Pink's War

Pink's War

Map of the area of operations
Date March and April 1925
Location South Waziristan
Result Tribal leaders accept terms
Belligerents
RAF aircraft of No. 2 (Indian) Wing [1] Mahsud tribesmen
Commanders and leaders
Wing Commander R C M Pink
Strength
Three aircraft squadrons
Casualties and losses
Two personnel killed and one aircraft lost Not known

Pink's War was an air to ground bombardment and strafing carried out by the Royal Air Force, under the command of Wing Commander Richard Charles Montagu Pink, against the mountain strongholds of Mahsud tribesmen in South Waziristan in March and April 1925.[2]

Contents

Background

The defence of the North-West Frontier Province was an important task for British India. In the 1920s, the British were engaged in a continuing effort to pacify militant tribesmen in the province. In July 1924 the British mounted operations against several of the Mahsud tribes in southern Waziristan and by October they had mostly been subdued. Only the Abdur Rahman Khel tribe and three other supporting tribes continued to attack British Indian Army posts.[3]

Operations

The fledgling RAF was keen to establish its military credentials and the air officer commanding in India, Sir Edward Ellington, made the unprecedented decision to conduct air operations against the tribesmen without the support of the army.[3]

Bristol Fighters and de Havilland DH9s from Nos. 5, 27 and 60 squadrons were deployed to the airstrips at Miranshah and Tank.[4] Operations commenced on 9 March 1925[5] and the RAF squadrons strafed tribal mountain strongholds in a successful attempt to crush the rebellion.[2]

On 1 May 1925, the tribal leaders sought an honourable peace bringing the short campaign to a close.[2] Only two British lives and one aircraft were lost during the campaign.[2][4] Pink's War was the first air action of the RAF carried out independently of the Army or Navy.[2]

Honours

After the campaign was over, the India General Service Medal with the Waziristan 1925 bar was awarded to the 46 officers and 214 men of the Royal Air Force who took part in Pink's War. It was by far the rarest bar given with an India General Service Medal and was only awarded after the then Chief of the Air Staff Sir John Salmond succeeded in overturning the War Office decision not to grant a medal for the campaign.[6] The campaign's commander, Wing Commander Pink, received speedy promotion to Group Captain.[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Air Commodore R C M Pink". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. 2007-06-17. http://www.rafweb.org/Biographies/Pink.htm. Retrieved 2007-09-08. 
  2. ^ a b c d e "Royal Air Force History - RAF History Timeline 1918 to 1929". Royal Air Force. 2003. http://www.raf.mod.uk/history_old/line1918.html. Retrieved 2007-09-08. 
  3. ^ a b Smith, Richard. "Pink, Richard Charles Montagu (1888–1932)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/76073. Retrieved 2007-10-08. 
  4. ^ a b "British Military Aviation in 1925". Royal Air Force Museum. 2003. http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/milestones-of-flight/british_military/1925.html. Retrieved 2007-09-08. 
  5. ^ Delve, Ken (1994). The Source Book of the RAF. Airlife Publishing Ltd. pp. 283. ISBN 1853104515. 
  6. ^ Laffin, John (1964). Swifter than Eagles. A biography of Marshal of the RAF Sir John Salmond. William Blackwood & Sons Ltd. pp. 207–208. 

Further reading