No. XIX Squadron RAF

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name=No. XIX (Reserve) Squadron


caption=Squadron crest- Between wings elevated and conjoined in base, a dolphin heads downward.
country=United Kingdom
branch=Royal Air Force
role=Training
equipment=BAE Hawk
garrison=RAF Valley
garrison_label=Base
motto= "Possunt quia posse videntur"
latin: "They can because they think they can"
dates=1915-1919
1924-1992
1992-
identification_symbol= | battle_honours= Western Front 1916-1918, Somme 1916, Arras 1917, Ypres 1917,Somme 1918, Lys, Amiens, Hindenburg Line, Dunkirk, Home Defence 1940-1942, Battle of Britain 1940, Channel and North Sea 1942-1942, Fortress Europe 1942-1944, Dieppe, Normandy 1944, Arnhem, France and Germany 1944-1945

No. XIX Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Air Force.

History

No. XIX squadron of the Royal Flying Corps was founded in 1915 being deployed to France that year flying B.E.12s before re-equipping with French-built Spads. In 1918 the squadron was re-equipped with Sopwith Dolphins, flying escort duties.

The Squadron was disbanded after the First World War, to be reformed again at RAF Duxford in 1924. They then flew a number of different fighters, and were the first squadron to be equipped with the Supermarine Spitfire in 1938.

The Squadron was stationed in the UK after the outbreak of war, and was part of No. 12 Group RAF, RAF Fighter Command, during the Battle of Britain. Later versions of Spitfires were flown until the arrival of Mustangs for close-support duties in early 1944. After D-Day, No. 19 briefly went across the English Channel before starting long-range escort duties from RAF Peterhead with Coastal Command off the coast of Norway.In the post-war period the squadron flew a variety of jet fighter aircraft, before being disbanded in 1992. Their final location before being dispanded was RAF Wildenrath in Germany near Geilenkirchen.

The numberplate was then assigned to the former No. 63 Squadron, one of the Hawk squadrons at RAF Chivenor, in September 1992. Following the closure of Chivenor to jet flying the squadron was moved to RAF Valley in September 1994. The Squadron now provides fast jet training on the BAE Hawk.

In May 2008 a BAE Hawk T.1, XX184, was re-painted into a special Spitfire camouflage livery at RAF Valley. This was done to celebrate the 70th anniversary of squadron as the first operational fighter squadron to fly the Supermarine Spitfire from Duxford in 1938.

Aircraft

*B.E.12 - 1916
*SPAD S.VII - 1917
*Sopwith Dolphin - 1918
*Armstrong Whitworth Siskin - 19??
*Bristol Bulldog IIa - 1931
*Gloster Gauntlet - 19??
*Supermarine Spitfire - 1938
*Mustang III - 1944
*Supermarine Spitfire - 1946
*De Havilland Hornet - 1946
*Gloster Meteor F8 - 1951
*Hawker Hunter - 1956
*English Electric Lightning F2 -1962
*English Electric Lightning F2A -1970
*F-4 Phantom FGR2 - 1977
*BAe Hawk T1 - 1992-Present

References and Further Reading

*John Rawlings, Fighter Squadrons of the Royal Air Force, MacDonald, 1969, p.47-54

ee also

*List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons

External links

* [http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/19squadron.cfm Royal Air Force: 19 Squadron]
* [http://www.19sqnallranksassoc.org.uk/ 19(F) Squadron All Ranks Association]