Reformation in the auxiliaries 438 Squadron was reformed at Montreal on April 15, 1946 as an Auxiliary (reserve) unit once again operating from its old base at St-Hubert. It was equipped with
North American Harvard trainers. Its main task was the retention of flying qualifications for newly repatriated aircrew and the training of new personnel. The important population of the greater Montreal area offered a great number of new potential recruits and also attracted a large number of francophone veteran pilots wishing to remain in uniform, albeit on a part-time basis. The new squadron commander, Wing Commander Claude Hébert, D.F.C. managed to bring in many World War 2 combat veterans to fill the ranks. As a result, like in some other newly reformed auxiliary squadrons, a great percentage of the early post-war period pilots were some of the most highly decorated wartime members of the RCAF. The new squadron identifier code is "BQ".
The jet age On April 1, 1947, 438 Squadron regained its wartime designation as
438 (Fighter) Squadron in preparation for its soon-to-arrive new aircraft. The Wildcats became one of the first units to be operational on jet fighters when they began operations on the British designed and built
de Havilland Vampire in April 1948. October 1949, the Wildcats of 438 Squadron, alongside their colleagues of 401 Squadron also on Vampires, participated in Operation Metropolis, a large scale joint
USAF/
RCAF air exercise where the two RCAF jet fighter squadrons, with the assistance of No.1 RCAF mobile radar unit were to defend the greater New York area from formations of American
Martin B-26 Marauder bomber squadrons. On May 1, 1950, the squadron designation was once again amended, this time to include "City of Montreal" making it
438 "City of Montreal" (Fighter) Squadron. This was in recognition of the wartime sponsorship of the Wildcats by the city. The Squadron also received the
Freedom of the City of Montreal on October 1 of the same year to officialize the event with a large parade on the
Field of Mars. 1954 saw the arrival of the
Canadair CT-133 Silver Star, the most modern jet trainer of the era, replacing the Vampires. The "T-birds" as they were commonly called by RCAF personnel, were retained until September 1958 and were used to train new pilots converting to jets, more precisely the Sabre which began arriving at the squadron in October 1956. The Wildcats would keep flying fighters until November 1958 when the role of the auxiliary units was once again reviewed and amended.
Light transport & utility On November 1, 1958, 438 Squadron lost its "Fighter" role and received the simpler new designation
438 Squadron. With changing times causing increases in the cost of modern weapons, the complexity of their upkeep, technical advances and new air defence doctrines, Auxiliary squadrons were assigned to mostly secondary support roles. Now equipped with the
Beechcraft Expeditor MK.III and relegated to light utility transport, most remaining fighter pilots simply left the service in protest giving the unit a completely new look with a membership of reserve air and ground crews mostly borne from the civilian airline and local aircraft industries. On May 5, 1961, the unit received its Squadron Standard for 25 years of service from the
Queen's representative, the
Honourable Gaspard Fauteux,
Lieutenant Governor of Quebec. This most noteworthy of events in the life of a squadron was done with a large solemn parade on the ramp at the St-Hubert airbase. The Expeditor would be retained in squadron service until March 1964. For a few years beginning in September 1960, it would share the load with the latest aircraft type assigned to the Wildcats, the sturdy Canadian designed and built
de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter. To the utility transport role was added
Search and Rescue with this new slow but stable platform that could operate from short fields and from bodies of water when fitted with floats. On February 1, 1968 the squadron was integrated into the new now
unified Canadian Armed Forces. On January 1, 1969 it was once again redesignated, this time as
438 Air Reserve Squadron. The squadron was heavily involved in air operations and airspace security over the greater Montreal area during the
1976 Olympic games. The main Air Operations Center was located within the unit's main hangar and under the command of Colonel Al Gamble, the ex-commanding officer of 438 Squadron. Squadron personnel also serviced multiple fighter aircraft and helicopters also involved in security operations.
Light observation helicopter 1991 1992 438 Squadron's role radically changed when its first 4
Bell CH-136 Kiowa light observation helicopters (LOH) arrived in January 1981. The last 438 Squadron Otter was retired in February and helicopter conversion training began in earnest. The squadron would receive a further 5 Kiowas by September of that year, this number would eventually grow to 13 in 1991 with the redistribution of
444 Squadron's aircraft following its deactivation in
Germany. Tactical helicopters working in close relation with the
Army, the squadron now mostly flew operations in support of the ground forces and as such, regularly trained with them in yearly
brigade and
divisional level exercises such as "Rendez-Vous" (RV) or "Noble Lion". Under the overall command of
10 Tactical Air Group and flying the same aircraft as the many
Regular Force squadrons under the same command structure, 438 reserve personnel were now poised to offer an ever-increasing domestic and operationally deployed support to these units. Wildcats, both aircrew and groundcrew deployed to Egypt, Honduras, and Haiti as augmentees. These opportunities to serve full time at home and abroad for predetermined time periods would multiply exponentially over the coming years. Another visible change at the squadron was the application of the term "
tactical", the unit had to be mobile and operate away from base. A fleet of specialised vehicles soon arrived and all personnel had to familiarize themselves with them and get used to working in the field away from its main infrastructures. These skills were developed and honed during the many exercises alongside the ground forces. The unit was only officially redesignated
438 Tactical Helicopter Squadron on April 1, 1993. ==Recent history==