No. 515 Squadron RAF

No. 515 Squadron RAF
Official squadron crest of No. 515 Squadron RAF
Active	1 Oct 1942 - 10 Jun 1945
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Role	Electronic countermeasures
Part of	No. 11 Group RAF, Fighter Command No. 100 Group RAF, Bomber Command
Motto	Latin: Cleriter ferite ut hostes nacesit (Translation: "Strike quickly to kill the enemy")[1][2]
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldry	A gauntlet holding a winged dagger in bend sinister, trusting to the dexter[1][2]
Squadron Codes	3P (Feb 1944 - Jun 1945)[3][4]

No. 515 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force formed during the Second World War. It stood at the brink of Electronic countermeasures (ECM) warfare, jamming enemy radar installations from October 1942. This was first done as only such squadron in the RAF, but later in the war together with other squadrons of No. 100 Group RAF. The squadron disbanded after VE day, when the need for such a specialised squadron had evaporated.

History

Fighter Command

The squadron was formed from the Defiant Flight, also known as the Special Duties Flight at RAF Northolt on 1 October 1942.^[5] The Flight, was equipped with former Defiant Mk.II fighters, as part of No. 11 Group RAF in Fighter Command to perform radar jamming duties with Moonshine and Mandrel. They rebased to RAF Heston later that month, and began to be re-equipped with the Beaufighter Mk.IIf in May 1943.

Bomber Command

The squadron transferred in December 1943 to No. 100 Group RAF in Bomber Command, and moved to RAF Little Snoring. There they re-equipped with Mosquito Mk.VIs in March 1944, and operated these for the remainder of the war. At the end of its existence 515 squadron had operated 1,366 operational sorties with the Mosquito with a loss of 21 aircraft.^[6] The squadron was disbanded at Little Snoring on the 10 June 1945,^[7] most of its crew going on to No. 627 Squadron RAF.^[1]

Aircraft operated

The Boulton Paul Defiant

Aircraft operated by no. 515 Squadron RAF, data from^[7][8][9]

From	To	Aircraft	Version
October 1942	December 1943	Boulton Paul Defiant	Mk.II
June 1943	April 1944	Bristol Beaufighter	Mk.IIf
February 1944	April 1944	de Havilland Mosquito	Mk.II
March 1944	June 1945	de Havilland Mosquito	Mk.VI

Squadron bases

Bases and airfields used by no. 515 Squadron RAF, data from^[1][7][9]

From	To	Base	Remark
1 October 1942	29 October 1942	RAF Northolt, Middlesex	dets. at RAF Coltishall, RAF West Malling, RAF Tangmere and RAF Exeter[1]
29 October 1942	31 May 1943	RAF Heston, Middlesex
31 May 1943	15 December 1943	RAF Hunsdon, Hertfordshire
15 December 1943	10 June 1945	RAF Little Snoring, Norfolk

Commanding officers

Officers commanding no. 515 Squadron RAF, data from^[8]

From	To	Name
October 1942	July 1943	S/Ldr. S.R. Thomas, DFC, AFC
July 1943	January 1944	W/Cdr. J.F. Inkster
January 1944	December 1944	W/Cdr. F.F. Lambert, DSO, DFC
December 1944	June 1945	W/Cdr. H.C. Kelsey, DFC

See also

• List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons
• Boulton Paul Defiant Operational history
• Freya radar, the German early-warning radar that was jammed using "Moonshine" and "Mandrel"

References

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} Rawlings 1978, p. 462.
2. ^ ^{a b} Halley 1988, p. 395.
3. ^ Bowyer and Rawlings 1979, p. 84.
4. ^ Flintham and Thomas 2003, p. 56.
5. ^ Brew 1996, pp. 42–44.
6. ^ Falconer 2003, p. 255.
7. ^ ^{a b c} Jefford 2001, p. 96.
8. ^ ^{a b} Rawlings 1978, p. 463.
9. ^ ^{a b} Halley 1988, p. 396.

Bibliography

• Bowyer, Michael J.F. and John D.R. Rawlings. Squadron Codes, 1937-56. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1979. ISBN 0-85059-364-6.
• Brew, Alec. The Defiant File. Tundbridge Wells, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1996. ISBN 0-85130-226-2.
• Falconer, John. Bomber Command Handbook 1939-1945. Stroud, UK: Sutton Publishing Ltd., 2003. ISBN 0-7509-3171-X.
• Flintham, Vic and Andrew Thomas. Combat Codes: A full explanation and listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied air force unit codes since 1938. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd., 2003. ISBN 1-84037-281-8.
• Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth 1918-1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
• Jefford, Wing Commander C.G., MBE, BA, RAF(Retd.). RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988 (second edition 2001). ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
• Rawlings, John D.R. Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald & Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 1969 (2nd edition 1976, reprinted 1978). ISBN 0-354-01028-X.

External links

• Squadron history 1 on MOD site
• Squadron history 2 on MOD site
• No. 515 Squadron RAF movement and equipment history
• squadron histories for nos. 500-520 sqn on RafWeb's Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation
• unofficial website for no. 515 Sqn

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