No. 205 Squadron

No. 205 Squadron RAF holds the distinction of being the first RAF squadron permanently based in the Far East, arriving at RAF Seletar, Singapore in January 1929 with Supermarine Southamptons and later converting to Short Singapores. At the outbreak of war in 1939 the squadron flew maritime patrols over the approaches to Singapore and across the Indian Ocean, operating in detachments as far as the Nicobar Islands and Ceylon. When the Japanese advance threatened Singapore in late 1941, two of its Catalinas were despatched on the night of 6–7 December to shadow the enemy fleet; one failed to locate the convoy and the other was shot down by Japanese fighter escort. The surviving aircraft retreated through Java to Australia, and the depleted squadron was formally disbanded on 31 March 1942. It was reformed at Koggala, Ceylon on 23 July 1942, absorbing Catalinas from Nos. 202 and 240 Squadrons, and spent the remainder of the war flying anti-submarine and air-sea rescue patrols across the Indian Ocean. From July 1944 the squadron came under No. 222 Group within Air Command South East Asia, converting to Short Sunderlands in June 1945 before returning to Singapore after the war.