No. 621 Squadron RAF
Active	12 Sep 1943 – 1 Sep 1946
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Role	Reconnaissance Air-sea rescue
Part of	British Forces Aden[1]
Motto	Ever Ready to Strike
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldry	A hooded cobra[2]

No. 621 Squadron RAF was a reconnaissance squadron of theRoyal Air Force duringWorld War II, flying fromSomaliland andAden. It was after the war stationed inEgypt andPalestine and tasked withair-sea rescue and was also active inOperation Sunburn, looking for illegal immigrants.

No. 621 Squadron RAF was formed atPort Reitz,Kenya, on 12 September 1943^[3] as a general reconnaissance unit equipped with 16Wellington XIIIs, with a role of carrying out maritime reconnaissance and anti-submarine duties over the westernIndian Ocean and the coasts of East Africa.^[4][5] In October 1943, the squadron moved toMogadishu,Somalia, and in November, supplemented its normal duties by being tasked to look for four thousand stolen camels on behalf of the army.^[5] In December 1943, the squadron moved toRAF Khormaksar,Aden.^[2]

In a more serious series of sorties, the squadron managed to knock out theU-852, but at the beginning of 1945 activities had dropped so low that the squadron was reduced from 16 to 8 aircraft. In November the squadron converted toWarwicks and started inOperation Sunburn, looking for illegal immigrants intoPalestine. In April to squadron moved to Palestine and converted toLancasters. Shortly after it had completed that conversion the squadron was disbanded atRAF Ein Shemer by being re-numbered toNo. 18 Squadron RAF on 1 September 1946.^[2][3][6]

The present621 Volunteer Gliding Squadron has no links with 621 Squadron, and in fact traces its lines back to No. 87 Glider School RAF.^[7][8]

Notes

Bibliography

• Delve, Ken (1994).The Source Book of the RAF. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing.ISBN 1-85310-451-5.
• Halley, James J. (1988).The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd.ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
• Jefford, C.G. (2001).RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912 (2nd ed.). Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd.ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
• Lake, Alan (1999).Flying units of the RAF. Shrewsbury: Airlife.ISBN 1-84037-086-6.
• Rawlings, John D.R. (1982).Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd.ISBN 0-7106-0187-5.
• Thomas, Andrew (4–17 April 1986). "Guardians of the Aden Gulf: No.621 (GR) Squadron, Royal Air Force".Aviation News. Vol. 14, no. 23. pp. 1178–1180.

• History of 621 Squadron on RAF website
• Airfields, operating dates and aircraft types for No.621 Squadron RAF, 1939–45
• History of No.'s 621–650 Squadrons at RAF Web

• Aircraft squadrons of the Royal Air Force in World War II
• Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons
• Reconnaissance units and formations of the Royal Air Force
• Military units and formations established in 1943
• Military units and formations disestablished in 1946
• Military units and formations in Aden in World War II
• Military units and formations in British Somaliland in World War II

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