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No. 655 Squadron RAF
No. 655 Squadron RAF
Active	30 Nov 1942 – 31 Aug 1945
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Role	Air observation post squadron
Insignia
Squadron badge heraldry	No badge known
Squadron codes	PA (1944 – Aug 1945,; HQ Flight); PB (1944 – Aug 1945,; 'A' Flight); PC (1944 – Aug 1945,; 'B' Flight); PD (1944 – Aug 1945,; 'C' Flight)
Aircraft flown
Reconnaissance	Taylorcraft Auster

No. 655 Squadron RAF was a unit of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Numbers 651 to 663 Squadrons of the RAF were air observation post units working closely with Army units in artillery spotting and liaison. A further three of these squadrons, 664–666, were manned with Canadian personnel. Their duties and squadron numbers were transferred to the Army with the formation of the Army Air Corps on 1 September 1957.^[3]^[4]

History

No. 655 Squadron was formed at RAF Old Sarum, Wiltshire, on 30 November 1942 and went into action in August 1943 in North Africa. From December 1943, it served in Italy, where it remained until disbanding at Ronchi on 31 August 1945. Colonel Sir Richard Gorham earned the Distinguished Flying Cross while a flight commander in Italy, playing a decisive role in the Battle of Monte Cassino.^[5] 655 Avn. Sqn. Army Air Corps was the 1st (BR) Corps support Squadron at Detmold in West Germany, during the days of the British Army of the Rhine. 655 Sqn., (The Scottish Horse), a title used to remember the unit's connections with its R.A.F. precedents, and the Italian campaign, provided battlefield support, observation, casevac, and Anti Tank Guided Weapon operations in the forward area in the event of the then expected European War. As in common with all A.A.C. units at that time 655 Squadron operated Westland upgraded Bell 47 G4 and Westland 'Scout'AH Mk'1 Helicopters.^[6]

Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 655 Squadron RAF, data from^[1]^[7]
From	To	Aircraft	Variant
December 1942	February 1943	Auster	Mk.I
February 1943	August 1944	Auster	Mk.III
June 1944	August 1945	Auster	Mk.IV
January 1945	August 1945	Auster	Mk.V

References

Notes

^ ^a ^b Halley 1988, p. 446.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Flintham & Thomas 2003, p. 97.
^ Halley 1988, p. 444.
^ Jefford 2001, pp. 102–105.
^ Bonete, Peter (11 March 1972). "Colonel Sir Richard M. Gorham, DFC". The Mid-Ocean News. City of Hamilton, Pembroke, Bermuda.
^ personal service 1970to1974
^ Jefford 2001, p. 103.

Bibliography

Flintham, Vic; Thomas, Andrew (2003). Combat Codes: A Full Explanation and Listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied Air Force Unit Codes since 1938. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-84037-281-8.
Halley, James J. (1988). The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians). 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. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing. ISBN 1-84037-141-2.