No. 272 Squadron RAF

No. 272 Squadron RAF
Active 25 July 1918 – 5 March 1919
18 November 1940 – 30 April 1945
Country United Kingdom United Kingdom
Branch Royal Air Force
Motto(s) On, on!
Insignia
Squadron Badge A person in armour wearing a helmet
Squadron Codes XK (Nov 1940 - May 1941)

No. 272 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as an anti–submarine unit in World War I and a coastal fighter unit in World War II.

History

Formation and World War I

No. 272 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was formed on 25 July 1918 and operated DH.6s from Machrihanish, Scotland on anti-submarine patrols and disbanded on 5 March 1919.

Reformation in World War II

The squadron reformed on 19 November 1940 at RAF Aldergrove. It received Blenheims and then converted to Beaufighters. It was then based in Crete to provide protection for convoys and at Luqa, Malta and Sicily following Operation Husky. On 8 September 1944, the Italian liner SS Rex was attacked by twelve 272 Squadron Beaufighters at Capodistria Bay, south of Trieste, leaving her on fire and badly listing.[1] As the Allied forces advanced into Italy the squadron moved to Alghero and Foggia, and it disbanded at Gragnano on 30 April 1945.

Aircraft operated

A 272 Sqn Bristol Beaufighter at Ta'Qali, Malta, 27 June 1943.
Aircraft operated by no. 272 Squadron RAF[2]
FromToAircraftVariant
Jul 1918Mar 1919Airco DH.6
Nov 1918Mar 1919Fairey IIIA
Nov 1940Apr 1941Bristol BlenheimIVF
Apr 1941Jul 1943Bristol BeaufighterIC
Nov 1942Feb 1944Bristol BeaufighterVIC
Sep 1943May 1944Bristol BeaufighterXI
Dec 1943Apr 1945Bristol BeaufighterX

References

  1. ↑ "Royal Air Force Operations in Malta, Gibraltar and the Mediterranean, 1940-1945 (C 4622)". Imperial War Museum. 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
  2. ↑ C.G.Jefford (1988). RAF Squadrons. UK Airlife Publishing. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
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