No. 527 Squadron RAF was a radar calibration unit of the Royal Air Force

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...

 between 1943 and 1958.

Formation

No. 527 Squadron was formed from various calibration flights at RAF Castle Camps

Castle Camps

Castle Camps was a Norman Castle located in what is now the civil parish of Castle Camps, Cambridgeshire.-Owners:Castle Camps was originally a Saxon manor, belonging to Wulfwin, a Thane of King Edward the Confessor. After the Norman invasion, William the Conqueror gave the manor to Aubrey de Vere...

, Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...

 on 15 June 1943 for radar calibration duties with Bristol Blenheim

Bristol Blenheim

The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...

s and Hawker Hurricane

Hawker Hurricane

The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...

s. The squadron was engaged with the calibration of radar stations in southern England and East Anglia

East Anglia

East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...

. The need for calibration units lessened considerably in 1944, so the squadron absorbed 528 squadron

No. 528 Squadron RAF

No. 528 Squadron RAF was a radar calibration unit of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, active from June 1943 till September 1944.-History:...

 on 1 September 1944, extending its coverage in the process to Lincolnshire, and 526 squadron

No. 526 Squadron RAF

No. 526 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a British Second World War calibration and communications squadron.-History:No. 526 Squadron was formed on 15 June 1943 at Longmans Airport, Inverness, Scotland from the calibration flights of Nos. 70, 71 and 72 Wing RAF to carry out calibration duties in...

 on 1 May 1945, adding the de Havilland Hornet Moths, Airspeed Oxford

Airspeed Oxford

The Airspeed AS.10 Oxford was a twin-engine aircraft used for training British Commonwealth aircrews in navigation, radio-operating, bombing and gunnery during the Second World War.-Design and development:...

s and de Havilland Dominies of these units to its strength. The squadron standardised hereafter on Spitfires

Supermarine Spitfire

The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...

, Wellingtons

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...

, Oxfords and Dominies, the latter -old aircraft of 526 Squadron- still being based at RAF Longman, Inverness for communications flying. In November 1945, the squadron moved to RAF Watton

RAF Watton

Royal Air Force Station Watton is a former military airfield in Norfolk, England. The airfield is located approximately south-southwest of East Dereham....

, Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

 where it disbanded on 15 April 1946.

Reformation

The squadron reformed on 1 August 1952 at RAF Watton, when the 'N' and 'R' Calibration Squadrons of the Central Signal Establishment were redesignated to No. 527 Squadron. A great variety of types, amongst them 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, Avro Anson

Avro Anson

The Avro Anson is a British twin-engine, multi-role aircraft that served with the Royal Air Force, Fleet Air Arm and numerous other air forces prior to, during, and after the Second World War. Named for British Admiral George Anson, it was originally designed for maritime reconnaissance, but was...

s, 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...

s and Gloster Meteor

Gloster Meteor

The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...

s, were flown for high-level calibration until 21 August 1958, when the unit was disbanded by being renumbered to No. 245 Squadron RAF

No. 245 Squadron RAF

No. 245 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It flew as an anti-submarine squadron during World War I and as a fighter squadron during World War II. After the war it was first a jet-fighter squadron and its last role was as a radar-calibration unit....

.

Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 527 Squadron RAF, data from

From	To	Aircraft	Version
June 1943	May 1945	Bristol Blenheim Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...	Mk.IV
June 1943	April 1944	Hawker Hurricane Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...	Mk.I
December 1943	September 1944	de Havilland Hornet Moth
February 1944	April 1945	Hawker Hurricane	Mk.IIb
July 1944	April 1946	Supermarine Spitfire Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...	Mk.Vb
September 1944	April 1946	Airspeed Oxford Airspeed Oxford The Airspeed AS.10 Oxford was a twin-engine aircraft used for training British Commonwealth aircrews in navigation, radio-operating, bombing and gunnery during the Second World War.-Design and development:...	Mk.II
April 1945	April 1946	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...	Mk.X
May 1945	April 1946	de Havilland Dominie	Mk.I
August 1952	March 1954	Avro Anson Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engine, multi-role aircraft that served with the Royal Air Force, Fleet Air Arm and numerous other air forces prior to, during, and after the Second World War. Named for British Admiral George Anson, it was originally designed for maritime reconnaissance, but was...	C.19
August 1952	January 1954	de Havilland Mosquito De Havilland Mosquito The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito was a British multi-role combat aircraft that served during the Second World War and the postwar era. It was known affectionately as the "Mossie" to its crews and was also nicknamed "The Wooden Wonder"...	B.35
August 1952	May 1957	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
June 1953	July 1955	Gloster Meteor Gloster Meteor The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...	NF.11
June 1954	August 1958	Vickers Varsity Vickers Varsity -See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Andrews, C.F. and E.B. Morgan. Vickers Aircraft since 1908. London: Putnam, 1988. ISBN 0-85177-815-1.* Ellis, Ken. Wrecks & Relics. Manchester, UK: Crecy Publishing, 21st edition, 2008. ISBN 9-780859-791342....	T.1
August 1954	October 1955	Gloster Meteor	NF.14
December 1954	August 1958	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
April 1956	June 1956	English Electric Canberra	PR.7
September 1957	November 1957	Gloster Meteor	NF.11

Squadron bases

Bases and airfields used by no. 527 Squadron RAF, data from

From	To	Base	Remark
15 June 1943	28 February 1944	RAF Castle Camps Castle Camps Castle Camps was a Norman Castle located in what is now the civil parish of Castle Camps, Cambridgeshire.-Owners:Castle Camps was originally a Saxon manor, belonging to Wulfwin, a Thane of King Edward the Confessor. After the Norman invasion, William the Conqueror gave the manor to Aubrey de Vere... , Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
28 February 1944	28 April 1944	RAF Snailwell RAF Snailwell RAF Snailwell, Cambridgeshire, located 3 miles north of Newmarket, Suffolk. Also known as Station 361 of the USAAF. The site has now returned to agriculture and paddocks.-Units:* Royal Air Force 268 Squadron* Army Cooperation Command... , 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...
28 April 1944	8 November 1945	RAF Digby RAF Digby RAF Digby is a Royal Air Force station which, since March 2005, has been operated by the Ministry of Defence's Joint Service Signals Organisation, part of the Intelligence Collection Group. Formerly a training and fighter airfield, it is currently a tri-service military signals installation located... , Lincolnshire Lincolnshire Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...	Dets at RAF Longman RAF Inverness - World War II :RAF Inverness was a Royal Air Force base by the Moray Firth in Inverness-shire, Scotland. It was also known as RAF Longman.Under the command of No. 13 Group, It served as Headquarters to No... , Inverness Inverness Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...  and RAF Tealing Tealing Tealing is a village in Angus in eastern Scotland, nestled at the foot of the Sidlaw Hills. It is just north of the city of Dundee and south of Forfar. With a population of just over 500, scattered across of fertile farming land, it has several large working farms mixed in with lots of... , Angus Angus Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
8 November 1945	15 April 1946	RAF Watton RAF Watton Royal Air Force Station Watton is a former military airfield in Norfolk, England. The airfield is located approximately south-southwest of East Dereham.... , Norfolk Norfolk Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
1 August 1952	21 August 1958	RAF Watton, Norfolk

External links

• 527 Squadron history on MOD site
• Squadron histories for nos. 521-540 sqn on RafWeb's Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation