No. 29 Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Air Force which is the Typhoon Operational Conversion Unit. Based at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, the squadron is responsible for aircrew training on the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4. It originally formed as a unit of the Royal Flying Corps in 1915, and is one of the world's oldest fighter squadrons.

History

First World War (1915–1919)

This unit was first raised as a reserve squadron at Fort Grange, Gosport, initially equipped with the Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2c, in November 1915. In early 1916 however No. 29 became the fourth squadron to receive the Airco DH.2 "pusher" fighter, and arrived in France on 25 March 1916 – helping to end the Fokker Scourge and establish Allied air superiority in time for the Battle of the Somme.

By late 1916, the DH.2 was outclassed by new German fighters, but No. 29 Squadron kept its pushers until March 1917, when it was re-equipped with the Nieuport 17. These were replaced with later Nieuport types, such as the Nieuport 24bis, as these became available. Due to a shortage of the Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a the squadron retained its Nieuports until April 1918. At this time the squadron finally received the S.E.5a, which it retained for the rest of the war.

The award of a Victoria Cross – the highest award for valour "in the face of the enemy" in the British Empire – to Captain James McCudden of No. 29 Squadron was gazetted on 2 April 1918, for McCudden's "conspicuous bravery, exceptional perseverance and a high devotion to duty", between August 1917 and March 1918.

October 1918 was a bitter month for the squadron; an American volunteer, Lieutenant Joseph Patrick Murphy was the first to fall on 8 October and become a prisoner of war. British flying ace Claude Melnot Wilson was next to fall, on 14 October and Guy Wareing was shot down on the 27 October.

After a short period with the army of occupation in Germany, the squadron returned to the UK in August 1919 and was disbanded on 31 December 1919.

From May 1967 the squadron operated the English Electric Lightning F.3 and were based at RAF Wattisham near Stowmarket in Suffolk.

In 1987, No. 29 Squadron was one of the first RAF units to receive the Panavia Tornado F3, deploying to Saudi Arabia after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990 and thereafter participating in Operation Desert Storm. The squadron flew the Tornado until disbanding in 1998, as part of the Strategic Defence Review.

The squadron's motto is .

Aircraft markings

Since the late 1920s, No. 29 Squadron has used markings with three red X's on its aircraft . Since "XXX" closely resembles the Roman numeral for "29" (XXIX) there is a belief among current squadron personnel that this originated as a misspelling of the Roman numeral.thumb|An [[English Electric Lightning|English Electric Lightning F.3 wearing No. 29 Squadron markings at RAF Wattisham in 1972|left]]Various explanations for the tradition have been suggested, the most common being a misunderstood instruction to ground crew to paint "2 X's in front of the roundel and IX behind it" meaning "X,X,(roundel), and 'IX' or 'one-X'" resulted in "XX(roundel)'one times' X". In fact, the marking was always applied as "XXX(roundel)XXX" or as "XXX(roundel)" on smaller types, such as the Armstrong Whitworth Siskin.

Call signs

As of March 2025, aircraft operated by No. 29 Squadron use the following peacetime air traffic control call signs within UK airspace: Anarchy, Beaufighter, Cobra, Gunfighter, Riot, Sherman, Triplex and Warlord. The Typhoon display aircraft uses the call sign Reheat.

Battle honours

thumb|A [[Eurofighter Typhoon variants|Eurofighter Typhoon T3 in No. 29 Squadron markings in 2015]]

No. 29 Squadron has received the following battle honours. Those marked with an asterisk (*) may be emblazoned on the squadron standard.

  • Western Front (1916–1918)*
  • Somme (1916)*
  • Arras (1917)*
  • Ypres (1917)*
  • Somme (1918)*
  • Lys (1918)*
  • Channel & North Sea (1939–1940)*
  • Battle of Britain (1940)*
  • Home Defence (1940–1945)*
  • Fortress Europe (1943–1945)
  • Normandy (1944)
  • France and Germany (1944–1945)*
  • Arnhem (1944)
  • Afghanistan (2001–2014)

See also

  • List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons

References

Notes

Bibliography

  • Franks, Norman; Bailey, Frank; Duiven, Rick. The Jasta War Chronology: A Complete Listing of Claims and Losses, August 1916 - November 1918. Grub Street, London., 1998. .
  • Halley, James J. Famous Fighter Squadrons of the RAF: Volume 1. Windsor, Berkshire, UK: Hylton Lacey Publishers Ltd., 1971. .
  • Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. .
  • Jefford, C.G. RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988 (second edition 2001). .
  • Jones, H. A. The War in the Air: Being the Story of the Part Played in the Great War by the Royal Air Force: Volume II. History of the Great War. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1928.
  • Rawlings, John. Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald and Jane's Publishers Ltd., 1969 (second edition 1976). .
  • Robertson, Bruce. Aircraft Camouflage and Markings, 1907–1954. Letchworth, Harleyford Publications, 1957.
  • Shores, Christopher; Franks, Norman & Guest, Russell. Above The Trenches: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the British Empire Air Forces 1915–1920. London: Grub Street, 1990. .