No. 149 Squadron RAF
Encyclopedia
No. 149 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force
Squadron between 1918 and 1956. Formed 1918 in the Royal Flying Corps
as a night-bomber
unit, it remained in that role for the rest of its existence which spanned three periods between 1918 and 1956.
, near Yapton
, West Sussex
, as No. 149 (NB) Squadron RFC
, the squadron soon moved to France for night bombing missions above occupied France and Belgium, flying Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2
s. After the war the squadron for three months took part in the occupation force in Germany, being stationed at Bickendorf
, moving to Ireland in March 1919 where the squadron was disbanded on 1 August 1919.
on 12 April 1937 under No. 3 Group RAF
at RAF Mildenhall
, Suffolk
where it remained until April 1942. Initially equipped with Heyford
biplane bombers, the squadron converted to Vickers Wellington
s in January 1939. On 4 September 1939 L4259 was flown on "Ops Brunsbüttel 4/500 GP", the day after the decaration of war against Germany
by Great Britain
. (Source Pilot's Logbook).
After being re-equipped with the Short Stirling
in November 1941, the squadron took part in the first 1,000 bomber raid. The squadron also formed No. 149 Squadron Conversion flight on 21 January 1942 to train new Stirling crews and on 7 October this was formed into 1657 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU) together with 7, 101 and 218 Squadron Conversion Flights. In August 1944, the Stirlings gave way to Avro Lancaster
s, which served the squadron until 1949. At the end of the war no. 149 squadron participated in Operation Manna, to drop food to the starved Dutch population still under German occupation, and Operation 'Exodus', to return former prisoners of war back to the UK.
, moving to RAF Tuddenham
in April 1946 and then later in November on to RAF Stradishall
. In February 1949 the sqaudron returned to RAF Mildenhall
, where the Lancasters were replaced with Avro Lincoln
s. The squadron remained at Mildenhall until disbanding on 1 March 1950.
Retirement was short though, because on 14 August 1950 the squadron was reformed as the RAF's first Boeing Washington
bomber unit, moving to RAF Coningsby
in October of that year. The Washingtons were on loan by the RAF from the USAF
as an interim nuclear bomber pending the arrival of the RAF's own jet bomber, the Canberra
. The squadron reequipped with the Canberra in March 1953 and in August 1954 it relocated to RAF Ahlhorn
in West-Germany, where it joined 125 wing of Royal Air Force Germany
. The following month it moved again, this time to RAF Gutersloh
, where it the unit had its final disbandment two years later on 31 August 1956.
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...
Squadron between 1918 and 1956. Formed 1918 in the Royal Flying Corps
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
as a night-bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
unit, it remained in that role for the rest of its existence which spanned three periods between 1918 and 1956.
World War I
Formed on 3 March 1918 at RAF FordFord, West Sussex
Ford is a village and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It is located 3 km to the south-west of Arundel...
, near Yapton
Yapton
Yapton is a village and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It is three miles to the north-west of Bognor Regis at the intersection of the B2132 and B2233 roads...
, West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
, as No. 149 (NB) Squadron RFC
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
, the squadron soon moved to France for night bombing missions above occupied France and Belgium, flying Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2
Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2
The Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2 was a two-seat pusher biplane that was operated as a day and night bomber and as a fighter aircraft by the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War...
s. After the war the squadron for three months took part in the occupation force in Germany, being stationed at Bickendorf
Bickendorf
Bickendorf is a municipality in the district of Bitburg-Prüm, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany....
, moving to Ireland in March 1919 where the squadron was disbanded on 1 August 1919.
World War II
The squadron was reformed from 'B' Flight of No. 99 Squadron RAFNo. 99 Squadron RAF
No. 99 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a bomber squadron in both first and second world war. At present it operates the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III from RAF Brize Norton, the RAF's air transport hub. The squadron was the first RAF unit to receive the Avro Aldershot, Handley Page Hyderabad,...
on 12 April 1937 under No. 3 Group RAF
No. 3 Group RAF
Number 3 Group of the Royal Air Force was an RAF group first active in 1918, again in 1923-26, part of RAF Bomber Command from 1936 to 1967, and part of RAF Strike Command from 2000 until it disbanded on 1 April 2006.-The 1930s and World War II:...
at RAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force station located at Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as an RAF station, it primarily supports United States Air Force operations and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
where it remained until April 1942. Initially equipped with Heyford
Handley Page Heyford
The Handley Page Heyford was a twin-engine British biplane bomber of the 1930s. Although it had a short service life, it equipped several squadrons of the RAF as one of the most important British bombers of the mid-1930s, and was the last biplane heavy bomber to serve with the RAF.-Design and...
biplane bombers, the squadron converted to Vickers Wellington
Vickers Wellington
The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a...
s in January 1939. On 4 September 1939 L4259 was flown on "Ops Brunsbüttel 4/500 GP", the day after the decaration of war against Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
by Great Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. (Source Pilot's Logbook).
After being re-equipped with the Short Stirling
Short Stirling
The Short Stirling was the first four-engined British heavy bomber of the Second World War. The Stirling was designed and built by Short Brothers to an Air Ministry specification from 1936, and entered service in 1941...
in November 1941, the squadron took part in the first 1,000 bomber raid. The squadron also formed No. 149 Squadron Conversion flight on 21 January 1942 to train new Stirling crews and on 7 October this was formed into 1657 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU) together with 7, 101 and 218 Squadron Conversion Flights. In August 1944, the Stirlings gave way to Avro Lancaster
Avro Lancaster
The Avro Lancaster is a British four-engined Second World War heavy bomber made initially by Avro for the Royal Air Force . It first saw active service in 1942, and together with the Handley Page Halifax it was one of the main heavy bombers of the RAF, the RCAF, and squadrons from other...
s, which served the squadron until 1949. At the end of the war no. 149 squadron participated in Operation Manna, to drop food to the starved Dutch population still under German occupation, and Operation 'Exodus', to return former prisoners of war back to the UK.
Post war
After the war no. 149 squadron continued to fly with RAF Bomber CommandRAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s stood at the peak of its postwar military power with the V bombers and a supplemental...
, moving to RAF Tuddenham
Tuddenham
Tuddenham is a village and civil parish in the Forest Heath district of Suffolk in eastern England. In 2005 it had a population of 450.Between 1943 and 1963, RAF Tuddenham was a Royal Air Force airfield close to the village...
in April 1946 and then later in November on to RAF Stradishall
RAF Stradishall
RAF Stradishall was a Royal Air Force station in Suffolk, opened in 1938.The airfield closed in 1970 and is now the site of two category C prisons: HMP Highpoint North and HMP Highpoint South...
. In February 1949 the sqaudron returned to RAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall
RAF Mildenhall is a Royal Air Force station located at Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. Despite its status as an RAF station, it primarily supports United States Air Force operations and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing...
, where the Lancasters were replaced with Avro Lincoln
Avro Lincoln
The Avro Type 694, better known as the Avro Lincoln, was a British four-engined heavy bomber, which first flew on 9 June 1944. Developed from the Avro Lancaster, the first Lincoln variants were known initially as the Lancaster IV and V, but were renamed Lincoln I and II...
s. The squadron remained at Mildenhall until disbanding on 1 March 1950.
Retirement was short though, because on 14 August 1950 the squadron was reformed as the RAF's first Boeing Washington
B-29 Superfortress
The B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States Air Forces in late-World War II and through the Korean War. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II...
bomber unit, moving to RAF Coningsby
RAF Coningsby
RAF Coningsby , is a Royal Air Force station in Lincolnshire, England. It has been commanded by Group Captain Martin Sampson since 10 December 2010.-Operational units:...
in October of that year. The Washingtons were on loan by the RAF from the USAF
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
as an interim nuclear bomber pending the arrival of the RAF's own jet bomber, the Canberra
English Electric Canberra
The English Electric Canberra is a first-generation jet-powered light bomber manufactured in large numbers through the 1950s. The Canberra could fly at a higher altitude than any other bomber through the 1950s and set a world altitude record of 70,310 ft in 1957...
. The squadron reequipped with the Canberra in March 1953 and in August 1954 it relocated to RAF Ahlhorn
RAF Ahlhorn
The former Royal Air Force Station Ahlhorn, commonly known as RAF Ahlhorn, was a Royal Air Force airbase in Germany situated in the southern suburbs of Ahlhorn, Lower Saxony....
in West-Germany, where it joined 125 wing of Royal Air Force Germany
Royal Air Force Germany
The former Royal Air Force Germany was a command of the Royal Air Force and part of British Forces Germany, consisting of those units located in Germany initially as part of the occupation following World War II, and later as part of the RAF's commitment to the defence of Europe during the Cold...
. The following month it moved again, this time to RAF Gutersloh
RAF Gütersloh
The former Royal Air Force Station Gütersloh, more commonly known as RAF Gütersloh, was a Royal Air Force Germany military airbase, the nearest Royal Air Force airbase to the East/West German border, in the vicinity of the town of Gütersloh. It was constructed by the Germans prior to World War II...
, where it the unit had its final disbandment two years later on 31 August 1956.
Popular culture
The squadron took part in three movies shot during the war:- The Lion Has WingsThe Lion Has WingsThe Lion Has Wings is a 1939 British, black-and-white, documentary-style, propaganda, war film. The film was directed by Adrian Brunel, Brian Desmond Hurst, Alexander Korda and Michael Powell...
- Target for TonightTarget for TonightTarget for Tonight is a 1941 British documentary film billed as being filmed by and acted by the Royal Air Force, all while under fire. It was directed by Harry Watt. The film revolves for the most part around one crew in a single Wellington aircraft...
- Journey Together
Aircraft operated
| From | To | Aircraft | Version(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1918 | Aug 1919 | Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2 Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2 The Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2 was a two-seat pusher biplane that was operated as a day and night bomber and as a fighter aircraft by the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War... |
FE.2b, FE.2d |
| May 1937 | Mar 1939 | Handley Page Heyford Handley Page Heyford The Handley Page Heyford was a twin-engine British biplane bomber of the 1930s. Although it had a short service life, it equipped several squadrons of the RAF as one of the most important British bombers of the mid-1930s, and was the last biplane heavy bomber to serve with the RAF.-Design and... |
I, Ia, II, III |
| Jan 1939 | Dec 1941 | Vickers Wellington Vickers Wellington The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engine, long range medium bomber designed in the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey, by Vickers-Armstrongs' Chief Designer, R. K. Pierson. It was widely used as a night bomber in the early years of the Second World War, before being displaced as a... |
I, IA, IC |
| Nov 1941 | Sep 1944 | Short Stirling Short Stirling The Short Stirling was the first four-engined British heavy bomber of the Second World War. The Stirling was designed and built by Short Brothers to an Air Ministry specification from 1936, and entered service in 1941... |
I, III |
| Aug 1944 | Nov 1949 | Avro Lancaster Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancaster is a British four-engined Second World War heavy bomber made initially by Avro for the Royal Air Force . It first saw active service in 1942, and together with the Handley Page Halifax it was one of the main heavy bombers of the RAF, the RCAF, and squadrons from other... |
I, III |
| Oct 1949 | Mar 1950 | Avro Lincoln Avro Lincoln The Avro Type 694, better known as the Avro Lincoln, was a British four-engined heavy bomber, which first flew on 9 June 1944. Developed from the Avro Lancaster, the first Lincoln variants were known initially as the Lancaster IV and V, but were renamed Lincoln I and II... |
B.2 |
| Nov 1950 | Mar 1953 | Boeing Washington B-29 Superfortress The B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States Air Forces in late-World War II and through the Korean War. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II... |
B.1 |
| Apr 1953 | Aug 1956 | English Electric Canberra English Electric Canberra The English Electric Canberra is a first-generation jet-powered light bomber manufactured in large numbers through the 1950s. The Canberra could fly at a higher altitude than any other bomber through the 1950s and set a world altitude record of 70,310 ft in 1957... |
B.2 |