Number 230 Squadron Royal Air Force was a Royal Air Force (RAF) flying squadron, currently based at Medicina Lines in Brunei Darussalam, part of British Forces Brunei. The squadron was previously part of Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG), operating the Puma HC1 there from 1980. Following the drawdown of the British Armed Forces in Germany at the end of the Cold War, the squadron disbanded on 30 April 1992. This was short-lived however, and the squadron reformed at RAF Aldergrove on 4 May 1992, again with the Puma HC1.
The squadron is well experienced in night flying; almost a third of flights are undertaken after dark. The 2004 Future Capabilities chapter of the UK Defence White Paper, Delivering Security in a Changing World, announced a plan to reduce the squadrons Puma force by six helicopters. It was announced in late 2008 that the squadron was to move to RAF Benson by 2010. The squadron operated the Puma HC Mk2 from 2013 until the aircraft's retirement in 2025.
History
First formation No. 230 Squadron was formed on , at Felixstowe, consisting of three flights. Nos. 327 and 328 Flight used Felixstowe F.2 and F.2A flying boats and Fairey IIIs for maritime reconnaissance, whilst No. 487 Flight flew Sopwith Camels on escort duties. At the end of World War I, the squadron was retained as one of the few RAF coastal units. In 1920, the squadron got Felixstowe F.5 flying boats, and it moved to RAF Calshot in May 1922, where on 1 April 1923, it was renumbered to 480 Flight RAF.
First reformation On 1 December 1934, No. 230 Squadron was reformed at RAF Pembroke Dock with Short Singapore flying boats. The Squadron used the Singapore until 1938, serving from Aboukir, Alexandria, Lake Timsah, and after a short return to the UK, RAF Seletar. In 1938, the squadron began converting to the Short Sunderland flying boat, the aircraft it would be equipped with for the next 20 years until its disbandment on 28 February 1957. It received its first Short Sunderland on 22 June 1938.Rawlings 1969, p. 242.Rawlings 1969, p.244.No. 230 Squadron (RAF): Second World War
World War II With the start of World War II, the squadron was based in Singapore before relocating to Ceylon in 1940. In May 1940, it was deployed to the Mediterranean, where it was initially based in Egypt before moving to Malta in June. It flew reconnaissance missions for the Mediterranean Fleet and anti-submarine patrols. A reconnaissance sortie by the squadron contributed to the British victory at the Battle of Cape Matapan when one of its Sunderlands spotted the Italian fleet. The squadron subsequently participated in the evacuation of Allied forces during the German invasion of Greece.
Immediately following the Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, a squadron of eight Dornier Do 22 and two Rogožarski SIM-XIV-H floatplanes escaped the Bay of Kotor and made their way to Egypt via Crete. These floatplanes and their crews were subsequently assigned to and placed under the operational command of No. 230 Squadron in Aboukir as the No. 2 Yugoslav (floatplane) Squadron, until it was disbanded on 23 April 1942. During its time as part of No. 230 Squadron, the Yugoslav detachment flew 737 anti-submarine combat missions at the cost of three seaplanes and two pilots. The remaining Yugoslav pilots and crew were absorbed into various allied aviation units in 1943. Over the course of 1941, the number of Yugoslav personnel within No. 230 Squadron grew, and by December 1941 there were 115 men, of whom 58 were officers.
In January 1943, the squadron returned to the Indian Ocean, with its main base at Dar-es Salaam, Tanganyika, and additional units stationed in Madagascar. In June, the squadron was split, with some elements returning to the Mediterranean for air-sea rescue and transport duties. Their most notable achievement was the rescue of 42 aircrews from 7 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers that crashed into the sea off Bone following the Schweinfurt–Regensburg mission. In February 1944, the squadron moved to Ceylon. It subsequently participated in the Burma campaign. Two aircraft were sent to Dibrugarh to provide support for the Chindits. In June they evacuated hundreds of casualties from Indawgyi Lake to the Brahmaputra River. One of the aircraft sank in the Brahmaputra and had to be left behind. In February 1945, a detachment was deployed to Calcutta to transport supplies to Burma and evacuate casualties on the way back. In April 1945, the entire squadron was deployed to Burma, from where it conducted attacks on Japanese shipping between Burma and Malaya.
In December 1945, the squadron returned to Singapore before being sent back to the UK in April 1946.
Second reformation On 1 September 1958, No. 215 Squadron RAF at Dishforth was renumbered 230 Squadron, flying Scottish Aviation Pioneer light transport aircraft in support of the British Army. In November that year, the squadron moved to RAF Nicosia in Cyprus as a response to the Cyprus Emergency, flying reconnaissance operations against EOKA Greek Cypriot nationalist guerrillas, as well as its normal communications duties. The squadron returned to Britain in April 1959, with its new base being RAF Upavon in Wiltshire.Rawlings 1982, p. 157. In 1960, the squadron supplemented its Pioneers with larger Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer aircraft, and in May that year the squadron moved to RAF Odiham.Halley 1988, pp. 297–298. In September 1960, the squadron's 'A' Flight was detached to British Cameroon, flying internal security patrols as the colony prepared for the 1961 British Cameroons referendum. The flight returned to its parent formation in September 1961. Westland Whirlwind HAR.10 helicopters began to arrive in June 1962, becoming the squadron's standard equipment by the end of the year.
In January 1963, No. 230 Squadron moved to RAF Gütersloh in occupied West Germany, with a detachment at Nicosia. The squadron returned to Odiham in December 1964, before being transferred to Borneo, due to the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation in February 1965. In October 1966, the squadron again returned to Odiham, resuming its detachment at Nicosia. In November 1971, began to convert to the Westland Puma HC1 at RAF Odiham. On 14 October 1980, the squadron moved back to RAF Gütersloh, West Germany, where they remained until being disbanded and reformed at RAF Aldergrove, Northern Ireland in April 1992.
230 Squadron was one of two Northern Ireland based squadrons of the Royal Air Force, the other being 72 Squadron (equipped with Westland Wessex HC2s). 230 Squadron's eighteen Puma aircraft were rotated with No. 33 Squadron's fifteen Pumas to even out flight hours amongst the fleet (Northern Ireland based helicopters had a much higher operational tempo). The main role of the squadron was tactical transport of the Security Forces, including the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), and the British Army.
On 17 November 2009, 230 Squadron eventually left Northern Ireland for RAF Benson in Oxfordshire (together with 33 Squadron from RAF Odiham) after 17 years in the province.Air International January 2010, p.7.
Kabul accident On 11 October 2015, one member of the squadron was killed in an accident in Kabul, Afghanistan, whilst landing at the NATO Training and Support Mission HQ. A Ministry of Defence spokesman said the crash was "an accident and not the result of insurgent activity". The crewman was named a day later, and was repatriated back to the UK on the 20th. The Flight Lieutenant's CO commented saying "A man with exceptionally high standards, he was never afraid to remind anyone when he felt they could have done better. However, this advice was always delivered with his characteristic wry smile and good humour. The Support Helicopter Force has lost not only an outstanding operator but a good friend to so many... his lasting legacy will be the professionalism and courage he passed onto all who flew with him. A loving husband and father, our thoughts are with his wife and children at this most difficult of times." A post mortem found he died of severe head injuries. The inquest was adjourned indefinitely until the conclusion of separate inquiries being undertaken by the Ministry of Defence were completed.
The squadron was awarded a new squadron standard in February 2019 by RAF Benson's Honorary Air Marshal, Prince Michael of Kent. The standard, the third to be awarded to the squadron, is made of silk, and features the battle honours awarded to the unit since its formation.
Brunei On 18 May 2023, No. 230 Squadron returned to the island of Borneo, relocating from RAF Benson to Medicina Lines in Brunei Darussalam, as part of British Forces Brunei.
The squadron's Puma HC.2s were retired from service in March 2025. They are to be replaced by new Jupiter HC2 helicopters in 2026 though in the interim the Chinook helicopter took over the role.
Aircraft operated +Aircraft operated by No. 230 Squadron Royal Air ForceHalley 1988, p. 298.Jefford 2001, pp. 76–77.Warner 2004, p. 174.fromtoaircraftversionnotesAugust 1918March 1919Curtiss H.12H.16Jefford 2001, p. 76.September 1918December 1918Sopwith Camel No. 487 FlightOctober 1918June 1921Fairey IIIB, CNos. 327 and 328 FlightAugust 1918April 1923Felixstowe F.2A, F.3Nos. 327 and 328 FlightJanuary 1920April 1923Felixstowe F.5 April 1935November 1938Short SingaporeMk.IIIJune 1938January 1943Short SunderlandMk.IJune 1941March 1942Dornier Do 22Kex-Royal Yugoslav Navy no. 2 squadronJune 1941March 1942Rogožarski SIM-XIVHex-Royal Yugoslav Navy no. 2 squadronWarner 2004, p. 171.December 1941January 1943Short SunderlandMk.IIApril 1942March 1945Short SunderlandMk.IIIJanuary 1945February 1957Short SunderlandMk.VSeptember 1958March 1960Scottish Aviation PioneerCC.1January 1960December 1962Scottish Aviation Twin PioneerCC.1/CC.2June 1962December 1971Westland WhirlwindHAR.10October 1971December 2012Westland PumaHC.1March 2013March 2025Westland PumaHC.2
Squadron bases