No. 39 Squadron RAF

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No. 39 Squadron RAF
Active	15 April 1916
Role	Reconnaissance
Garrison/HQ	Creech AFB Nevada
Motto	"Die noctique" (By day and night)
Equipment	2 x MQ-9 Reaper
Battle honours	Home Defence 1916-1918, East Africa 1940, Egypt and Libya 1940-1943, Greece 1941, Mediterranean 1941-1943, Malta 1942, North Africa 1942-1943, South East Europe 1944-1945
Insignia
Identification symbol	A winged bomb

No. 39 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the MQ-9 Reaper since 2007, operating from Creech AFB Nevada, USA

[edit] History

39 Squadron was founded at Hounslow in 1916 with a range of fighters in an attempt to defend against German Zeppelin raids on London.

During World War II, No. 39 operated the Bristol Blenheim and Martin Maryland out of Egypt before converting to the Bristol Beaufort for anti-shipping operations. In late 1941 the unit was split up. One flight moved to Luqa, Malta in December 1941: six months later this flight was combined with others from 86 and 217 Squadrons to eventually form a new 39 Squadron. In 1943 the unit re-equipped with Bristol Beaufighter aircraft in the ground attack role and moved back to Egypt then on to Italy. During the Greek Civil War, it sent rocket-armed aircraft to participate in RAF operations.

It was the last remaining military operator of the Canberra (in the photographic reconnaissance role) before the Squadron disbanded on 30 July 2006.

The Squadron was reactivated in March 2007 and will be formed of five flights:

• A & C Flight - this will be formed from the existing No 1115 Flight operating the MQ-1 Predator.
• B & D Flight - operates the newly purchased MQ-9 Reaper UAVs.

E Flight will continue to maintain technicians on the USAF MQ-1s based at Creech AFB

Commanded by Wg Cdr Jeffrey of Tornado background the squadron is now building up in Nevada until its scheduled return to its home base at RAF Waddington in 2011-12.

On November 9, 2007 the Ministry of Defence announced that its MQ-9 Reapers had began operations in Afganistan against the Taliban.^[1]

[edit] See also

• List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons

[edit] References