RAF Shandur
RAF Shandur | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
قاعدة شندور الجوية | |||||||
| Shandur, Suez Governorate in Egypt | |||||||
 Pilot 6 Sqn RAF with Hurricane IID at Shandur c1942 | |||||||
  RAF Shandur Shown within Egypt | |||||||
| Coordinates | 30°11′17″N 32°32′39″E / 30.18806°N 32.54417°E | ||||||
| Site information | |||||||
| Owner | Air Ministry | ||||||
| Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||
| Controlled by | Air Command, South East Asia | ||||||
| Condition | Demolished into farmland | ||||||
| Site history | |||||||
| Built | 1941 | ||||||
| In use | 1941 - 1947 | ||||||
| Fate | Closed | ||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||
| Garrison | 16th Parachute Brigade, 4th Royal Tank Regiment | ||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||
| |||||||
Royal Air Force Shandur or more simply RAF Shandur (LG-214) is a former Royal Air Force station located in Shandur, Suez Governorate, Egypt.
History
[edit]From 1941 to 1942, RAF Shandur provided training for RAF crews who operated Marylands. In May 1943, the No. 70 Operating Training Unit was under the control of No. 203 Squadron RAF, and moved to the airfield for training operations until January 1945 when it was disbanded. According to German maps, RAF Shandur may have been mistaken as RAF Shaluffa.[1]
Post-war Usage
[edit]In late 1947, RAF Shandur was an ex-RAF station, and served as the base for the 4th Royal Tank Regiment equipped with Cromwell, Comet, and Sherman tanks. It was also equipped with American Jeeps and Chevrolet 3-ton vehicles (‘B’ vehicles). In 1951, near the airfield was Camp Shandur, where the 16th Parachute Brigade of the 3rd Battalion was stationed. Shortly afterwards, operations were moved to Moascar Garrison.[2] RAF Shandur experienced extreme weather conditions, such as snow falling in March 1950, and heavy rainfall that led to flooding in the Nissen huts. The 4th RTR remained at the base until 1950, and was the only complete tank regiments trained there, remaining in the area until 1954. Due to the increasing Suez Crisis, the remaining units were withdrawn from the base.[3]
Units
[edit]The following units based in RAF Shandur at one point.
- No. 223 Squadron RAF, May 1941 - January 1942, equipped with Marylands.[4]
- No. 417 Squadron RCAF, reformed at Shandur on 5 September 1942
- No. 70 Operating Training Unit, May 1943 - January 1945, equiped with Marauders and then Bristol Blenheims.[5]
- No. 6 Squadron RAF, equipped with Hawker Hurricanes[6]
- No. 108 Squadron RAF, reformed at Shandur on 15 March 1943
- No. 178 Squadron RAF, formed at Shandur on 15 January 1943
References
[edit]- ^ "No. 70 Operational Training Unit, RAF". BirtwistleWiki. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ "4th RTR Shandur 1947-52 As Remembered By Douglas R". CanalZoners. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ "3 PARA AT SHANDUR CAMP NEAR FAYID, CANAL ZONE 1951". www.paradata.org. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
- ^ "223 Squadron, RAF, World War II". Epibreren. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ "417 Squadron, RCAF, World War II". History of War. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ "Royal Air Force Operations in the Middle East and North Africa, 1939-1943". Picryl. Retrieved November 14, 2024.