418 Search and Rescue Operational Training Squadron

1941–1945
1946–1994
2019–present

CountryCanadaBranchRoyal Canadian Air ForceType

1941–1945 Intruder
1946–1994 Tactical bomber/transport
2019–present Search and rescue/transport

Part of

1941–1945 RCAF Article XV squadrons, attached to the RAF for operational purposes
2019–present 19 Wing Comox

HeadquartersCFB ComoxMotto(s)Inuktitut: Piyautailili, lit. 'Defend even unto death'Battle honours

Defence of Britain, 1944
Fortress Europe, 1942–1944
Dieppe
France and Germany, 1944–1945
Normandy, 1944
Rhine

Military unit

418 Search and Rescue Operational Training Squadron is a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force, formed during World War II.

History

418 Squadron RCAF was Canada's highest-scoring squadron in World War II, in terms of both air-to-air and air-to-ground kills, and in terms of both day and night operations.^[1] The squadron's most active period was 1944, when assigned to Intruder and Ranger sorties across occupied Europe.

The squadron was re-formed in 1946 flying the B-25 Mitchell in the tactical bomber role from the Edmonton Municipal Airport. It moved to RCAF Station Namao in 1955. In 1958, 418 was redesignated as a light transport and search and rescue unit. Aircraft assigned included the de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter and Beechcraft C-45 Expeditor from RCAF Station Namao. Its duties ranged from aid to the civil power to aerial resupply.^[2]

Upon unification of the forces the squadron converted to the De Havilland Twin Otter. The squadron was disbanded in 1994, and its aircraft were shifted to 440 Transport Squadron in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The unit is featured in exhibits at the Alberta Aviation Museum on Kingsway Avenue in Edmonton.

418 Squadron was re-formed on March 13, 2019,^[3] with Lieutenant-Colonel Jeffers as commanding officer. The unit is based at 19 Wing Comox, as 418 Search and Rescue Operational Training Squadron, training aircrew and maintenance personnel on the CC-295 Kingfisher, using simulators and aircraft.^[4]

Aircraft operated

References

^ Kostenuk, Samuel; Griffin, John (1977). RCAF: Squadron Histories and Aircraft. Toronto: Samuel Stevens Hakkert & Company. p. 110. ISBN 0888665776.
^ Kostenuk, Samuel; Griffin, John (1977). RCAF: Squadron Histories and Aircraft. Toronto: Samuel Stevens Hakkert & Company. p. 176. ISBN 0888665776.
^ Government of Canada, National Defence (11 July 2019). "News Article | 418 Squadron flies again". www.rcaf-arc.forces.gc.ca. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
^ Government of Canada, National Defence (13 December 2018). "News Article | Fixed-wing search and rescue procurement project". www.rcaf-arc.forces.gc.ca. Retrieved 29 September 2020.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 418 Squadron RCAF.

Official website
Squadron history at Canadian Wings

Royal Canadian Air Force

Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force
Chief Warrant Officer of the Air Force
Installations

List of aircraft

Wings: 1 Wing Kingston; 3 Wing Bagotville; 4 Wing Cold Lake; 5 Wing Goose Bay; 8 Wing Trenton; 9 Wing Gander; 12 Wing Shearwater; 14 Wing Greenwood; 15 Wing Moose Jaw; 16 Wing Borden; 17 Wing Winnipeg; 19 Wing Comox; 22 Wing North Bay
List of Squadrons

Training: Canadian Forces School of Aerospace Technology and Engineering

History: Canadian Aviation Corps (1914–1915); Canadian Air Force (1918–1920); Canadian Air Force (1920–1924); Royal Canadian Air Force (1924–1968); Canadian Forces Air Command (1975–2011); Royal Canadian Air Force (2011–present)

v t e Royal Canadian Air Force units
Wings	1 Wing Kingston 2 Wing Bagotville 3 Wing Bagotville 4 Wing Cold Lake 5 Wing Goose Bay 8 Wing Trenton 9 Wing Gander 12 Wing Shearwater 14 Wing Greenwood 15 Wing Moose Jaw 16 Wing Borden 17 Wing Winnipeg 19 Wing Comox 22 Wing North Bay
Squadrons	21 Aerospace Control and Warning Squadron 42 Radar Squadron 51 Aerospace Control and Warning Operational Training Squadron 103 Search and Rescue Squadron 400 Tactical Helicopter Squadron 401 Tactical Fighter Squadron 402 Squadron 403 Helicopter Operational Training Squadron 404 Long Range Patrol and Training Squadron 405 Long Range Patrol Squadron 406 Maritime Operational Training Squadron 407 Long Range Patrol Squadron 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron 409 Tactical Fighter Squadron 410 Tactical Fighter Operational Training Squadron 412 Transport Squadron 413 Transport and Rescue Squadron 414 Electronic Warfare Support Squadron 415 Long Range Patrol Force Development Squadron 417 Combat Support Squadron 423 Maritime Helicopter Squadron 424 Transport and Rescue Squadron 425 Tactical Fighter Squadron 426 Transport Training Squadron 429 Transport Squadron 430 Tactical Helicopter Squadron 433 Tactical Fighter Squadron 435 Transport and Rescue Squadron 436 Transport Squadron 437 Transport Squadron 438 Tactical Helicopter Squadron 439 Combat Support Squadron 440 Transport Squadron 442 Transport and Rescue Squadron 443 Maritime Helicopter Squadron 444 Combat Support Squadron 450 Tactical Helicopter Squadron
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Royal Canadian Air Force squadrons

Squadron
numbers

Pre-WWII Squadrons	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 18
100-series squadrons	110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 145 147 149 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 170
WW2 400-series Article XV squadrons	400 401 402 403 404 405 406 407 408 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429 430 431 432 433 434 435 436 437 438 439 440 441 442 443
WW2 600-series AOP squadrons¹	664 665 666
Post-war squadrons	103 444 445 446 447 448 449 450

Squadron
codes

WW2 Canada

1 August 1939 - May 1942	AY BK BT DM EX FD FY JY KA KO LT MX NA OP OY PB QN RE TM XE XO YO ZD
Unit formation in 1940 - May 1942	AN BF GK GV LU PO QE TQ RA
Dartmouth Hurricanes 1942	1 or 2 1 or 2 1 or 2
May 1942 - 16 October 1942	AE AF AG AN AZ BA BD BV DE DZ EA ED EN ET FG FN GA GR HA HJ JK KL LM LR LV LZ MA MK MR NO PQ QG RA RS SZ TF TN UV UY VD VW XP XY YA YH YZ ZM ZR

WW2 Overseas
1940-1946

Operational squadrons	AB AE AL AN AU AW BM BX 2I CI DB DG DH DN EE EQ 5V FD F3 6U GX G9 HU I8 9G KH KP KW LQ NA ND NH OW PT QB QL QO QY RA RR RU RV SE SP SW TH VR VZ WL YI YO YZ ZL ZU Z2
Transport squadrons	OWL² ODM ODN ODO

Post-WW2
1947 - 1958

1947 - 1951 (VCXXA)³	AA AB AC AD AG AH AK AM AN AO AP AQ AT AU AW AX BA BC BN BQ BU XV
1951 - 1958 (XXnnn)⁴	AF AM AN AP AQ AS AX BA BB BH BQ BR BT BU BV DL FG GW HG HO IG JF JW KE KH LP MN NQ PF PR QP QT RX SA SP SV TF UD VN XK XV

¹Aircraft administered and serviced by the RCAF but manned by the Royal Canadian Artillery.

² Non-standard code as unit using OW added L. Letters normally denoted parent Command, aircraft type (L Liberator transport, D Dakota etc), unit, and individual aircraft.

³ VC

XXA where VC was the civil code used by the RCAF replacing CF-, XX was the unit code and A was the aircraft ID letter

⁴ XX

nnn where XX was the unit code and nnn was the last 3 digits of the serial number. Unit code was replaced with "RCAF" in 1958