nose were so cramped that the control yoke obscured all flight instruments while engine instruments eliminated the forward view on landings. Most secondary instruments were arranged along the left side of the cockpit with essential items like propeller pitch control actually placed behind the pilot where they had to be operated by feel alone. By the start of the Second World War, fighter technology had eclipsed the Blenheim's speed advantage and it would only achieve moderate success as a bomber and coastal patrol aircraft. One of the greatest advantages that the Blenheim had over other fighter aircraft was its range. It could penetrate deep into enemy territory, that is provided that they did not come into contact with any other enemy fighters. With a top speed of only 263 mph (423 km/h) and cumbersome and slow in turning, it was soon eclipsed by other more modern types, nonetheless, the Blenheim continued in frontline service throughout the early years of the conflict. |
Aircraft of 64 Squadron from 1940: |
Note: In brackets are the dates upon which the aircraft arrived, and the pilot's name.
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Spitfire Mk I:
K9862 (19/07/40-P/O Gray); K9950 (29/09/40-P/O Salmond)(Fire in flight, pilot baled out on 28/11/41);N3059 (12/12/40-Sgt. Savage); N3108 (24/10/40-Sgt. Stone); N3122 (17/12/40-P/O Watson); R6684 (14/08/40-P/O Chadwick); R6700 (08/06/40-Sgt. Matthews); R6763 (06/12/40-P/O Jones); R6972 (23/08/40-Sgt. Choron); R6975 (24/07/40-P/O Pippet); R6977 (06/12/40-P/O Donahue) Spitfire Mk II: P6769 (11/12/40-Sgt. Cooper); P7384 (16/11/40); P7389 (10/06/41-P/O Divoy); P7555 (14/01/41); P7562 (16/01/41); P7605 (16/01/41); P7626 (16/01/41-P/O Beake); P7678 (16/01/41-P/O Rowden); P7690 (16/01/41); P7695 (16/01/41); P7747 (16/01/41); P7751 'City of Bradford' (16/01/41); P7770 (06/02/41-P/O Campbell); P7778 (14/01/41); P7781 (14/01/41-P/O Roberts); P7784 (22/03/41-P/O Rowden)(Shot down on 09/04/41. P/O Rowden killed); P7818 (24/02/41); P7794 (15/03/41-Sgt. Anderson); P7840 ' Mountains O Mourne' (14/02/41-Sgt. Thornber); P7881 (15/02/41-P/O Roberts); P8031 (15/03/41-S/Ldr Heath); P8035 (28/07/41-Sgt. Doherty); P8084 'Garfield Western VI' (11/04/41-Sgt. Campbell); P8135 (22/03/41-S/Ldr Kain); P8277 (26/04/41-Sgt. Thomas); P8345 (27/08/41-Sgt. Thomas); P8365 'Rotterdam' (15/06/41-P/O Conrad); P8428 (14/06/41-Sgt. Inkster); P8468 (02/07/41-P/O Campbell); P8513 (05/07/41-F/Lt Prevot); P8704 (14/08/41-P/O Taylor); P9450 (02/06/41-Sgt. Hopgood) (Shot down on 05/12/41. Sgt. Hopgood killed); P9555 (16/08/40-S/Ldr MacDonell); P9556 (16/08/40) (Force-landing in Rotherfiled, Sussex on 21/12/41); X4321 (14/12/40-P/O Watson); X4481 (24/11/40-P/O Hawkins); X4611 (27/11/40-P/O Tidman); X4647 (20/11/40-P/O Lawson-Brown); X4770 (27/11/40-P/O Donahue). Spitfire Mk Vb: W3563 (14/11/41-P/O Slade); W3802 (14/11/41-Sgt. Robinson) (Shot down on 28/03/42. Sgt. Robinson PoW); W3815 'Sierra LeoneII' (14/11/41-Sgt. Robinson); W3839 'Kettering District' (14/11/41-P/O Mertens); W3947 (14/11/41-Sgt. Robinson); AA372, AA937 (05/12/41-P/O Slade); AB490 (11/04/42-Sgt. Rogers); AB786 (14/11/41-P/O Conrad); AB921 (14/11/41-P/O Conrad); AD182 (21/11/41-S/Ldr Kain); AD252 (14/11/41-Sgt. Pearce); AD271 (14/11/41-Sgt. O'Connor); AD320 'Palembang Oeloe' (14/11/41-Sgt. Bennett); AD474 (18/11/41-P/O Colvin); BL232 (09/01/42-P/O Taylor); BL382 (09/01/42-Sgt. Walker); BL571 (13/04/42-P/O Baraw); BL717 (04/06/42-Sgt. Dickerson); BL724 (02/04/42-P/O Conrad) (Failed to return on 08/06/42. P/O Conrad missing); BL725 (16/02/42-F/Lt Prevot); BM120 (25/04/41-P/O Donnet); BM129 (20/05/42-Sgt. McQuaig); BM132 (15/06/42-F/Sgt. Goode); BM154 (12/04/42-Sgt. Rogers) (Damaged on ops 08/06/42); BM191 (27/03/42-P/O Divoy) (Failed to return on 04/04/42. P/O Divoy PoW); BM194 (27/03/42-F/Lt Ullsted); M254 (25/04/42-F/Sgt. Goode) (Shot down on 29/06/42. F/Sgt. Goode killed); BM268 (21/05/42-Sgt. Warnock) (Shot down on 08/06/42. Sgt. Warnock killed); BM269 (15/04/42-P/O Withy). |