No. 353 Squadron RAF
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Script error: No such module "Infobox".Template:Template otherScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Template:Short description No. 353 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force squadron, active during World War II carrying out maritime patrol and transport tasks in and around British India.
History
No. 353 Squadron was formed on 1 June 1942 at RAF Dum Dum, British India from No. 62 Squadron and 103 (Coast Defence) Flight, Indian Air Force. Equipped with the Lockheed Hudson, an American light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft. The squadron was tasked with coastal patrols over the Bay of Bengal. In August 1943 it moved to Palam and was assigned to transport duties. From 1944 onwards the squadron re-equipped with Douglas Dakota, an American military transport aircraft and also operated a number of Avro Ansons, a British twin-engine multi-role aircraft, which were replaced with Beech Expeditor twin-engine light aircraft in January 1945. The squadron became fully Dakota equipped by April 1945, but disbanded at RAF Mauripur on 1 October 1946.
Aircraft operated
| From | To | Aircraft | Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 1942 | October 1944 | Lockheed Hudson | Mk.III |
| October 1944 | October 1944 | Lockheed Hudson | Mk.VI |
| April 1944 | September 1945 | Douglas Dakota | Mk.I |
| April 1944 | October 1946 | Douglas Dakota | Mks.III, IV |
| August 1944 | January 1945 | Avro Anson | Mks.I, X, XII |
| November 1944 | March 1945 | Vickers Warwick | Mk.III |
| January 1945 | July 1945 | Beechcraft Expeditor | Mk.II |
Squadron bases
| From | To | Base | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 June 1942 | 24 February 1943 | RAF Dum Dum, Bengal | Det. at RAF Cuttack, Orissa |
| 24 February 1943 | 2 April 1943 | RAF Dhubalia, Bengal | Det. at RAF Jessore, Bengal |
| 2 April 1943 | 24 August 1943 | RAF Tanjore, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu | Det. at St Thomas Mount, Madras, Tamil Nadu |
| 24 August 1943 | 1 May 1946 | RAF Palam, Delhi | Dets. at Dum Dum (renumbered to 52 Squadron on 1 July 1944) and Jiwani, Balochistan |
| 1 May 1946 | 1 October 1946 | RAF Mauripur, Sindh | Disbanded here |
Commanding officers
| From | To | Name |
|---|---|---|
| 1 June 1942 | 1 July 1944 | W/Cdr. L.G.W. Lilly |
| 1 July 1944 | February 1945 | W/Cdr. C.E. Slee, MVO, AFC |
| February 1945 | March 1945 | S/Ldr. F.M. Biddulph |
| March 1945 | October 1945 | W/cdr. A.M. Harding, DFC |
| October 1945 | 1 October 1946 | W/Cdr. P.B. Wood |
References
Notes
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Bibliography
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External links
- Squadron history on (old) MOD site
- Squadron history on (new) MOD site
- Squadron histories for nos. 353–361 squadron on "Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation"
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