Oxford University Air Squadron
Encyclopedia
The Oxford University Air Squadron, abbreviated O. U. Air Squadron, Oxford UAS, or OUAS, formed in 1925, is the training unit of the Royal Air Force
at the University of Oxford
and forms part of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
.
Some members of OUAS hold the title of Officer Cadet, which carries the privileges, but not the rank, of a commissioned officer, while some other members are also granted commissions in the RAF Volunteer Reserve, with the rank of Acting Pilot Officer
. Officer Cadets are required to attend a minimum of one training night a week during full term, usually a lecture by a guest speaker on an aspect of the Royal Air Force or another military unit. They are also expected to take part in two weeks of continuous training during the Long Vacation. There are also camps during all university vacations for sports, flying and adventure training.
The O. U. Air Squadron is based at 6 Air Experience Flight
, RAF Benson
, and is equipped with Grob Tutor T Mk 1s
. Each officer cadet is offered a Summer Vacation Attachment of one week at another RAF base, seconded to an active regular unit.
The Squadron was founded in 1925. Immediately before the Second World War, OUAS was an important source of pilots in the lead up to the Battle of Britain
. As members of the RAFVR, cadets were called up for active service before completing their degrees.
Having first been based at Upper Heyford
, then from 1932 at Abingdon
, OUAS operated from Bicester Airfield
until 1975, when it returned to Abingdon. Its present base is at RAF Benson
.
Notable past members include Leonard Cheshire
, Julian Amery, Lord Lyell VC, and the actors Richard Burton
, Robert Hardy
and Warren Mitchell
.
Having originally been open only to members of the University of Oxford, in 1986 the Squadron was opened to members from the Oxford Polytechnic, which became Oxford Brookes University
in 1993.
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...
at the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
and forms part of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve consists of a number of groupings of individual military reservists for the management and operation of the Royal Air Force's Air Training Corps and CCF Air Cadet formations, Volunteer Gliding Squadrons , Air Experience Flights, and also to form the...
.
Present day
The O. U. Air Squadron offers basic flying training and adventure training to undergraduates and graduates and encourages members to take up a career as an officer in one of the branches of the Royal Air Force.Some members of OUAS hold the title of Officer Cadet, which carries the privileges, but not the rank, of a commissioned officer, while some other members are also granted commissions in the RAF Volunteer Reserve, with the rank of Acting Pilot Officer
Acting Pilot Officer
Acting Pilot Officer is the lowest commissioned grade in the Royal Air Force, being immediately junior to Pilot Officer. Unlike other RAF ranks which officers may hold in an acting capacity, Acting Pilot Officer is maintained as a separate grade. It normally denotes an officer who has recently...
. Officer Cadets are required to attend a minimum of one training night a week during full term, usually a lecture by a guest speaker on an aspect of the Royal Air Force or another military unit. They are also expected to take part in two weeks of continuous training during the Long Vacation. There are also camps during all university vacations for sports, flying and adventure training.
The O. U. Air Squadron is based at 6 Air Experience Flight
6 Air Experience Flight
No. 6 Air Experience Flight is one of twelve Air Experience Flights run by the Air Cadet Organisation of the Royal Air Force. It was formed in the 1950s, along with the other AEFs, with the aim of teaching basic flying to members of the Air Training Corps, Combined Cadet Force and occasionally,...
, RAF Benson
RAF Benson
RAF Benson is a Royal Air Force station near Benson in South Oxfordshire, England. It is home to the Royal Air Force's support helicopters, the Aérospatiale Puma and the EH-101 Merlin, known as the Puma HC.Mk 1 and the Merlin HC.Mk 3 and Mk 3a....
, and is equipped with Grob Tutor T Mk 1s
Grob G 115
|- Incidents and Accidents :*In February 2009, two RAF Tutors operating air experience flights from RAF St Athan collided in mid-air. All four occupants were killed, a pilot and a female Air Training Corps cadet in each aircraft. The two cadets killed were cousins Nikkita Marie Walters, 13, and...
. Each officer cadet is offered a Summer Vacation Attachment of one week at another RAF base, seconded to an active regular unit.
History
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
. As members of the RAFVR, cadets were called up for active service before completing their degrees.
Having first been based at Upper Heyford
Upper Heyford
Upper Heyford may refer to:*Upper Heyford, Northamptonshire*Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire*RAF Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire...
, then from 1932 at Abingdon
Abingdon, Oxfordshire
Abingdon or archaically Abingdon-on-Thames is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Vale of White Horse district. Previously the county town of Berkshire, Abingdon is one of several places that claim to be Britain's oldest continuously occupied town, with...
, OUAS operated from Bicester Airfield
Bicester Airfield
Bicester Aerodrome, formerly RAF Bicester, is an airfield on the outskirts of the English town of Bicester in Oxfordshire. The RAF left in 2004....
until 1975, when it returned to Abingdon. Its present base is at RAF Benson
RAF Benson
RAF Benson is a Royal Air Force station near Benson in South Oxfordshire, England. It is home to the Royal Air Force's support helicopters, the Aérospatiale Puma and the EH-101 Merlin, known as the Puma HC.Mk 1 and the Merlin HC.Mk 3 and Mk 3a....
.
Notable past members include Leonard Cheshire
Leonard Cheshire
Group Captain Geoffrey Leonard Cheshire, Baron Cheshire, VC, OM, DSO and Two Bars, DFC was a highly decorated British RAF pilot during the Second World War....
, Julian Amery, Lord Lyell VC, and the actors Richard Burton
Richard Burton
Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...
, Robert Hardy
Robert Hardy
Timothy Sydney Robert Hardy, CBE, FSA is an English actor with a long career in the theatre, film and television. He is also an acknowledged expert on the longbow.-Early life:...
and Warren Mitchell
Warren Mitchell
Warren Mitchell is an English actor who rose to initial prominence in the role of bigoted cockney Alf Garnett in the BBC television sitcom Till Death Us Do Part , and its sequels Till Death... and In Sickness and in Health , all of which were written by Johnny Speight...
.
Having originally been open only to members of the University of Oxford, in 1986 the Squadron was opened to members from the Oxford Polytechnic, which became Oxford Brookes University
Oxford Brookes University
Oxford Brookes University is a new university in Oxford, England. It was named to honour the school's founding principal, John Brookes. It has been ranked as the best new university by the Sunday Times University Guide 10 years in a row...
in 1993.
Commanding officers
- 1925–1928: Humphrey Raikes
- 1932: Wing Commander K. R. ParkKeith ParkAir Chief Marshal Sir Keith Rodney Park GCB, KBE, MC & Bar, DFC, RAF was a New Zealand soldier, First World War flying ace and Second World War Royal Air Force commander...
- 1940: Squadron Leader H. R. A. Edwards
- 1948–1951: Christopher Foxley-NorrisChristopher Foxley-NorrisAir Chief Marshal Sir Christopher Neil Foxley-Norris GCB, DSO, OBE, FRSA was a squadron commander during World War II and, later, the RAF's commander-in-chief in Germany.-Early life:...
- 1951–1953: Frank WillanFrank WillanGroup Captain Frank Andrew Willan CBE DFC DL , was an English pilot, Royal Air Force officer and Conservative politician...
- 1953–1956: Wing Commander Nelson Edwards
- 1956–1958: Wing Commander Constable Maxwell
- 1958–1960: Wing Commander A. J. Douch
- 1960–1963: Wing Commander R. P. Harding
- 1963–1965: Wing Commander R. Whittain
- 1965–1967: Wing Commander H. B. Iles
- 1967–1969: Wing Commander M. R. Williams
- 1969–1971: Squadron Leader D. C. E. England
- 1971–1974: Squadron Leader A. N. S. Parker-Ashley
- 1974: Squadron Leader W. A. Bell
External links
- Oxford University Air Squadron official web site