| No. 92 (East India) Squadron RAF | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1 Sep 1917 – 1 April 1918 (RFC) 1 April 1918 – 7 Aug 1919 (RAF) 10 October 1939 – 30 Dec 1946 31 Jan 1947 – 31 March 1977 1 April 1977 – 1 July 1991 23 Sep 1992 – 1 October 1994 30 June 2009 – present |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | Royal Air Force |
| Type | Non-flying squadron |
| Role | Tactics and training squadron |
| Part of | Air Warfare Centre |
| Home station | RAF Waddington |
| Nickname(s) | East India |
| Motto(s) | Aut pugna aut morere (Latin for 'Either fight or die')[1] |
| Battle honours |
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| Insignia | |
| Squadron badge heraldry | Acobra entwining a sprig ofmaple leaf. The maple leaf signifies the squadron's association as a Canadian unit in theFirst World War whilst the cobra represents that the squadron was one of theEast India gift squadrons during theSecond World War.[2] Awarded byKing George VI in January 1942.[3] |
| Squadron codes | GR (Apr 1939 – May 1940) QJ (May 1940 – Dec 1946) DL (Jan 1947 – Sep 1950) (formerlyNo. 91 Sqn) 8L (Sep 1950 – Apr 1951) |
| Post-1950 squadron roundel |  |
Number 92 Squadron, also known asNo. 92 (East India) Squadron and currently asNo. 92 Tactics and Training Squadron, of theRoyal Air Force is a test and evaluation squadron based atRAF Waddington,Lincolnshire.
It was formed as part of theRoyal Flying Corps atLondon Colney as a fighter squadron on 1 September 1917. It deployed to France in July 1918 and saw action for just four months, until the end of the war. During the conflict it flew both air superiority and direct ground support missions. It was disbanded atEil on 7 August 1919.
Following the outbreak of theSecond World War, No. 92 Squadron reformed on 10 October 1939, atRAF Tangmere. The unit initially receivedBristol Blenheim IF heavy fighters, but in the spring of 1940 it re-equipped withSupermarine Spitfires, going on to fight in theBattle of Britain. Later in the war it served in theMediterranean Theatre of Operations, in Egypt, Malta, and subsequently in Sicily and mainland Italy.
Reformed after the war in January 1947,No. 92 (Fighter) Squadron was assigned toRAF Fighter Command flying theGloster Meteor F.3. Between 1961 and 1962, No. 92 (F) Squadron was theRAF's official aerobatic team, known asthe Blue Diamonds, flying 16Hawker Hunter F.6s. In December 1965, the squadron was reassigned toRAF Germany alongsideNo. 19 (F) Squadron, flying theEnglish Electric Lightning F.2/F.2A and from January 1977, theMcDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR.2. Disbanded in July 1991, the Squadron was reformed asNo. 92 (Reserve) Squadron atRAF Chivenor flying theBritish Aerospace Hawk until October 1994. No. 92 Squadron then lay dormant for the next 14 years before being reformed atRoyal Air Force College Cranwell on 30 June 2009.
No. 92 Squadron was established as part of theRoyal Flying Corps atLondon Colney on 1 September 1917, working up as a scout squadron withSopwith Pups,SPAD S.VIIs, andRoyal Aircraft Factory SE.5as.[2] The Squadron became part of theRoyal Air Force on its formation on 1 April 1918. Standardising on SE.5as, the squadron went to France in July 1918, at first operating in theDunkirk area. It was then moved to Serny in August 1918, where it began scoring victories. During theSomme Offensive of 1918 the squadron was heavily involved, and continued to operate over theWestern Front until the Armistice. It was disbanded on 7 August 1919, while stationed atEil with the Army of Occupation. It had claimed a total of 38 victories during its World War I service. Eight aces had served in the squadron, includingOren Rose,Thomas Stanley Horry,William Reed,Earl Frederick Crabb,futureAir Chief MarshalJames Robb,Evander Shapard,Herbert Good,and futureAir MarshalArthur Coningham.[4][better source needed]
Following the outbreak of theSecond World War, No. 92 Squadron was reformed on 10 October 1939 atRAF Tangmere,West Sussex.[5] Initially it flewBristol Blenheim Mk.IFs but in March 1940 they were replaced by theSupermarine Spitfire Mk.I, which became operational on 9 May.[6] No. 92 Squadron first saw action over theDunkirk evacuation beaches flying fromRAF Croydon.[7] During the latter stages of theBattle of Britain No. 92 Squadron flew fromRAF Biggin Hill.[8]
In February 1942, the Squadron was posted toEgypt to joinAir Headquarters Western Desert to support the Allies on the ground. Personnel arrived in Egypt in April but no aircraft were available. Some pilots flew operations withHawker Hurricanes ofNo. 80 Squadron. Spitfires finally arrived in August and the squadron commenced operations fromRAF Heliopolis over the El Alamein sector, and then with their Spitfire Vs at Landing Ground 173 in the Western Desert. No. 92 Squadron provided air cover at theBattle of El Alamein and on 18 April 1943, 11 Spitfires from the squadron flew top cover at thePalm Sunday Massacre during which approximately 75 axis aircraft were disabled or destroyed.[9] Following the Allied victory in North Africa, the Squadron moved toMalta in June. It went on to provide air cover for the8th Army during the campaigns inSicily andItaly, arriving on Italian soil on 14 September 1943. No. 92 Squadron then followed the armies up the Italian coast as part of No. 244 Wing andNo. 211 (Offensive Fighter) Group. During World War II the Squadron claimed the highest number of victories scored, 317, in the RAF.[10]
Following the cessation of hostilities, No. 92 Squadron was disbanded atZeltweg inAustria on 30 December 1946.No. 91 Squadron was disbanded on 31 January 1947 atRAF Acklington and re-numbered as No. 92 (Fighter) Squadron as part ofRAF Fighter Command with theGloster Meteor F.3. The Squadron relocated toRAF Duxford on 15 February 1947 before moving ontoRAF Linton-on-Ouse in October 1949.[11] It went on a goodwill tour of Scandinavia in 1949. Subsequently, equipped with the Meteor F.8, it received theCanadair Sabre F.4 in February 1954, becoming part of the only Sabre wing in Fighter Command alongsideNo. 66 Squadron, before getting theHawker Hunter F.4 in April 1956 while based at RAF Linton-on-Ouse. Throughout this period, No. 92 (F) Squadron was also based atRAF Middleton St. George,RAF Thornaby andRAF Leconfield.[11]
In 1961, No. 92 (F) Squadron, under the command of Sqn. Ldr. Brian Mercer, was chosen as Fighter Command's official aerobatic squadron – theRAF Aerobatic Display Team, taking over from"Treble One"'sBlack Arrows. Originally forming in 1960, the team was initially calledthe Falcons before later adopting the namethe Blue Diamonds under which they operated 16 bright blue paintedHawker Hunter F.6s.[12] No. 92 (F) Squadron thrilled the crowds with its precision display including looping a formation of 18 aircraft, only four fewer than the world record 22 Hawker Hunters looped by theBlack Arrows of No. 111 (F) Squadron at the Farnborough Airshow in September 1958.[13] When they re-equipped with theEnglish Electric Lightning F.2 from April 1963 onward they continued to perform with these.[14]
In December 1965, along withNo. 19 (F) Squadron they were reallocated toRAF Germany initially atRAF Geilenkirchen, moving to join No. 19 (F) Squadron atRAF Gütersloh. They remained at RAF Gütersloh from January 1968 until the Squadron disbanded on 31 March 1977.[15]
In January 1977, No. 92 (Designate) Squadron had begun training as aMcDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR.2 air defence unit atRAF Wildenrath and on 1 April this unit formally adopted the No. 92 (F) numberplate.[16]
On 25 May 1982, RAF PhantomXV422 of 92 Sqn shot down RAFJaguarXX963 of14 Sqn fromRAF Bruggen with aSidewinder, over Germany, by mistake when the Phantom pilot did not realise that he was fully armed.[17]
On 17 August 1990, Phantoms from No. 92 (F) Squadron and No. 19 (F) Squadron were sent toRAF Akrotiri,Cyprus, to provide air defence due to the deployment ofNo. V (AC) Squadron andNo. 29 (F) Squadron from Akrotiri toDhahran Airfield after the IraqiInvasion of Kuwait.[18] Due to the rundown of RAF Germany following the fall of theBerlin Wall the Squadron disbanded on 1 July 1991.[16]
On 23 September 1992,No. 151 (Reserve) Squadron was renumbered No. 92 (Reserve) Squadron atRAF Chivenor as part ofNo. 7 Flying Training School (FTS) for weapons training, flying theBritish Aerospace Hawk T.1. With the transfer of No. 7 FTS weapons training role toNo. 4 FTS atRAF Valley, No. 92 (R) Squadron was disbanded on 1 October 1994.[11][19]
In November 2008, it was announced that the Tactics and Training Wing of theAir Warfare Centre was to become No. 92 (Reserve) Tactics and Training Squadron. The Squadron officially stood up after 14 years on 30 June 2009 at the College Hall atRAFC Cranwell.[16] On 1 February 2018, the Royal Air Force rescinded all (Reserve) nameplates changing No. 92 (Reserve) Tactics and Training Squadron to No. 92 Tactics and Training Squadron.[20] As part of their work at the Air Warfare Centre, No. 92 Squadron helped design and carry outExercise Cobra Warrior 2019 for units of the RAF,Luftwaffe,Italian andIsraeli Air Forces.[21]
Aircraft operated include:[22]
In 1950 theBattle of Britain class steam locomotive No. 34081 was named "92 Squadron". This locomotive was saved from the scrapyard in 1976 and is owned by The Battle of Britain Locomotive Society[25] and based at the East Lancashire Railway.[26]
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