No. 127 Squadron RAF

No. 127 Squadron RAF
Active	(RFC) 1 March 1918–4 July 1918 (RAF) 29 June 1941–30 April 1945
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Part of	RAF Fighter Command
Motto(s)	Eothen (Latin: Out of the east)
Aircraft	Gloster Gladiator Hawker Hurricane Supermarine Spitfire
Battle honours	World War II • Home Defence • Middle East • Italy • Western Desert • Invasion of Europe
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldry	A tarantula
Squadron Codes	EJ (June 1942–January 1943) 9N )April 1944–April 1945)

No. 127 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the United Kingdom's Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force. Originally formed in early 1918 for service in the First World War, it was disbanded after six months without commencing operations. Reformed in 1941 for the Second World War, it served in the Middle East, the Mediterranean and in Europe.

History

No. 127 Squadron was first formed for service in the First World War as a day bomber unit in February 1918, but was disbanded on 4 July of that year without commencing operations.

It was reformed in late June 1941, as a detachment of Hawker Hurricane and Gloster Gladiator fighters from No. 4 Service Flying Training School at Habbaniya in Iraq. It operated briefly in Syria supporting the 10th Indian Division in its campaign against the Vichy French. In July, the detachment returned to Habbaniya.

In mid-September, it was reestablished from No. 249 Squadron at Kasfareet, its pilots operating an aircraft ferry service between here and Hurghada. In February 1942, it received Hurricane fighters and, bearing the squadron code 'EJ', for the next two years operated these in Palestine and in the campaign in North Africa. In April 1944, it was transferred to the United Kingdom for Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy. Assigned the squadron code '9N' and equipped with the Supermarine Spitfire IX HF, it operated from Lympne in Air Defence of Great Britain, though under the operational control of RAF Second Tactical Air Force (2nd TAF).

In August No. 127 Squadron commenced operating from France, supporting the advance of the Allied ground forces through France, Belgium and into Germany. It disbanded on 30 April 1945, by which time it was stationed at Oldenburg.

A Supermarine Spitfire fighter of No. 127 Squadron on the airfield at Grimbergen in December, 1944

References

• Delve, Ken (1994). D-Day: The Air Battle. London: Arms & Armour Press. ISBN 1-85409-227-8.
• Pine, L G (1983). A Dictionary of Mottoes. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. p. 65. ISBN 0-7100-9339-X.
• Rawlings, John (1976). Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: MacDonald & James. ISBN 0-354-01028-X.

External links

• "127 Squadron". Historic Squadrons. Royal Air Force. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2017.