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No.320 Sqn RAF

Name : No.320 Sqn RAF Founded : 1st June 1940 Disbanded : 2nd August 1945 Country : UK Fate : Disbanded 2nd August 1945 More Details : Dutch Animo libere dirigimur - We are guided by the mind of liberty Known Code Letters : , NO, TD,

Aircraft for : No.320 Sqn RAF
A list of all aircraft associated with No.320 Sqn RAF. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name.
Aircraft	Info
Anson Click the name above to see prints featuring Anson aircraft. Manufacturer : Avro Production Began : 1935 Retired : 1968 Number Built : 11020	Anson he Avro Anson originated from the Avro 652 commercial aircraft which first flew on 7th January 1935. It was a twin-engine British-built multi-role aircraft which saw distinctive service with both the Royal Air Force and The Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm as well as The Royal Canadian Air Force during and after the Second World War. The prototype 652A first flew at Woodford on 7th January 1935 and was developed from an initial airliner design and named after Admiral George Anson. The adaptation for a coastal reconnaissance role resulted in the production variant, the Avro 652a, which flew at Woodford on New Years Eve 1935 with the type entering service in March 1936 as the Anson Mk1. Initially it was flown with a 3-man crew but later developments in its reconnaissance role required a 4th crew member. The Anson entered service on 6 March 1936 with 48 Squadron equipped with the Anson. At the start of the Second World War, the RAF had received 824 Ansons and there were 26 RAF squadrons operating the Anson I: 10 with Coastal Command and 16 with Bomber Command. All of the squadrons in Bomber Command in 1939 with Anson Is were operational training squadrons that prepared crews for frontline service. 12 of the squadrons were in No. 6 (Operational Training) Group. Newly formed crews having completed individual flying and technical training were first trained as bomber crews in Ansons and then advanced to the various frontline aircraft types, which were also in the same squadrons with the Ansons. After training in the frontline aircraft type, crews would advance to the frontline bomber squadrons with those aircraft types (Fairey Battle, Bristol Blenheim, Vickers Wellington, Armstrong Whitworth Whitley, and Handley-Page Hampden). At the start of the war, the Lockheed Hudson was beginning to replace the Ansons in Coastal Command with one squadron of Hudsons and one with both Ansons and Hudsons. Limited numbers of Ansons continued to serve in operational roles such as coastal patrols and air/sea rescue. Early in the war, an Anson scored a probable hit on a German U-boat. In June 1940, a flight of three Ansons was attacked by nine Luftwaffe Messerschmitt Bf 109s. Remarkably, before the dogfight ended, without losing any of their own, one of the Ansons destroyed two German aircraft and damaged a third. The aircraft's true role, however, was to train pilots for flying multi-engined bombers such as the Avro Lancaster. The Anson was also used to train the other members of a bomber's aircrew, such as navigators, wireless operators, bomb aimers and air gunners. Postwar, the Anson continued in the training and light transport roles. The last Ansons were withdrawn from RAF service with communications units on 28 June 1968. The Royal Australian Air Force operated 1,028 Ansons, mainly Mk Is, until 1955
Hudson Click the name above to see prints featuring Hudson aircraft. Manufacturer : Lockheed Production Began : 1939 Number Built : 2584	Hudson In 1938, the British Purchasing Commission sought an American maritime patrol aircraft and light bomber for the United Kingdom to support the Royal Air Force's Avro Anson. On 10th December 1938, Lockheed produced a modified version of the Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra which was a commercial airliner and the Hudson Mk I went into production. The Hudson was the first significant aircraft construction contract for the Lockhead Aircraft Corporation with the initial RAF order for 200 Hudsons far surpassed any previous order the company had received. By February 1939, Hudsons began to be delivered. A total of 350 Mk I and 20 Mk II Hudsons were supplied in total. These had two fixed Browning machine guns in the nose and two more in a Boulton Paul dorsal turret. Initially the first batch of Hudsons were supplied to No.224 Squadron RAF based at RAF Leuchers in May 1939. By the start of the war in September 78 Hudsons were in service. Not only did the RAF use the Hudson but the Hudson also served throughout the war with Coastal Command and was also used in transport and training roles as well as delivering agents into occupied France. They were also used extensively with the Royal Canadian Air Force wiht their anti-submarine squadrons. They were operated by RAF Special Duties squadrons for clandestine operations, with No.161 Squadron in Europe and No.357 Squadron operating in Burma. During the war, they were used as maritime patrol aircraft in the Pacific by the US Navy, the RAAF and the Royal New Zealand Air Force. A total of 2,584 Hudsons were built. They began to be withdrawn from front line service in 1944. The Hudson provided the basis for the development of the Lockhead Ventura.
Mitchell Click the name above to see prints featuring Mitchell aircraft.	Mitchell On April 18, 1942, Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle led a group of 16 B-25 bombers on a carrier-launched raid on industrial and military targets in Japan. The raid was one of the most daring missions of WW II. Planning for this secret mission began several months earlier, and Jimmy Doolittle, one of the most outstanding pilots and leaders in the United States Army Air Corps was chosen to plan, organize and lead the raid. The plan was to get within 300 or 400 miles of Japan, attack military and industrial targets in Tokyo, Osaka, and Kobe shortly after nightfall, and then fly on to a dawn landing at secret airfields on the coast of China. The twin engine B-25 Mitchell bomber was selected by Doolittle for the mission and practice indicated that it should be possible to launch these aircraft from a carrier deck with less than 500 feet of runway. On April 2, 1942 the USS Hornet and a number of escorts set sail from Alameda, California with the 16 B-25s strapped to its deck. This task force rendezvoused with another including the USS Enterprise, and proceeded for the Japanese mainland. An element of surprise was important for this mission to succeed. When the task force was spotted by a Japanese picket boat, Admiral Halsey made the decision to launch the attack earlier than was planned. This meant that the raiders would have to fly more than 600 miles to Japan, and would arrive over their targets in daylight. It also meant that it would be unlikely that each aircraft would have sufficient fuel to reach useable airfields in China. Doolittle had 50 gallons of additional fuel stowed on each aircraft as well as a dinghy and survival supplies for the likely ditchings at sea which would now take place. At approximately 8:00 AM the Hornets loudspeaker blared, Now hear this: Army pilots, man your planes! Doolittle and his co-pilot R.E. Cole piloted the first B-25 off the Hornets deck at about 8:20 AM. With full flaps, and full throttle the Mitchell roared towards the Hornets bow, just barely missing the ships island superstructure. The B-25 lifted off, Doolittle leveled out, and made a single low altitude pass down the painted center line on the Hornets deck to align his compass. The remaining aircraft lifted off at approximately five minute intervals. The mission was planned to include five three-plane sections directed at various targets. However, Doolittle had made it clear that each aircraft was on its own. He insisted, however, that civilian targets be avoided, and under no circumstances was the Imperial Palace in Tokyo to be bombed. About 30 minutes after taking off Doolittles B-25 was joined by another piloted by Lt. Travis Hoover. These two aircraft approached Tokyo from the north. They encountered a number of Japanese fighter or trainer aircraft, but they remained generally undetected at their low altitude. At 1:30 PM the Japanese homeland came under attack for the first time in the War. From low altitudes the raiders put their cargoes of four 500 pounders into a number of key targets. Despite antiaircraft fire, all the attacking aircraft were unscathed. The mission had been a surprise, but the most hazardous portion of the mission lay ahead. The Chinese were not prepared for the raiders arrival. Many of the aircraft were ditched along the coast, and the crews of other aircraft, including Doolittles were forced to bail out in darkness. There were a number of casualties, and several of the raiders were caught by Japanese troops in China, and some were eventually executed. This painting is dedicated to the memories of those airmen who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and the thousands of innocent Chinese citizens which were brutally slaughtered as a reprisal for their assistance in rescuing the downed crews.
T.8w Click the name above to see prints featuring T.8w aircraft. Manufacturer : Fokker	T.8w Full profile not yet available.

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