No. 143 Squadron

No. 143 Squadron was originally formed in the Royal Flying Corps on 1 March 1918, seeing brief service before disbandment in October 1919. It was reformed on 15 June 1941 at RAF Aldergrove under Coastal Command as a long-range fighter unit, initially equipped with Bristol Blenheims and Hawker Hurricanes before converting to the Bristol Beaufighter. The squadron played a foundational role in Coastal Command’s anti-shipping campaign, supplying Beaufighters to the North Coates Strike Wing — one of the earliest such formations — and conducting attacks against heavily defended German convoys along the Dutch coast. In mid-1943 it moved to Cornwall to provide fighter escort for anti-submarine aircraft operating over the Bay of Biscay before returning to North Coates in early 1944. During the Normandy campaign the squadron flew anti-E-boat patrols from RAF Manston, helping to protect the naval corridor supplying the D-Day beachhead. In October 1944 the unit transferred north to join the Banff Strike Wing, re-equipping with de Havilland Mosquitoes for offensive sweeps against German shipping off the Norwegian coast until the squadron was disbanded on 25 May 1945. Its motto, Vincere est vivere — “To conquer is to live” — was carried through both its anti-convoy and anti-shipping roles.