No. 38 Group RAF

No. 38 Group RAF
Active	1943 - 1951, 1960 - 1983, 1992 - 2000
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Type	Group Headquarters
Role	Troop carrying
Part of	RAF Fighter Command RAF Transport Command RAF Strike Command
Garrison/HQ	RAF Netheravon, Wiltshire, England
Motto	Latin: Par Nobile Fratrum (Translation: "A noble pair of brothers")
Royal Air Force Ensign
Insignia
Group Badge heraldry	An eagle's leg grasping a sword

No 38 Group RAF was formed on 6 November 1943 from nine squadrons as part of Fighter Command. It was finally disbanded on 1 April 2000.

History

The predecessor of 38 Group was 38 Wing, initially formed on 15 January 1942 from 296 and 297 Squadrons and based at RAF Netheravon in Wiltshire under Group Captain Sir Nigel Norman. 295 Squadron was additionally formed at Netheravon on 3 August 1942. To these were added 570, 298, 299, 190, 196, 620 Squadrons to form No. 38 (Airborne Force) Group on 11 October 1943. At that time four squadrons were equipped with Albemarles (295, 296, 297, 570), one with Halifaxes (298) and four with Stirlings (299, 190, 196, 620). A further Halifax unit, 644 Squadron, was added in February 1944.

During 1943, changes of all aircraft types and operational bases were made. Nevertheless 295, 296 and 297 Squadrons were heavily involved that year in operations Beggar, Ladbroke and Fustian, during the invasion of Sicily. From February 1944 many sorties were made over mainland Europe in support of Special Operations Executive and detachments of the Special Air Service.

But by 5 June 1944 the group’s updated resources had been fully redeployed between RAF Brize Norton, RAF Fairford, RAF Harwell, RAF Keevil and RAF Tarrant Rushton in preparation for Operation Overlord, the invasion of Europe. From then to 16 June the Group was fully involved in operations Tonga (the delivery of paratroop-filled gliders at the onset of Overlord) and Mallard (the delivery of the main airborne forces and their equipment by glider).

In September 1944 the group was called upon to ferry airborne troops for Operation Market Garden, the abortive attempt to capture the Rhine bridge at Nijmegen. Following that operation there was further reorganisation; the Group Headquarters moved to Marks Hall, Essex in October 1944 and the squadrons were redeployed to RAF Earls Colne (296 and 297), RAF Rivenhall (295 and 570), RAF Great Dunmow (190 and 620), RAF Wethersfield (later to RAF Shepherds Grove) (196 and 299) and RAF Woodbridge (298 and 644). 190 Squadron remained temporarily at RAF Fairford. On 10 March 1945 161 Squadron at RAF Tempsford also came under 38 Group control.

On 24 March 1945 the squadrons were fully employed in delivering airborne troops to the far bank of the Rhine as part of Operation Varsity, an operation which proved costly in terms of aircrew lives lost.

After the war most 38 Group squadrons were either disbanded or relocated to the Far East and the HQ moved to RAF Upavon. 295 and 297 Squadrons merged and moved to Fairford. 38 Group became part of RAF Transport Command on 1 June 1945 and was twice temporarily disbanded (1 Feb 1951 - 31 Dec 1959) and (18 Nov 1983 - 31 Oct 1992) before being finally disbanded on 1 April 2000.

Orders of Battle

1944

Order of Battle for No. 38 Group RAF, 06-06-1944, data from^[1]

Station	Squadron	Aircraft	No Operational
RAF Brize Norton	296 297	Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle	37 36
RAF Fairford	190 620	Short Stirling Short Stirling	33 30
RAF Harwell	295 570	Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle	34 36
RAF Keevil	196 299	Short Stirling Short Stirling	36 35
RAF Tarrant Rushton	298 644	Handley Page Halifax Handley-Page Halifax	30 21

1945

Order of Battle for No. 38 Group RAF, July 1945, data from^[2]

Station	Squadron	Aircraft
RAF Earls Colne	296 297	Handley Page Halifax Handley-Page Halifax
RAF Great Dunmow	190 620	Handley Page Halifax Handley-Page Halifax
RAF Rivenhall	295 570	Short Stirling Short Stirling
RAF Shepherds Grove	196 299	Short Stirling Short Stirling
RAF Tarrant Rushton	298 644	Handley Page Halifax Handley-Page Halifax

1962

Order of Battle for No. 38 Group RAF, April 1962, data from^[3]

Station	Squadron	Aircraft
RAF Abingdon	47 53	Blackburn Beverley Blackburn Beverley
RAF Aldergrove	118	Bristol Sycamore
RAF Colerne	24 36	Handley Page Hastings Handley Page Hastings
RAF Odiham	66 72 225 230	Bristol Belvedere Bristol Belvedere Bristol Sycamore/Westland Whirlwind Scottish Aviation Pioneer
RAF Waterbeach	1 54 64	Hawker Hunter Hawker Hunter Gloster Javelin

1982

Order of Battle for No. 38 Group RAF, January 1982, data from^[4]

Station	Squadron	Aircraft
RAF Aldergrove	72	Westland Wessex
Ladyville, Belize	1417 Flt.	Hawker Harrier
RAF Brize Norton	10 115	Vickers VC10 Hawker Siddeley Andover
RAF Coltishall	6 41 54	SEPECAT Jaguar SEPECAT Jaguar SEPECAT Jaguar
RAF Lyneham	24 30 47 70	C-130 Hercules C-130 Hercules C-130 Hercules C-130 Hercules
RAF Northolt	32 207	Hawker Siddeley Andover/Aérospatiale Gazelle/British Aerospace BAe 125/Westland Whirlwind de Havilland Devon
RAF Odiham	18 33	Boeing Chinook Aérospatiale Puma
RAF Wittering	1	Hawker Harrier

Commanding officers

38 Wing

Commanding officers no. 38 Wing RAF, data from^[5]

Date	Name
15 Jan 1942	Air Commodore Sir Nigel Norman (Killed on duty 19 May 1943)
May 1943	Air Commodore William H Primrose
6 Oct 1943	Air Vice-Marshal Leslie Norman Hollinghurst

38 Group

Commanding officers no. 38 Group RAF, data from^[5]

Date	Name
11 Oct 1943	Air Vice-Marshal Leslie Norman Hollinghurst
18 Oct 1944	Air Vice-Marshal James Scarlett-Streatfield
31 Jul 1945	Air Vice-Marshal Ronald Ivelaw-Chapman
1946–1948	Air Vice-Marshal Arthur L Fiddament
17 Jan 1948	Air Vice-Marshal Alfred C H Sharp
25 Jan 1950	Air Vice-Marshal Edgar J Kingston-McClaughry
1 Jan 1960	Air Vice-Marshal Peter Wykeham
27 Jul 1962	Air Vice-Marshal Tim W Piper
1 Jan 1965	Air Vice-Marshal Leslie Mavor
1 Mar 1966	Air Vice-Marshal Peter C Fletcher
1 Aug 1967	Air Vice-Marshal Harold Brownlow Martin
24 Jun 1970	Air Vice-Marshal Denis Crowley-Milling
21 Feb 1972	Air Vice-Marshal Frederick S Hazlewood
2 Nov 1974	Air Vice-Marshal Peter G K Williamson
10 Dec 1977	Air Vice-Marshal Joseph A Gilbert
27 Feb 1980	Air Vice-Marshal Donald P Hall
1984–1985	Air Vice-Marshal David Parry-Evans
15 Jan 1993	Air Vice-Marshal J A G May
1994	Air Vice-Marshal David Cousins
21 Apr 1995	Air Vice-Marshal David A Hurrell
30 Jan 1998	Air Vice-Marshal Philip Sturley

See also

• List of Royal Air Force groups
• List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons

References

Notes

1. ^ http://webstats.ordersofbattle.darkscape.net/site/ww2/drleo/017_britain/44-06-06_Neptune/Air/z-air_Group-038.htm
2. ^ Delve 1994, p. 81.
3. ^ Delve 1994, pp. 88–89.
4. ^ Delve 1994, p. 91.
5. ^ ^{a b} RAFWeb38Group

Bibliography

• Delve, Ken. The Source Book of the RAF. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1994. ISBN 1-85310-451-5.

External links

• Group history on 38 Group website
• Arnhem forces
• No. 38 group on RAFWb's Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation
• Complete order of Battle No. 38 Group, 06-06-1944, including servicing echolons, OTUs, HCU, etc.