No. 514 Squadron RAF

No. 514 Squadron RAF (514 Sqn) was a bomber squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.

No. 514 Squadron RAF
Active1 September 1943 – 22 August 1945
Country United Kingdom
Branch Royal Air Force
RoleBomber Squadron
Part ofNo. 3 Group RAF, Bomber Command[1]
Motto(s)Latin: Nil Obstare Potest
(Translation: "Nothing can withstand")[2][3]
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldryA cloud pierced by a sword[3]
The design indicates the function of the squadron, i.e. its role of a GH-equipped blind-bombing squadron[2]
Squadron CodesJI (Sep 1943 – Aug 1945)[4][5]
A2 (Dec 1943 – Aug 1945, 'C' Flt only)[6][7]
Aircraft flown
BomberAvro Lancaster

History

Members of 514 Sqn were awarded 1 DSO, 84 DFCs, one Bar to the DFC and 26 DFMs.[2]

Aircraft operated
Aircraft operated by no. 514 Squadron RAF, data from[2][3][8]
FromToAircraftVersion
September 1943July 1944Avro LancasterMk.II
June 1944August 1945Avro LancasterMks.I and III

Squadron bases
Bases and airfields used by no. 514 squadron RAF, data from[2][3][8]
FromToBase
1 September 194323 November 1943RAF Foulsham, Norfolk
23 November 194322 August 1945RAF Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire

Reunions

From 1988 to 2012 the Squadron held an annual Reunion in June at Waterbeach Barracks hosted by the Royal Engineers. A service of remembrance was held in the parish church, and the BBMF Lancaster made a flypast over the former RAF airfield.[9]

In 2013, following the barracks' closure, a reunion was held in the village on 15 June with the Lancaster flypast over the Recreation Ground.[10]

In 2015 a Reunion was again held in Waterbeach Barracks in a new community building provided by Urban&Civic.[11]

Museum

The 514 Squadron Association and the Army established a museum in Waterbeach Barracks in 1985. This museum closed in September 2012, as the barracks closed permanently in March 2013, although the contents have been saved.[12] It expected that the new Waterbeach Military Heritage Museum will return to its building at the Barracks, and re-open in early summer 2016.[13]

See also

References

Notes
  1. Delve 1994, pp. 68, 77.
  2. Moyes 1976, p. 267.
  3. Halley 1988, p. 395.
  4. Bowyer & Rawlings 1979, p. 58.
  5. Flintham & Thomas 2003, p. 80.
  6. Bowyer & Rawlings 1979, p. 19.
  7. Flintham & Thomas 2003, p. 61.
  8. Jefford 2001, p. 96.
  9. Waterbeach Military Heritage Museum, unpublished archives.
  10. "514 Squadron RAF Waterbeach". Flickr, Rob68. Retrieved 14 March 2010.
  11. "Waterbeach Barracks and Airfield, 514 Squadron Reunion at Waterbeach Barracks". Urban&Civic. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  12. "Museum's collection is saved". Retrieved 21 December 2012.
  13. "Waterbeach Military Heritage Museum". Retrieved 16 April 2016.

Bibliography
  • Bowyer, Michael J.F.; Rawlings, John D.R. (1979). Squadron Codes, 1937–56. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 0-85059-364-6.
  • Delve, Ken (1994). The Source Book of the RAF. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing. ISBN 1-85310-451-5.
  • Dison, Harry (2015). Some of the story of 514 Squadron: Lancasters at Waterbeach. Mention The War! Publications. (available from the Museum)
  • Falconer, Jonathan (2003). Bomber Command Handbook, 1939–1945. Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-3171-X.
  • Flintham, Vic; Thomas, Andrew (2003). Combat Codes: A Full Explanation and Listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied Air Force Unit Codes since 1938. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-84037-281-8.
  • Halley, James J. (1988). The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
  • Hamlin, John F.; Merrington, Oliver J. (2011). At the 'Beach: the story of Royal Air Force Waterbeach and Waterbeach Barracks. Peterborough: GMS Enterprises. ISBN 1-904514-63-4.
  • Hepworth, Simon; Porrelli, Andrew (2014). Striking Through Clouds, The War Diary of No. 514 Squadron, RAF. Zug, Switzerland: Mention The War! Publications. ISBN 1495440486.
  • Jefford, C.G. (2001). RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912 (2nd ed.). Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
  • Moyes, Philip J.R. (1976). Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd. ISBN 0-354-01027-1.
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