Army Air Corps (United Kingdom)
The Army Air Corps (AAC) is a component of the British Army, first formed in 1942 during the Second World War by grouping the various airborne units of the British Army. Today, there are eight regiments (seven Regular Army and one Reserve) of the AAC as well as four Independent Flights and two Independent Squadrons deployed in support of British Army operations around the world. Regiments and flights are located in the United Kingdom, Brunei, Canada, and Germany. Some AAC squadrons provide the air assault elements of 16 Air Assault Brigade through Joint Helicopter Command.
| Army Air Corps | |
|---|---|
Cap Badge of the Army Air Corps. | |
| Active | 1942–1949 1957–present |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | British Army |
| Type | Army aviation |
| Role | Battlefield support, reconnaissance |
| Size | 2,000 personnel Approx. 200 aircraft[1] |
| Garrison/HQ | AAC Middle Wallop |
| March | Quick: Recce Flight Slow: Thieving Magpie |
| Battle honours | Falkland Islands 1982 Wadi al-Batin, Gulf 1991 Basra, Iraq 2003 |
| Commanders | |
| Colonel-in-Chief | Charles III |
| Colonel Commandant | Lieutenant-General Nick Borton DSO MBE |
| Insignia | |
| Tactical Recognition Flash | |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Attack | Apache AH1 Apache AH-64E V6 |
| Reconnaissance | Gazelle AH1 Wildcat AH1 |
| Trainer | Jupiter HT1 Juno HT1 |
| Transport | 212HP AS365N3 Dauphin II |
History
First formation: 1942–1949
The British Army first took to the sky during the 19th century with the use of observation balloons.[2] In 1911 the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers was the first heavier-than-air British military aviation unit.[3] The following year, the battalion was expanded into the Military Wing of the Royal Flying Corps which saw action throughout most of the First World War until 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the Royal Naval Air Service to form the Royal Air Force.[4] Between the wars, the army used RAF co-operation squadrons.[5] At the beginning of the Second World War, Royal Artillery officers, with the assistance of RAF technicians, flew Auster observation aircraft under RAF-owned Air Observation Post (AOP) Squadrons. Twelve squadrons were raised, three of which belonged to the RCAF and each performed vital duties in many theatres.[6][7][8]
In 1942, Winston Churchill announced the establishment of a new branch of army aviation, the Army Air Corps. The corps initially comprised the Glider Pilot Regiment and the Parachute Battalions (subsequently the Parachute Regiment), Air Landing Regiments, and the Air Observation Post Squadrons. In March 1944, the SAS Regiment was added to the corps.[9]
One of their most successful exploits during the war was the capture of the Caen canal and Orne river bridges by coup de main, which occurred on 6 June 1944, prior to the Normandy landings. Once the three gliders landed, some roughly which incurred casualties, the pilots joined the glider-borne troops (Ox & Bucks Light Infantry) to act as infantry. The bridge was taken within ten minutes of the battle commencing and the men withstood numerous attempts by the Germans to re-capture the location. They were soon reinforced and relieved by soldiers from the 1 Special Service Brigade (Lord Lovat).[10] The AAC was disbanded in 1949, with the SAS regaining independent status, while the Parachute Regiment and Glider Pilot Regiment came under the umbrella of the Glider Pilot and Parachute Corps.[9]
Second formation: 1957–present
In 1957 the Glider Pilot and Parachute Corps was split, with the Parachute Regiment becoming an independent formation, while the Glider Pilot Regiment was merged with the Air Observation Squadrons of the Royal Artillery into a new unit, the Army Air Corps.[11]
In 1958 the Saunders-Roe Skeeter 7 was introduced as the AAC's first helicopter, it was replaced by the Aérospatiale Alouette II and Westland Scout AH.1 during the early 1960s. The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver AL.1 was introduced during the 1960s along with the Agusta/Westland Sioux AH.1 in 1964.[12]
From 1970, nearly every army brigade had at least one Aviation Squadron that usually numbered twelve aircraft. The main rotor aircraft during the 1970s were the Westland Scout and Bell Sioux general purpose helicopters. The Sioux was replaced from 1973 by the Westland Gazelle used for Airborne reconnaissance;[13] initially unarmed, they were converted to carry 68mm SNEB rocket pods in 1982, during the Falklands War. The Scout was replaced from 1978 by the Westland Lynx, which was capable of carrying additional firepower in the form of door gunners.[14]
Basic rotary flying training was carried out on the Sioux in the 1970s, on the Gazelle in the 1980s and 1990s, and is currently conducted on the Eurocopter H145 through the Defence Helicopter Flying School.[15]
Fixed-wing types in AAC service have included the Auster AOP.6 and AOP.9 and DHC-2 Beaver AL.1 in observation and liaison roles. In 1989, the AAC commenced operating a number of Britten-Norman Islander aircraft for surveillance and light transport duties.[16] The corps operated the DHC-1 Chipmunk T.10 in a training role until its replacement by the Slingsby T67 Firefly in the 1990s. The Firefly was replaced by the Grob Tutor in 2010.[17]
Cold War
During the Cold War the majority of Army Air Corps units were based in Germany and part of the British Army of the Rhine. At the beginning of 1989 the Army Air Corps structure was as follows:[18][19][20][21]
- Army Air Corps, AAC Middle Wallop
- 1 Wing AAC, Hobart Barracks in Detmold, West Germany, under operational control of Commander Aviation 1st British Corps (Wing disbanded during 1989)
- 1 Regiment AAC, Tofrek Barracks in Hildesheim, supported 1st Armoured Division
- 651 Squadron AAC, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7 (TOW))
- 652 Squadron AAC, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7 (TOW))
- 661 Squadron AAC, (Reconnaissance, 12x Gazelle AH.1)
- 3 Regiment AAC, Salamanca Barracks in Soest, supported 3rd Armoured Division
- 653 Squadron AAC, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7 (TOW))
- 662 Squadron AAC, (Reconnaissance, 12x Gazelle AH.1)
- 663 Squadron AAC, (Reconnaissance, 12x Gazelle AH.1)
- 4 Regiment AAC, Hobart Barracks in Detmold, supported 4th Armoured Division
- 654 Squadron AAC, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7 (TOW))
- 659 Squadron AAC, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7 (TOW))
- 669 Squadron AAC, (Reconnaissance, 12x Gazelle AH.1)
- 1 Regiment AAC, Tofrek Barracks in Hildesheim, supported 1st Armoured Division
- 2 Wing AAC, AAC Netheravon (Wing disbanded during 1989)
- Northern Ireland Regiment AAC, AAC Aldergrove (Later renamed 5 Regiment AAC)
- 655 Squadron AAC, AAC Ballykelly, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7), supported 2nd Infantry Division
- 665 Squadron AAC, (16x Gazelle AH.1), supported HQ Northern Ireland
- 1 Flight AAC, (Reconnaissance, 4x DHC-2 Beaver AOP)
- 7 Regiment AAC, AAC Netheravon
- 656 Squadron AAC, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7), supported 1st Infantry Brigade
- 666 Squadron AAC (V), (Territorial Army, Home Defence, 12x Gazelle AH.1)
- 2 Flight AAC, (4x Gazelle AH.1), supported NATO's AMF(L)
- 657 Squadron AAC, Colchester Garrison, (Anti-Tank, 4x Gazelle AH.1, 12x Lynx AH.7), supported 9th Infantry Brigade; joined 9 Regiment AAC in July 1990.
- Northern Ireland Regiment AAC, AAC Aldergrove (Later renamed 5 Regiment AAC)
- 9 Regiment AAC, RAF Topcliffe, part of 24th Airmobile Brigade
- 672 Squadron AAC, (Lynx Light Battlefield Helicopter Squadron, activated 1 January 1990, 12x Lynx AH.9)
- 3 Flight AAC, (4x Gazelle AH.1)
- School of Army Aviation, AAC Middle Wallop
- 670 Squadron AAC, Middle Wallop, (Operational Training, 12x Gazelle AH.1, activated 1989)
- 671 Squadron AAC, Middle Wallop, (Conversion to Type, 8x Gazelle AH.1, 8x Lynx AH.7)
- Trade Training School (Ground Crew & Maintenance Training)
- 660 Squadron AAC, RAF Sek Kong, Hong Kong, (12x Scout AH.1), supported British Forces Hong Kong, two Scouts detached to British Forces Brunei
- C Flight, 660 Squadron AAC, Anduki Airfield in Seria, Brunei, (2x Scout AH.1)
- 664 Squadron AAC, St George's Barracks in Minden, West Germany, (Reconnaissance, 12x Gazelle AH.1), supported 1st British Corps
- Development & Trials Squadron, AAC Middle Wallop, (12x Gazelle AH.1, under Director Army Air Corps. On 1 April 1990 renamed 667 (D&T) Squadron AAC)
- 7 Flight AAC, RAF Gatow, Berlin, (4x Gazelle AH.1), supported the Berlin Infantry Brigade
- 8 Flight AAC, Stirling Lines, Hereford, (4x A109A Hirundo), supported the Special Air Service
- 12 Flight AAC, RAF Wildenrath, Germany, (4x Gazelle AH.1), supported British Army of the Rhine
- 16 Flight AAC, Kingsfield Airfield in Dhekelia, Cyprus, (4x Gazelle AH.1) supported British Forces Cyprus
- 25 Flight AAC, Price Barracks, Belize, (4x Gazelle AH.1), supported British Army Training and Support Unit Belize
- 29 (BATUS) Flight AAC, CFB Suffield, Canada, (4x Gazelle AH.1), supported British Army Training Unit Suffield
- UNFICYP Flight AAC, Nicosia Airport, Cyprus, (4x Gazelle AH.1), supported United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus
- 1 Wing AAC, Hobart Barracks in Detmold, West Germany, under operational control of Commander Aviation 1st British Corps (Wing disbanded during 1989)
War on Terror
A further boost in the Army Air Corps' capability came in the form of the Westland Apache AH.1 attack helicopter, introduced in 2004. In 2006, British Apaches deployed to Afghanistan as part of the NATO International Security Assistance Force. In 2004, Britten-Norman Defender fixed wing aircraft were purchased for Afghanistan and Iraq.[16]
End of fixed-wing flying, 2019–2021
In April 2019, 651 Squadron personnel and aircraft, the Islander and Defender, were transferred from 5 Regiment to No. 1 Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Wing Royal Air Force.[22][23] 651 Squadron continued to operate the aircraft until they were retired from service on 30 June 2021.[24][25]
Current structure and deployment
Mascot
The Army Air Corps adopted their first Corps Mascot – Zephyr, a bald eagle – in October 2011.[26]
Training
The training of future Army Air Corps aircrew is delivered by the joint service UK Military Flying Training System. Elementary Flying Training was delivered at RAF Barkston Heath with 674 Squadron AAC, up until the Squadron’s standing down in April 2021.[27]
Training Units, AAC Middle Wallop
- 7 (Training) Regiment AAC
- 671 Squadron – 'Lynx/Gazelle/Bell 212'j (Future uncertain, given retirement of Gazelle and Lynx fleets)
- 673 Squadron – Apache Conversion to type
- No. 1 Flying Training School RAF, RAF Shawbury | Juno HT.1
- 660 Squadron
- 670 Squadron – Operational Training
Personnel
The strength of the Army Air Corps is about 2,000 Regular personnel, of which 500 are officers. However, the AAC draws an additional 2,600 personnel from the Royal Logistic Corps, the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and the Adjutant General Corps.[28] Therefore, total related Army Air Corps personnel is around 4,600.[29]
Aircraft
Since 2019, the AAC solely operates rotary-wing aircraft in the operational environment. The AAC uses the same designation system for aircraft as the Royal Air Force and the Fleet Air Arm. The sole fixed-wing trainer is the Grob Tutor, used for Army Flying Grading.[30][31]
Today AAC aviators fly five types of helicopter, and within each type there are usually several marks/variants which carry out different roles. Pilots train with No. 1 Flying Training School[32] at RAF Shawbury. The School is a tri-Service organisation consisting of civilian and military instructors that take the student from basic flying through to more advanced flying such as instrument flying, navigation, formation flying and captaincy. In service aircraft include: the Bell 212HP AH1,[33] the Eurocopter AS365N3 Dauphin II,[34] the Airbus Helicopters H135 Juno,[35] the Westland Gazelle AH1,[36] the Westland Wildcat AH.1[37] and the AgustaWestland Apache AH1[38] which is being replaced by the Boeing AH-64E Version 6 Apache.[39]
Command and units
Below is the current structure of the Army Air Corps as of 27 October 2021:[40]
- 1st Aviation Brigade[41][42][43]
- 1 Regiment AAC, RNAS Yeovilton (AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat)
- 5 Regiment AAC, Aldergrove (Aérospatiale Gazelle)
- No. 665 Squadron
- No. 667 Squadron (Bell 212) [for administration], in Brunei (under British Forces Brunei)
- No. 29 (BATUS) Flight [for administration], at CFB Suffield
- 3 Regiment AAC (AgustaWestland Apache and Boeing AH-64E Version 6 Apache)
- 4 Regiment AAC (AgustaWestland Apache)
- No. 653 Squadron (Operational Conversion Unit for Apache)
- 6 Regiment AAC[45]
- RHQ/HQ Squadron, Bury St. Edmunds
- No. 675 (The Rifles) Squadron, Taunton/Yeovil
- No. 677 (Suffolk and Norfolk Yeomanry) Squadron, Bury St. Edmunds
- No. 678 (The Rifles) Squadron, Milton Keynes/Luton
- No. 679 (The Duke of Connaught's) Squadron, Portsmouth/Middle Wallop
- Aviation Specialist Group, Middle Wallop
Joint Special Forces Aviation Wing
Independent units
- No. 660 Squadron (previously part of the Defence Helicopter Flying School, now part of No. 1 Flying Training School RAF)
- Army Flying Grading (previously the Initial Fixed Wing Flight)
Battle honours
The Army Air Corps is classed, in UK military parlance, as a "Combat Arm". It, therefore, carries its own guidon and is awarded battle honours. The honours awarded to the AAC are:
Alliances
- Australia – No. 16 Army Light Aircraft Squadron
- Australia – Australian Army Aviation
Order of precedence
See also
References
- ^ "World Air Forces" (PDF). Flight International. 2014. (PDF) from the original on 26 October 2018. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
- ^ Farrar-Hockley 1994, p. 9.
- ^ Farrar-Hockley 1994, p. 17.
- ^ Farrar-Hockley 1994, p. 41.
- ^ Rawlings 1984, pp. 255–259.
- ^ Rawlings 1984, p. 259.
- ^ Halley 1988, pp. 444–451.
- ^ Jefford 2001, pp. 102–105.
- ^ a b "Army Air Corps". National Army Museum. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
- ^ Ambrose, Stephen E. (1994). D-Day. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1476765860..
- ^ Farrar-Hockley 1994, pp.179, 187–194.
- ^ Flack 1992, p. 75.
- ^ "Gazelle – British Army Website". Army.mod.uk. from the original on 10 April 2017. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
- ^ "Profile of a UK forces' mainstay." 23 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine BBC News, 9 September 2004.
- ^ "Contractors". RAF Shawbury. Archived from the original on 11 June 2008. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
- ^ a b Ripley, Tim (14 September 2016). . Jane's Defence Weekly. Archived from the original on 13 August 2017.
- ^ "Grob G 115". Skybary. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
- ^ "Royal Army Service Corps". British Army units 1945 on. from the original on 5 June 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
- ^ "Army Air Corps". Helis. from the original on 3 August 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
- ^ "BAOR Order of Battle July 1989" (PDF). Louis Vieuxbill. (PDF) from the original on 14 September 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
- ^ "Aviation". Ministry of Defence. from the original on 16 June 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
- ^ Jennings, Gareth (2 April 2019). "UK transfers Defender and Islander special mission aircraft from AAC to RAF". Jane's Defence Weekly. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
- ^ Hay, Air Cdre Nick (2019). Michell, Simon (ed.). "ISTAR evolution". Air & Space Power 2019 Multi-Domain Operations for the Next Generation Air Force. Essex: Global Media Partners: 75. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ "Farewell Islander/Defender". Scramble. Dutch Aviation Society. 11 July 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ "British Army Retires Final Defender, Islander Aircraft". Key.Aero. Key Publishing. 12 July 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ "Zephyr – the Army Air Corps mascot". Ministry of Defence. from the original on 21 June 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
- ^ "674 Sqn AAC - standing down". Royal Air Force. from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
- ^ "Adjutant General's Corps". army.mod.uk. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ THE ARMY AIR CORPS (AAC) 1 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine, armedforces.co.uk
- ^ "Royal Air Force Grob Tutor". Royal International Air Tattoo. from the original on 19 September 2018. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
- ^ "674 Sqn AAC - standing down". Royal Air Force. from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
- ^ "RAF chief opens state-of-the-art helicopter training facilities in Shawbury".
- ^ "Bell 212 – British Army Website". Army.mod.uk. Archived from the original on 23 January 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
- ^ "Photos: Eurocopter AS-365N-3 Dauphin 2 Aircraft Pictures". Airliners.net. 20 November 2008. from the original on 30 July 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
- ^ . Royal Air Force. Archived from the original on 10 September 2017. Retrieved 5 January 2020.
- ^ . mod.uk. Archived from the original on 13 March 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
- ^ . mod.uk. Archived from the original on 13 March 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
- ^ . mod.uk. Archived from the original on 13 March 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
- ^ "New Apache attack helicopter enters service". British Army. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
- ^ Army 2020 18 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "The Eagle Spring 2020 edition" (PDF). The Eagle. Wattisham. 1 April 2020. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
- ^ Ripley, Tim (6 April 2020). "UK forms aviation brigade". IHS Janes. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
- ^ "Army establishes its 1st Aviation Brigade". British Army. 5 May 2020. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
- ^ 1 Regiment Army Air Corps [@@1_Regt_AAC] (2 August 2021). "651 Sqn AAC moves to 1 Regt AAC" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Army 2020 Reserve Structure & Basing" (PDF). (PDF) from the original on 22 July 2017. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
Bibliography
- Farrar-Hockley, General Sir Anthony. The Army in the Air: The History of the Army Air Corps. Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK: Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd., 1994. ISBN 0-7509-0617-0.
- Flack, J. (1992). Today's British Army in Colour. BCA. ISBN 978-1854090065.
- Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
- Jefford, C.G. RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988 (second edition 2001). ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
- Mead, Peter. Soldiers in the Air: The Development of Army Flying. London: Ian Allan Ltd., 1967. OCLC 464211829
- Parham Major General H.J. & Belfield E.M.G. Unarmed into Battle: The Story of the Air Observation Post. Warren & son, for the Air O.P. Officers' Association, Winchester, 1956. (Second edition: Chippenham, Wiltshire, UK: Picton Publishing Ltd., 1986. ISBN 978-0-948251-14-6)
- Rawlings, John D.R. Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. ISBN 0-7106-0187-5.
External links
- Official website
- Army Air Corps Historic Aircraft Flight official webpage
- The Blue Eagles – Army Air Corps Helicopter Display Team official webpage
- The Silver Eagles – Army Air Corps Freefall Parachute Display Team official webpage
- Army Air Corps group pool of images on Flickr