Air Force
Cornwall Family History Society War History
Below is a list and information about the various squadrons in Cornwall during the second world war.
RAF Davidstow Moor
Information kindly supplied by Cornwall War Museum. Visit their site at: www.cornwallatwarmuseum.co.uk
The following squadrons were stationed at RAF Davidstow Moor during WW 2.
| Squadron | Sqd Code | Other Info | Dates Stationed | Aircraft Used | Duties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | FH | Dec 1842-Feb 1943 | Hudson | Reformed at Davidstow then moved to Docking, Norfolk | |
| 59 | PJ | Jul 1943 | Liberator | Convoy protection off the coast of Spain out into the Atlantic covering convoys returning to America | |
| 144 | PL | May 1944 – May 1944 | Beaufighter | Accompanied 404 squadron (RCAF) as part of the anti-shipping Strike Wing stationed at Davidstow working up for the D Day Invasion of Europe | |
| 192 | QS | Oct 1943 – May 1944 | Special duty flights over the western approaches and the Bay of Biscay, recording enemy radio and radar activity. | ||
| 206 | VX | Mar 1944 – Apr 1944 | Fortress | Returned to the UK to reform as a Liberator squadron at St Eval | |
| 236 | FA | Aug 1944 | Beaufighter | Accompanied 404 squadron (RCAF) as part of the anti-shipping Strike Wing stationed at Davidstow working up for the D Day Invasion of Europe | |
| 269 | HK | Dec 1943 – Mar 1944 | Hudson | Reformed as a composite squadron before moving to the Azores. | |
| 279 | OS | Feb 1943 – Jun 1943 | Hudson | Air Sea Rescue | |
| 280 | YF | Dec 1943 – Feb 1944 | Warwick | Air Sea Rescue in the Channel, Western approaches, Atlantic and Bay of Biscay | |
| 281 | FA | Feb 1944 – Apr 1944 | Warwick | Air Sea Rescue in the Channel, Western approaches, Atlantic and Bay of Biscay | |
| 282 | VA | Feb 1944 – Sep 1944 | Warwick | Air Sea Rescue operations in the Channel, Western approaches, cheap propecia online Atlantic and Bay of Biscay | |
| 304 (Polish) | NZ | Apr 1943 – Dec 1943 | Wellington | Anti-submarine patrols in the Western approaches, Atlantic and Bay of Biscay | |
| 404 (Canadian) | EE | May 1944 – Jul 1944 | Beaufighter | Along with 144 squadron it made up the Anti-shipping Strike Wing stationed at Davidstow working up for the D Day Invasion | |
| 524 | 7R | Apr 1944 – Jul 1944 | Wellington | Squadron reformed at Davidstow as an Anti-E boat unit flying mainly night sorties over the Channel searching for and watching the activities of enemy E boat forces. Also cooperated with Beaufighter strike squadron | |
| 547 | 2V | Jun 1943 – Oct 1943 | Wellington | Anti-submarine patrols in Bay of Biscay and Western approaches | |
| 612 | 8W | Apr 1943 – Jun 1943 | Whitley | Anti-submarine patrols in Bay of Biscay | |
| 93 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Liberator | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay | ||
| 44 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Liberator | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay | ||
| 91 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Flying Fortress | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay | ||
| 97 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Flying Fortress | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay | ||
| 301 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Flying Fortress | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay | ||
| 303 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Flying Fortress | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay | ||
| 305 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Flying Fortress | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay | ||
| 306 Group (USA) | Nov 1942 – Jul 1943 | Flying Fortress | Bombing U-boat installations in French ports in the Bay of Biscay |
RAF Predannack
These squadrons were stationed at RAF Predannack during WW 2.
- Popular – code name for reconnaissance and destroy mission.
- Rhubarb – pairs of aircraft assigned to hit a designated target.
- Ranger – pairs of aircraft assigned to hit targets of opportunity.
| Unit | Sqd Code | Other Information | Dates stationed | Aircraft Used | Duties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JX | 29 Apr 1944 to 20 Jun 1944 | Supermarine Spitfire | Intruder operations | |
| 25 | RX, ZK | On Detachment | Summer 1942 | Douglas Havoc | Night fighter |
| 33 | 5R | 15 Dec 1944 to 21 Feb 1945 | Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Tempests | Invasion of Europe 2nd TAF | |
| 64 | SH | 9 Dec 1942 to 2 Jan 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Fighter sweeps over France | |
| 66 | LZ | 26 Sep 1942 to 26 Sep 1942 | Supermarine Spitfire | Fighter sweeps over France | |
| 85 | VY | On Detachment | Summer 1943 | Dehavilland Mosquito | Night fighter |
| 118 | NK | On Detachment | Autumn 1941 | Supermarine Spitfire | Defence duties, offensive sweeps, escort duties |
| 120 | OH | On Detachment | Summer 1942 | Consolidated Liberator | Maritine reconnaissance and Anti – Submarine patrols |
| 141 | TW | 18 Feb 1943 to 30 Apr 1943 | Bristol Beaufighters | Night fighter | |
| 151 | DZ | 25 Mar 1944 to 7 Oct 1944 and 17 May 1945 to 1 Jun 1946 | De Havilland Mosquito NF | Night fighter | |
| 157 | RS | 9 Nov 1943 to 26 Mar 1944 | De Havilland Mosquito FB | Night fighter and intruder missions over Europe | |
| 165 | SK | Summer 1942 and 3 Apr 1944 to 20 Jun 1944 | Supermarine Spitfire | Escort duties, offensive sweeps and defensive duties | |
| 179 | OZ | 28 Apr 1944 to 6 Sep 1944 | Vickers Wellington | Anti – Submarine patrols over Bay of Biscay and Western buy diflucan no prescriprion Approaches | |
| 183 | HF | 14 Oct 1943 to 1 Feb 1944 | Hawker Typhoon | Attacking shipping and airfields | |
| 222 | ZD | 15 Dec 1944 to 21 Feb 1945 | Supermarine Spitfire | Offensive fighter sweeps | |
| 234 | AZ | 24 Dec 1941 to 31 Dec 1941 and 19 Jun 1944- 28 Aug 1944 | Supermarine Spitfire | Fighter sweeps over France | |
| 236 | FA | On Detachment | Late 1942 to 1943? | Bristol Beaufighter | Reconnaissance and Anti – Shipping misssions |
| 247 (China British) | ZY | 18 Jun 1941 to Sep 1943 | Hawker Hurricane | Defensive fighter patrols | |
| 248 | DM | 18 Jan 1943 to 17 Feb 1944 | Bristol Beaufighter and De Havilland Mosquito | Escort patrols and reconnissance missions over the Channel and Western Approaches and fighter reconaissance ovet the Channel and along the French Coast | |
| 263 | HE | On Detachment | Autumn 1942 to Spring 1943 | Westland Whirlwind | Convoy protection patrols and offensive sweeps over France |
| 264 (Madras Presidency) | PS | 30 Apr 1943 to 7 Nov 1943 and 25 Sep 1944 to 30 Nov 1944 | Dehavilland Mosquito | Night fighter, mix of defence and intruder missions | |
| 266 (Rhodesia) | ZH | On Detachment | Autumn 1943 | Hawker Typhoon | Low level interception and bomber escort |
| 304 (Polish) | 2 | 13 Dec 1943 to 19 Feb 1944 | Vickers Wellington | Anti – Submarine patrols over the Bay of Biscay | |
| 307 (Polish) | EW | Aug 1943 to Nov 1943 | Dehavilland Mosquito | Intruder operations over enemy airfields | |
| 310 (Czech) | NN | 9 Feb 1942 to 11 Feb 1942 | Supermarine Spitfire | Fighter sweeps over France | |
| 311 (Czech) | PP | 23 Feb 1944 to 7 Aug 1944 | Consolidated Liberator | Operations over the Bay of Biscay | |
| 349 (Belgian) | GE | 16 Feb 1944 to 19 Apr 1944 | Supermarine Spitfire | Fighter bomber and escort missions | |
| 406 (Canadian) | HU | 8 Sep 1942 to 8 Dec 1942 | Bristol Beaufighter | Nighter Fighter Unit | |
| 410 (Canadian) | RA | On Detachment | 1943 | Dehavilland Mosquito NF | Intruder duties |
| 414 (Canadian) | RU | On Detachment | Winter 1943 | North American P51 Mustang | |
| 415 (Canadian) | GX | 4 Dec 1942 to Jan 1943 | Handley Page Hempden | Anti -Submarine patrols | |
| 456 (Australian) | RX | On Detachment | Summer 1943 | Dehavilland Mosquito | Offensive ranger operations |
| 485 (New Zealand) | OU | 25 Feb 1945 to 19 Apr 1945 | Hawker Tempest and Hawker Typhoon | Dive bombing and tactical reconnaissance sorties | |
| 536 | Formed from old 1457 Flight | 8 Sep 1942 to 27 Oct 1942 | Douglas Havoc and Hawker Hurricane | Radar and light locater of enemy bombers for the fighters | |
| 600 | BQ | Jun 1941 to 2 Sep 1942 | Bristol Beaufighter | Night fighter unit | |
| 604 | NG | 7 Dec 1942 to 18 Feb 1943 and 24 Sep 1944 to 5 Dec 1944 | Bristol Beaufighter and De Havilland Mosquito | Night intruder operations | |
| 611 | FY | 3 Jul 1944 to 17 Jul 1944 | Supermarine Spitefire | Fighter operations | |
| 618 | BN | On Detachment | Autumn 1943 & 1944 | Dehavilland Mosquito | Special purpose bomber operations |
| 1457 | Reclass as 536 Squadron | 15 Nov 1941 to 8 Sep 1942 | Douglas Havoc and Douglas Boston | Radar and light locater of enemy bombers for the fighters |
RAF Perranporth
These squadrons were stationed at RAF Perranporth during WW 2.
- Poplar – code name for reconnaissance and destroy missions.
- Rhubarb – pairs of aircraft assigned to hit a designated target.
- Ranger – pairs of aircraft assigned to hit targets of opportunity.
| Unit | Sqdn Code | Other Information | Dates stationed | Aircraft Used | Duties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | QV | 6 May 1942 to 1 Mar 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Sweeps over Northern France and Bomber escort duties missions | |
| 65 | YT | 29 Mar 1943 to 18 May 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Sweeps over Northern France and Bomber escort duties missions | |
| 66 | LZ | 27 Apr 1941 to 14 Dec 1941 | Supermarine Spitfire | ||
| 66 | LZ | 17 Sep 1943 to 8 Nov 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Sweeps over France Coastal and sector patrols | |
| 118 | NK | 18 Apr 1941 to 23 Feb 1942 | Supermarine Spitfire | Convoy patrols bomber escorts and fighter sweeps over France | |
| 130 | P | 5 Dec 1941 to 16 Aug 1942 | Supermarine Spitfire | Sweeps over North West France Convoy patrols off Cornwall and Devon | |
| 130 | P | 20 Aug 1942 to 30 Mar 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Sweeps over North West France Convoy patrols off Cornwall and Devon | |
| 132 | FF | 18 May 1943 to 20 Jun 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Sweeps over France and Bomber escorts | |
| 183 | HF | 18 Sep 1943 to 14 Oct 1943 | Hawker Typhoon | Attacks on enemy shipping and airfields and Mosquito escort | |
| 234 | AZ | 28 Oct 1942 to 19 Jan 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Convoy patrols bomber escorts and standing coastal patrols | |
| 276 | AQ | 21 Oct 1941 to 5 Nov 1941 | Supermarine Walrus | Air sea rescue over West English and Bristol Channels | |
| 276 | AQ | 21 Oct 1941 to 5 Nov 1941 | Westland Lysander | Air sea rescue over West English and Bristol Channels | |
| 286 | NW | Apr 1942 to Apr 1944 | Hawker Hurricane | Anti – aircraft Cooperation unit concerned with target towing and gun laying for airfield defence | |
| 302 (Polish) | WX | 20 Jun 1943 to 19 Aug 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Sweeps over France and convoy patrols | |
| 310 (Czech) | NN | 24 Dec 1941 to 7 May 1942 | Supermarine Spitfire | Defence coastal and convoy patrols and later sweeps and bomber support missions | |
| 317 (Polish) | JH | 21 Jun 1943 tto 21 Aug 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Offensive sweeps and bomber escort patrols over France | |
| 329 (Free French) | 5A | 24 Mar to 17 Apr 1944 and 9 Nov 1943 to 14 Apr 1944 | Supermarine Spitfire | Convoy patrols and a few defensive scrambles | |
| 340 | GW | 9 Nov 1943 to 17 Apr 1944 | Supermarine Spitfire | ||
| 341 | NL | 11 Oct 1943 to 14 Apr 1944 | Supermarine Spitfire | ||
| 412 | VZ | 13 Apr 1943 to 21 Jun 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | ||
| 453 | FU | 20 Aug 1943 to 15 Oct 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | ||
| 602 | LO | 20 Jan 1943 to 14 Apr 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | ||
| 610 | DW | 30 Apr 1943 to 26 Jun 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | ||
| 639 | R9 | Aug 1944 to 30 Apr 1945 | Hawker Hurricane | ||
| 816 | Fleet Air Arm Squadron | 20 Apr 1944 to 1 Aug 1944 | Fairey Swordfish | Day and night patrols | |
| 849 | Fleet Air Arm Squadron | 20 Apr 1944 to 9 Aug 1944 | Gruman Avengers | Anti – shipping attacks on harbours of Channel Isles and Brittany | |
| 850 | Fleet Air Arm Squadron | 23 Apr 1944 to 1 Aug 1944 | Gruman Avengers | Anti – shipping attacks on harbours of Channel Isles and Brittany |
RAF Portreath
The following squadrons were stationed at RAF Portreath during WW 2.
- Poplar – code name for reconaissance and destroy mission.
- Rhubarb – pairs of aircraft assigned to hit a designated target.
- Ranger – pairs of aircraft assigned to hit targets of opportunity.
| Unit | Sqd Code | Other Information | Dates stationed | Aircraft Used | Duties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 66 | LZ | 14 Dec 1941 to 27 Apr 1942 | Supermarine Spitfire | Fighter sweeps over the Channel | |
| 130 | PJ | 16 Jun 1941 to 25 Oct 1941 | Supermarine Spitfire | Convoy protection and local air defence | |
| 143 | TW | 16 Sep 1943 to 12 Feb 1944 | Bristol Beaufighter | ||
| 152 | UM | 9 Apr 1941 to 25 Aug 1941 | Supermarine Spitfire | Convoy patrols | |
| 153 | TB | 18 Dec 1942 to 20 Dec 1942 | Bristol Beaufighters | Ground attack | |
| 217 | On Detachment | 1 Jun 1942 | |||
| 234 | AZ | 27 Apr 1942 to 26 Apr 1943 | Supermarine Spitfire | Convoy patrols | |
| 235 | LA | 29 Aug 1943 to 06 Sep 1944 | Bristol Beaufighters | Fighter sweeps over France and the Bay of Biscay | |
| 247 | ZY | 10 May 1941 to 18 Jun 1941 | Hawker Hurricane | Fighter sweeps over Northern France and night interceptions | |
| 248 | DM | 17 Feb 1944 to 12 Sep 1944 | Bristol Beaufighters | Fighter sweeps over France and the Bay of Biscay | |
| 263 | HE | 18 Mar 1941 to 10 Apr 1941 | Westland Whirlwind | Convoy protection and bomber escorts | |
| 313 (Czech) | RY | 26 Aug to 15 Dec 1941 | Supermarine Spitfire | Offensive sweeps and fighter cover | |
| 400 (Canadian) | SP | On Detachment | Dec 1942 | North American P51 Mustang | Rhurbarbs and populars over France and the Channel and convoy escorts and coastal protection |
| 414 (Canadian) | RU | 4 Jun 1943 to 19 Jun 1943 | North American P51 Mustang | Rhurbarbs and Populars over France and the Channel and convoy escorts and coastal protection | |
| 613 | SY | 20 Jun 1943 to 15 Jul 1943 | North American P51 Mustang | Rhurbarbs and fighter sweeps over France | |
| 639 | R9 | On Detachment | Summer 1944 to 1945 | Hawker Henley | Anti-Aircraft co-coperation |
| 639 | R9 | On Detachment | Summer 1944 to 1945 | Hawker Hurricane | Anti-Aircraft co-coperation |
| 330 (B) Wing | 9 Dec to 18 Dec 1942 142,150 Squadron | ||||
| 153 (GR) Wing | 15 Apr 1944 to 14 Sep 1944 235,248 Squadron | ||||
| Oversears Air Dispatch Unit | Jan 1942 to 10 Oct 1945 | ||||
| 1478 Flight | 11 Jun 1943 to 12 Jun 1943 | ||||
| ASDU | 1944 to 1945 | Vickers Wellington | |||
| ASDU | 1945 to 1945 | Vickers Warwick | |||
