No. LIV Squadron RAF
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| No. 54 Squadron | ||
|---|---|---|
 Squadron badge |
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| Information | ||
| Role | ISTAR Conversion Unit | |
| Aircraft Operated | E3D & Nimrod R1 | |
| Home Station | RAF Waddington | |
| Motto | Audax omnia perpeti - "Boldness to endure anything" | |
| History | ||
| Date Founded | 5 May 1916 | |
| Badge | Lion rampant semée de lys | |
| Notable Battle Honours | Western Front 1916-1918, Arras, Ypres 1917, Cambrai 1917, Amiens, Home Defence 1940-1945, France and Low Countries 1940, Dunkirk, Battle of Britain 1940, Fortress Europe 1941, Eastern Waters [Australia] 1943-1945, Gulf 1991 | |
No. 54 or LIV Squadron of the Royal Air Force operated the SEPECAT Jaguar from RAF Coltishall, England until disbanded on 11 March 2005. Reformed as 54 (Reserve) Squadron at RAF Waddington [1]on 1 September 2005 it re-roled as the Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) Conversion Unit, responsible for training all mission crews for the E-3D Sentry, the Nimrod R1. The unit will also train crews of the Sentinel R1 when it comes into service.
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[edit] Squadron History
Formed at Castle Bromwich on 5 May 1916, No 54 Squadron, like many others formed at the same time, was tasked with Home Defence duties flying BE2Cs. Four months later, however, it transferred to day fighter missions and moved to France escorting bombers and attacking observation balloons. The final months of the War were spent flying Camels in ground attack as well as fighter sorties. In February 1919, the Squadron returned to the UK, disbanding some ten months later.
The Squadron was reformed at Hornchurch on 15 January 1930 as a fighter squadron equipped initially with Siskins then subsequently Bulldogs, Gauntlets and Gladiators before the Squadron's first monoplane, the Spitfire, arrived in March 1939.
The early days of World War II were spent patrolling the Kent coast, until, in May-June 1940, the unit provided air cover for the evacuation of Dunkirk. Following this, the Squadron was heavily engaged in the Battle of Britain, until it moved north to regroup, prior to undertaking coastal patrols.
In mid-1942, the squadron left for Australia. In January, 1943, it joined No. 1 Wing Royal Australian Air Force, a Spitfire unit responsible for air defence duties against Japanese aircraft in the Darwin area, under Wing Commander Clive Caldwell. Initially, the wing as a whole suffered from the inexperience of its pilots and mechanical problems caused during the shipment of Spitfires. Although contact with the Japanese was generally brief, 54 Squadron pilots scored a number of kills. Following the end of the war, the squadron disbanded in Melbourne on October 31, 1945.
On 15 November, 1945, No. 183 Squadron, a Tempest ground-attack unit based at Chilbolton near Oxford, was renumbered No 54 and the Squadron spent a year training pilots destined for overseas service before receiving Vampires and moving to Odiham a year later.
In 1948, six Vampires from the Squadron made history when they completed the first crossing of the Atlantic by jet aircraft. Following a three year stint with Meteors, Hunters arrived in 1955, and the Squadron took up ground-attack duties as part of No 38 Group, frequently deploying to trouble spots around the world as part of the Group's Offensive Strike Wing. This role continued after re-equipping with Phantoms at Coningsby during 1969 and subsequent Jaguars that were delivered during 1974. Remarkably, the Squadron, role and aircraft have remained the same, albeit at a different base (Coltishall) and updated Jaguar aircraft. With the move to a more expeditionary footing, the squadron has seen a number of operational deployments in recent years including Northern Iraq and the Balkans.
With the decision taken to run the Jaguar fleet down in anticipation of the arrival of its replacement, the Typhoon, No 54 was disbanded at RAF Coltishall on 11 March 2005. Reformed as 54 (Reserve) Squadron at RAF Waddington [2]on 1 September 2005 it re-roled as the Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) Conversion Unit, responsible for training all mission crews for the E-3D Sentry, the Nimrod R1. The unit will also train crews of the Sentinel R1 when it comes into service.
[edit] Aerial display
No 54 Squadron was the first jet RAF formation team to trail smoke with a team of five De Havilland Vampires.
In 1955, No 54 Squadron flew a formation of four Hawker Hunter aircraft. The following year the Squadron team adopted the name The Black Knights - the pilots wore black flying suits.
