41(R) Squadron is the Royal Air Force's Fast Jet Test and Evaluation Squadron and is based at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. It seems entirely appropriate that the unit should find itself based at Coningsby, alongside the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and of course the RAF's modern day Spitfire in the shape of the Eurofighter Typhoon - for 41 Squadron's own Battle of Britain heritage is impressive.
Formed on the 14th July 1916 at Gosport, 41 Sqn moved to France two months later, where the Squadron was equipped with FE8s and was employed on ground attack missions. During 1917, the Squadron received SE5as for fighter and escort duties and, following the Armistice, the unit remained on the continent until February 1919 when it moved to Tangmere and was disbanded at the end of the year.
The unit reformed on the 1st April 1923 at Northolt as a fighter squadron, initially equipped with Snipes, which were replaced a year later by Siskins. During the Abyssinian crisis of 1935-36, the Squadron found itself in Aden on air-policing duties with two-seat Demons before returning to the UK and re-equipping with the Fury.
In January 1939, 41 Sqn received its first Spitfires - an association that would, incredibly, last for the duration of World War II. In May 1940 the unit was used to provide fighter cover for the evacuation of Dunkirk and was then part of 13 Group during the Battle of Britain. In the years which followed the Squadron was employed on a variety of missions including convoy patrol, 'Rhubarb' interdiction flights and fighter interception. After joining the Second Tactical Air Force in September 1944, 41 Sqn flew fighter sweeps over the continent, moving to Germany as part of the occupation forces in July 1945. More than 100 kills were attributed to 41 through the duration of WWII.
The post war years saw the unit operating the Meteor, Javelin, the Bloodhound surface to air missile and then F-4 Phantom before equipping with the Jaguar GR.1 in 1976, a relationship which would last until 2006 and included operational flying in both the first Gulf War and NATO/UN operations over Bosnia, when it became the first RAF aircraft to drop a bomb in anger over Europe since 1945.
On 1 April 2006, the Squadron took on Reserve status, with the standard being handed to the then Fast Jet & Weapons Operational Evaluation Unit (FJWOEU) and moved to RAF Coningsby. The Squadron is now equipped with a mixture of Tornado GR.4 and Harrier GR.9 aircraft and is tasked with the full spectrum of test and evaluation activities.
This year has seen 41(R) Sqn honour its Battle of Britain heritage in a number of ways, some public and some private. Most visible was the addition of historically significant three letter codes, some from Battle of Britain aircraft, to their current fleet, an action subsequently taken up by other RAF squadrons. Three of the fleet, all Tornado GR.4s, made their public event debut at RAF Northolt's Nightshoot in March of this year and the unit was also able to support a number of airshows with static appearances from Tornado and Harrier aircraft throughout 2010.
EB-R has been one of the most visible aircraft during 2010 (Tornado GR.4 ZA447) and is also marked as the current OC's aircraft. This was the code carried by Spitfire Ia P9428, 'R' for Robin, the personal mount of 32 year old Sqn Ldr Hilary R L 'Robin' Hood who was 41's Commanding Officer from 22 April 1940 until he was killed during the Battle of Britain on the 5th September. That day would be the Squadron's most intense of the whole war with two pilots dead (Hood and one of his Flight Commanders) and three wounded, three aircraft destroyed and four damaged, with no less than 20 victories credited to 41 Sqn. It would be the highest single day score in the Squadron's history.
Other stories behind the codes include that of EB-G (Tornado GR.4 ZA600), Spitfire Ia N3162 which scored five victories in one single Battle of Britain sortie, EB-Q (Harrier GR.9 ZG501) which as Spitfire Va R7304 was shot down over St Omer in August 1941 and EB-Z (Harrier GR.9 ZG503) which was a Spitfire IIa P7666 marked "Observer Corps" in November 1940.
The Squadron's visit to RAF Northolt was not just so that some of the UK's aviation photographers could capture them for posterity. The visit was primarily for Force Development and the fact that 41(R) Sqn was able to time this to coincide with the event was a happy occurrence for all concerned. Force Development sees RAF squadrons learning more about the history behind their units and their heritage and is designed to broaden their outlook and perhaps see beyond their day to day operational activity. For 41(R) Sqn this meant a visit to RAF Northolt's fascinating Building 27, more of which in a forthcoming feature, and also to RAF Uxbridge's remarkable, restored 11 Group Operations Room. It was GAR's huge honour to be invited to accompany the squadron personnel on this visit.
Prior to World War II, RAF Fighter Command, responsible for the aerial defence of the UK, divided the country into geographic areas named Fighter Groups. No 10 Group covered South West England with its HQ at Box in Wiltshire. No 11 Group covered London and South East England and was based at Uxbridge in West London. No 12 Group covered the Midlands and was centred on Watnall in Nottinghamshire whilst No 13 Group which then covered the remainder of the country to the North was based at Kenton Bar in Newcastle.
Fighter Command's HQ was situated at Bentley Priory in Stanmore, which, in addition to fulfilling an administrational function, also contained the Air Defence of Great Britain (ADGB) Filter and operations rooms. The former filtered incoming information from radar stations and Observer Corps posts to check for duplication, remove doubt and avoid confusion in order to present the latest and clearest information on the plotting tables at both Command and Group levels. It was the latter which allocated threat levels to the various Groups for defensive measures to be taken (aircraft to be scrambled for example) and to maintain an overall picture of the ongoing battle.
11 (Fighter) Group HQ was based at Hillingdon House within the grounds of the RAF Depot, Uxbridge, but actually independent of it while the underground operations room was built, also within the grounds nearby.
The two level bunker is some 60 feet below ground and can be accessed by two flights of stairs from a fairly nondescript doorway positioned within a leafy part of the Uxbridge grounds. The station actually closed as an RAF base earlier this year (See GAR feature by Paul Dunn) but the ops room will remain open to the public on a limited basis. It was closed down and locked up during the 1950s but reopened in the mid-1970s for restoration, although very little work was actually required with the rooms having remained untouched during that entire period. It's an incredibly moving place to visit and one which is of huge historical importance, especially as we reflect on the events of 70 years ago.
The room remains in the precise state it was in during the Battle of Britain with the large plotting table taking up much of the floor on the lower of the two levels. On the table is a map of South East England indicating the Group and Sector boundaries and their airfields. Here blocks would be moved into place to show the positions of the various squadrons. At the rear of the room are the tote boards, one for each sector airfield showing the state of all aircraft within the group by means of rising coloured lights - just like traffic lights in actual fact.
Upstairs, accessible via a wooden staircase and separated by soundproofed glass, is the control room. It was here that high ranking RAF officials and visiting dignitaries would sit and observe as the action unfolded below and therefore of course in the skies over South East England beyond.
It was during a visit to RAF Uxbridge on the 16th August 1940 that Winston Churchill uttered his quote 'Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few', in conversation with General Ismay. He later repeated the quote in the House of Commons and from that, the legend of The Few was born.
On the 25th March 2010 however, those seats were occupied by a small group of 41(R) Sqn's pilots and weapons systems operators, all of whom were completely absorbed in the official tour they were being given of a location steeped in history, not just World history but that of their own squadron, with 41's status clearly visible on the aforementioned tote boards.
A spokesman for the squadron said:
"This year is a very important one as everyone knows and for us, it was important to ensure that the part 41 Sqn played was suitably commemorated and that the Battle of Britain's 70th anniversary as a whole was marked. Thus the codes applied to aircraft, the airshow appearances and the Force Development visit to RAF Uxbridge. These were means of remembering The Few and recalling our own history, of which we are all very proud."
Fast forward to the 8th September 2010 and 41(R) Sqn was once again marking their history with a private event at RAF Coningsby, this time for a large group of veteran's families and even one or two veterans themselves. Once again GAR was honoured to receive an invite to visit 41(R) Sqn and once again the Squadron's desire to respect and honour its history impressed.
With a hangar reserved for the event a line up of Tornado GR.4, Harrier GR.9, BBMF Spitfire and a Typhoon from fellow Battle of Britain veterans 29(R) Sqn dominated proceedings. So did the display boards and artefacts relating the squadron's proud history and some of the modern day weapons and equipment that shape its work today. It was inspiring to see so many of those with connections to the squadron taking such an interest and also that the squadron itself was so well represented. Few units have surely done this much to remember The Few?
Earlier in the day, prior the hangar gathering and a subsequent Squadron briefing and dining in night, the group of 70 or so had visited the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. They were afforded a tour of the BBMF aircraft and facilities, but first were shepherded outside into the weak late summer sunshine for something rather special.
A few moments later Sqn Ldr Ian Smith emerged, donned a traditional leather flying helmet and taxied out in Spitfire Mk PRXIX PS915. Having taken off he disappeared for a few minutes before surprising everyone, including your GAR correspondents, by appearing from behind the assembled gathering (and the BBMF hangar) at 100ft! What followed was one of the most exciting and enjoyable demonstrations I have seen for many a day. As Smithy eventually joined the circuit to land, the stunned and delighted audience was treated to a superb flypast (in very close formation) by a 41(R) Sqn Tornado and Harrier.
Smithy taxied in to a round of applause, shut down and dismounted from the Spitfire, walking around to the front of the aircraft to greet Peter Hale, a 41 Sqn veteran who had been taken out on to the ramp to reacquaint himself with the aircraft type he flew in service. That moment, as the BBMF Boss shook him by the hand, is one I will always remember from this year and reflected not just Smithy's own sentiment but really that of everything 41(R) Sqn has done to remember the Battle of Britain and its own history in 2010. His remark, to a man who served 41(R) Sqn, the RAF and his Country so nobly 70 years ago summed up the reason why so much has been done for The Few.
"That was for you that was."
GAR wants to interact with its readers so if you have a question for the author or a comment to make on this feature, please click on the button below. The best comments will appear right here on GAR.2010-10-05 - Pierre-Alain ANTOINE
Gareth, once again your site, in particular this page on the BoB should be copied by many of us in France who own a website.
By its permanent and appropriate updates, it teaches us how to remember those who flew and fought in the past!
Congratulations.
Pierre-Alain
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