No. 692 Squadron RAF

No. 692 (Fellowship of the Bellows) Squadron RAF
Official crest of No. 692 Squadron RAF
Active	1 January 1944 - 20 September 1945
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Role	Light Bomber Squadron
Part of	No. 8 Group RAF, Bomber Command
Nickname	Fellowship of the Bellows
Motto	Latin: Polus Dum Sidera Pascet (Translation: "So long as the sky shall feed the stars")[1][2]
Commanders
Notable commanders	S/Ldr. (then) S.D. Watts, the first pilot to drop a 4,000 lbs "Cookie".[1]
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldry	In front of a pair of wings conjoined in base, a dagger, point downwards[1][2]
Squadron Codes	P3 (Jan 1944 - Jun 1945)[3][4][5]
Aircraft flown
Bomber	de Havilland Mosquito

No. 692 Squadron RAF was a light bomber squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.

History

The squadron was formed on 1 January 1944 at RAF Graveley, Huntingdonshire as a light bomber unit^[2], equipped with Mosquito Mk.IV bombers, as part of the Light Night Striking Force of No. 8 Group RAF in Bomber Command. It re-equipped with Mosquito Mk.XVI bombers from March 1944 and by June 1944 the squadron had completely switched over to the newer variant.^[2][6] It was the first squadron to carry 4,000 lb bombs in Mosquitos^[1], used in an attack on Düsseldorf.^[7] The squadron was also the first Mosquito unit to carry out minelaying operations.^[7] Most operations were at low level, including one mission when the squadron dropped 4,000 lb bombs into the mouth of tunnels in the Ardennes.^[1] At the end of the war the squadron was disbanded on 20 September 1945 at RAF Gransden Lodge, Cambridgeshire.^[2][8] The squadron had carried out 3,237 operational sorties (though one source claims a far lower number of sorties, 1,457^[9]) for the loss of 17 aircraft.^[10]

Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 692 Squadron RAF, data from^[2][6][8]

From	To	Aircraft	Variant
January 1944	June 1944	de Havilland Mosquito	Mk.IV
March 1944	September 1945	de Havilland Mosquito	Mk.XIV

Commanding officers

Though bearing the squadron marlings of 571 squadron here, this aircraft, Mosquito Mk.XVI ML963, was first issued to 109 squadron on 9 March 1944, going on to 692 squadron on the 24th of the same month.

Officers commanding no. 692 Squadron RAF, data from^[9]

From	To	Name
January 1944	March 1944	W/Cdr. W.G. Lockhart, DSO, DFC
March 1944	July 1944	W/Cdr. S.D. Watts, DFC (RNZAF)
July 1944	September 1945	W/Cdr. J. Northrop, DFC, AFC

Squadron bases

Air bases and airfields used by no. 692 Squadron RAF, data from^[2][6][8]

From	To	Name	Remark
1 January 1944	4 June 1944	RAF Graveley, Huntingdonshire	Formed here
4 June 1944	20 September 1945	RAF Gransden Lodge, Cambridgeshire	Disbanded here

See also

• List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons

References

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} Moyes 1976, p. 291.
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f g} Halley 1988, p. 457.
3. ^ Bowyer and Rawlings 1979, p. 84.
4. ^ Bowyer 1984, p. 142.
5. ^ Flintham and Thomas 2003, p. 96.
6. ^ ^{a b c} Moyes 1976, p. 292.
7. ^ ^{a b} Bowyer 1984, p. 132.
8. ^ ^{a b c} Jefford 2001, p. 106.
9. ^ ^{a b} Bowyer 1984, p. 135.
10. ^ Falconer 2003, p. 257.

Bibliography

• Bowman, Martin. Mosquito Bomber/Fighter-Bomber Units, 1942–45. Botley, Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1997. ISBN 978-1-85532-690-3.
• Bowyer, Chaz. Mosquito Squadrons of the Royal Air Force. Shepperton, Surrey, UK: Ian Allan Ltd., 1984. ISBN 0-7110-1425-6.
• Bowyer, Michael J.F. and John D.R. Rawlings. Squadron Codes, 1937-56. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1979. ISBN 0-85059-364-6.
• Falconer, Jonathan. Bomber Command Handbook, 1939-1945. Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK: Sutton Publishing, 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 and 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. ISBN 1-853100-536-1. (second revised edition 2001. ISBN 1-84037-141-2.)
• Moyes, Philip J.R. Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald and Jane's, 1964 (2nd edition 1976). ISBN 0-354-01027-1.

External links

• No. 692 Squadron RAF movement and equipment history
• History of No. 692 Squadron
• Nos. 671-1435 Squadron Histories
• Remembrance to two fallen squadron members

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