| No. 622 Squadron RAF | |
|---|---|
| Active | 10 Aug 1943 – 15 Aug 1945 15 Dec 1950 – 30 Sep 1953 1 Oct 2012–present |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  Royal Auxiliary Air Force |
| Role | Reserve Aircrew |
| Base | RAF Brize Norton |
| Motto(s) | Latin:Bellamus Noctu ("We wage war by night")[1][2] |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Wg Cdr D James |
| Insignia | |
| Squadron Badge heraldry | A long-eared owl volant affrontée, carrying in the claws a flash of lightning[1][2] |
| Squadron Codes | GI (Aug 1943 – Apr 1945)[3][4] |
No. 622 Squadron RAF is a reserve aircrew squadron of theRoyal Auxiliary Air Force. During World War II, it operated as a bomber squadron of theRoyal Air Force. Post-war it served shortly as a transport squadron in theRAuxAF.
No. 622 Squadron was first formed atRAF Mildenhall inSuffolk on 10 August 1943, equipped withStirling Mk.III bombers, as part of3 Group inBomber Command.It re-equipped withLancaster Mk.III bombers in December, after briefly operating Lancaster Mk.Is that month. It operated in Bomber Command's Main Force as part of No 3 Group until April 1945 when it moved to humanitarian duties dropping food to the Dutch (Operation Manna), repatriating POWs (Operation Exodus) and ferrying troops home from Italy. The Squadron was disbanded at Mildenhall on 15 August 1945.[1][2][5]
Unlike many of its contemporaries 622 Squadron was reformed post-war as aRoyal Auxiliary Air Force transport squadron atRAF Blackbushe on 15 December 1950. It now operatedValettas and consisted of a nucleus of regular officers who would be supplemented by personnel drawn from locally-based air charter operatorAirwork Ltd. This arrangement proved to be unsuccessful however,[6] and the squadron was disbanded on 30 September 1953.[1][2]
Originally formed as 1359 Flight RAF, it was attached to a Hercules OCU (Operational Conversion Unit, by this time the formerNo. 242 Operational Conversion Unit RAF had becomeNo. 57 Squadron RAF), based atRAF Lyneham inWiltshire in 1994 for a 3-year trial period. After the success of the trial, its role expanded over the years to provide aircrews to allair transport andair-to-air refuelling aircraft of the RAF. It moved to RAF Brize Norton in 2011. On 1 October 2012, in recognition of its continued work with the main squadrons, the flight was authorised by the Standing Committee of the Royal Air Force to be rebadged as 622 (Reserve Aircrew) Squadron.
According to its website, the mission statement is as follows:
To provide aircrews to the Air Transport and Air-to-Air Refuelling Forces either on call-out in times of crisis and war, or to provide peacetime support to maintain the operational capability of the RAF multi-engine squadrons
| From | To | Aircraft | Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 1943 | December 1943 | Short Stirling | Mk.III |
| December 1943 | August 1945 | Avro Lancaster | Mks.I, III |
| December 1950 | September 1953 | Vickers Valetta | C.1 |
| From | To | Base |
|---|---|---|
| 10 August 1943 | 15 August 1945 | RAF Mildenhall,Suffolk |
| 15 December 1950 | 30 September 1953 | RAF Blackbushe,Hampshire |
| 1994 | June 2011 | RAF Lyneham,Wiltshire |
| June 2011 | Present | RAF Brize Norton,Oxfordshire |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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