No. 203 Squadron

No. 203 Squadron traces its origins to No. 3 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service, becoming No. 203 Squadron RAF on 1 April 1918 when the RAF was formed from the RFC and RNAS. At the outbreak of the Second World War the squadron was based at Basra in Iraq, equipped with Short Singapore III flying boats, and it relocated to Aden as Italy’s entry into the conflict loomed. It subsequently converted to Bristol Blenheims and flew fighter and reconnaissance patrols across the Red Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, including providing cover for the evacuation from Greece in April 1941. By 1942 the squadron was operating from Egyptian desert airfields on maritime reconnaissance and anti-shipping duties, contributing to attacks that damaged the U-boat U-652 and sank U-372 in cooperation with the Royal Navy. In late 1943 the squadron transferred to India under No. 225 Group, Air Command South East Asia, converting first to Vickers Wellingtons and then to Consolidated Liberators to fly anti-submarine patrols from Ceylon through the final months of the war. Its motto, “Occidens oriensque” — “West and east” — reflects the remarkable geographic sweep of its service across two hemispheres.