World War 2
First Blood to the Auxiliaries
Battle of France and Dunkirk ( May - June 1940 )
ROYAL AUXILIARY AIR FORCE I 100th ANNIVERSARY
World War 2
As the countdown to war began , in August 1939 , the AAF and RAFVR and the WAAF were embodied into the Royal Air Force , and when war was declared on 3rd September 1939 , the Auxiliaries had a strength of 20 flying squadrons
( with aircraft including Hurricanes and Spitfires ), 47 balloon squadrons and nearly 1800 WAAF ’ s . Auxiliary ( and Royal Air Force ) recruiting was paused and new recruits during hostilities became part of the RAFVR . However , WAAF recruiting remained as a separate function . The Royal Air Force went to war with just under 200,000 personnel of whom 20,000 were RAFVR , and of the 12,600 officers , 3,000 were from the AAF .
AAF Notice of Call Out
First Blood to the Auxiliaries
On 16 October 1939 , 12 Junkers 88s came to Scotland to bomb and sink HMS Hood . Spitfires of 602 and 603 Squadrons were scrambled , and Flight Lieutenant Patrick Gifford of 603 Squadron became the first RAF pilot of the war to shoot down a German aircraft when he downed one of the Junkers 88 ’ s . Flight Lieutenant Pinkerton from 602 Squadron downed a second German aircraft .
These were also the first aircraft to be shot down by a Spitfire in combat , and the action resulted in Distinguished Flying Crosses for both pilots .
Commander In Chief Fighter Command , Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding declared “ Well done , first blood to the Auxiliaries ”.
Flight Lieutenant Gifford on his return to base 16 th October 1939
Battle of France and Dunkirk ( May - June 1940 )
The period over the winter of 1939 / 40 , was known as the “ Phoney War ” and this relatively quiet time allowed the RAF Auxiliary squadrons time to prepare for the conflict ahead and for the fighter squadrons to get valuable training in on their Hurricanes and Spitfires . The Battle of France ( Blitzkrieg ), which began in earnest on 10th May 1940 , lasting until beyond the final evacuation of the
501 Sqn operating in France May 1940
British Expeditionary Force from the beaches of Dunkirk , involved no fewer than eleven Auxiliary Sqns , operating largely out of England of which , 501 Squadron , operating on French soil , was engaged up until returning to England through a series of ‘ leap frogs ’ through France on 19 th June 1940 . During its period in combat , it flew 446 sorties , had 55 confirmed kills for the loss of seven Hurricanes and three pilots killed .
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