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List of British Commonwealth Air Training Plan facilities in Southern Rhodesia

(Redirected from Rhodesian Air Training Group)

This article contains a list of the Southern Rhodesian facilities forming part of Joint Air Training Scheme which was a major programme for training South African Air Force, Royal Air Force and Allied air crews during World War II.[1] However, RAF Training units would still be based in this country until a decade after the war had finished

A war-time Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) gave a recruit 50 hours of basic aviation instruction on a simple trainer like the Tiger Moth. Pilots who showed promise went on to training at a Service Flying Training School (SFTS). The Service Flying Training School provided advanced training for pilots, including fighter and multi-engined aircraft. Other trainees went on to different specialties, such as wireless, navigation or bombing and air gunnery.[1]

During WW II

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These are the units that formed the Rhodesia Air Training Group.[2]

Unit Name/No. Base Major types of aircraft Role Opened Disbanded Comments
No. 25 Belvedere, Salisbury Tiger Moth, Cornell & Harvard EFTS 24 May 1940 16 November 1945[3]
No. 20 Cranborne, Salisbury Harvard 1, 2, 2a, 3 and Oxford SFTS 10 July 1940[3] 7 September 1945[3]
No. 27 Induna, Bulawayo Tiger Moth & Cornell EFTS 28 January 1940[3] 21 September 1945[3]
No. 23 Heany, Bulawayo Oxford SFTS 8 July 1941[3] 30 September 1945[3]
No. 21 Kumalo, Bulawayo Oxford SFTS 8 October 1940[3] 18 May 1945[3]
Sauerdale, Bulawayo Tiger Moth EFTS Planned, but base found to be unsuitable
No. 26 Guinea Fowl, Gwelo Tiger Moth & Cornell EFTS August 1940 14 August 1945[3]
No. 22 Thornhill, Gwelo Harvard 1, 2, 2a, 3 SFTS 25 March 1941[3] 30 September 1945[3]
No. 24 Bombing, Gunnery and Navigation Moffat, Gwelo Battle, Oxford and Anson BGTS 12 May 1943[4] 13 April 1945 [4]
No. 24 Combined Air Observation School Moffat, Gwelo Battle, Oxford and Anson BGTS 3 August 1941 [4] 12 May 1943 [3] Split into 24 BGTS & 29 EANS
No. 29 Elementary Navigation School[4] Moffat, Gwelo Battle, Oxford and Anson ANS 12 May 1943[3] 13 April 1945[4]
No. 28 Mount Hampden Tiger Moth, Cornell & Harvard EFTS 1 April 1941 30 October 1945[3] Motto: Pana Maziñana ano Bururuka - Here Fledglings Take Wing
No. 31 Cranborne Harvard (for Comms) ARU 1 August 1941[3]
No. 32 Heany Harvard (for Comms) ARU 1 August 1941[3]
Rhodesian Central Flying School Norton All types used in Group CFS 3 Sep 1941[3] 20 May 1942[3] Renamed 33 FIS
No. 33 Norton All types used in Group FIS 20 May 1942[3] 9 May 1944[3] Renamed CFS (SR)
Central Flying School (Southern Rhodesia) Norton All types used in Group CFS 9 May 1944[3] 9 October 1945[3]
Communications Flight Belvedere Tiger Moths, Cornells & Harvards Comms Flt 14 May 1940[3] 1 January 1946[3] SRAF unit

Training aircraft

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Glossary

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  • ANS — Air Navigation School
  • ARU — Aircraft Repair Unit
  • BGTS — Bombing and Gunnery Training School
  • CFS — Central Flying School
  • EFTS — Elementary Flying Training School
  • FIS — Flying Instructors School
  • SFTS — Service Flying Training School
  • SRAF — Southern Rhodesia Air Force

After World War II

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Unit Name/No. Base Major types of aircraft Opened Disbanded Comments
No. 4 FTS RAF Heany Tiger Moth (until replaced by Chipmunk), Harvard, Anson 1 February 1947[3] 26 January 1954[3]
No. 5 FTS RAF Thornhill Tiger Moth (until replaced by Chipmunk), Harvard, Anson 23 April 1947[3] 22 January 1951 4 January 1948[3] 30 December 1953
No. 3 ANS RAF Thornhill Anson 5 January 1948[3] 28 September 1951[3] formed from elements of both 4 & 5 FTS
No. 394 MU RAF Heany 1 September 1947[3] 31 March 1954[3]
No. 395 MU RAF Bulawayo 1 September 1947[3] 31 March 1954[3]
RATG Communications Squadron RAF Kumalo Ansons, Chipmunks & Harvards 1 September 1947[3] 31 March 1954[3]

For clarification; No.4 FTS & No.5 FTS initially functioned as complete Flying Training Schools with all three/four types at two different bases. After a short period, No.5 FTS was disbanded / redesignated as No.3 ANS specialising in Navigation training, sending all Tiger Moths & Harvards across to join No.4 FTS, and in return receiving No.4 FTS Ansons to add to its own. Three years later in 1951 the situation was reversed with the dissolution of No.3 ANS.

Training aircraft

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Glossary

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  • ANS — Air Navigation School
  • FTS — Flying Training School
  • MU — Maintenance Unit
  • RATG — Rhodesian Air Training Group

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Becker, Dave (1989). Yellow Wings: The Story Of The Joint Air Training Scheme In World War 2. Pretoria: The SAAF Museum. p. 102.
  2. ^ Bishop, C. Nepean (20 November 1953). "The Fledglings of Rhodesia: An Instructor's Recollections of a Unit in the Empire Air Training Scheme". Flight. LXIV (2339): 668–670. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak "Rhodesia & The RAF". Retrieved 29 February 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e "The Story of Royal Air Force Station, Moffat". Our Rhodesian Heritage. 29 March 2010. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
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