No. 29 Squadron RAF

First World War (1915–1919) This unit was first raised as a reserve squadron at Fort Grange, Gosport, initially equipped with the Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2c, in November 1915. In early 1916 however No. 29 became the fourth squadron to receive the Airco DH.2 "pusher" fighter, and arrived in France on 25 March 1916 – helping to end the Fokker Scourge and establish Allied air superiority in time for the Battle of the Somme. By late 1916, the DH.2 was outclassed by new German fighters, but No. 29 Squadron kept its pushers until March 1917, when it was re-equipped with the Nieuport 17. These were replaced with later Nieuport types, such as the Nieuport 24bis, as these became available. Due to a shortage of the Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a the squadron retained its Nieuports until April 1918. At this time the squadron finally received the S.E.5a, which it retained for the rest of the war. The award of a Victoria Cross – the highest award for valour "in the face of the enemy" in the British Empire – to Captain James McCudden of No. 29 Squadron was gazetted on 2 April 1918, for McCudden's "conspicuous bravery, exceptional perseverance and a high devotion to duty", between August 1917 and March 1918. October 1918 was a bitter month for the squadron; an American volunteer, Lieutenant Joseph Patrick Murphy was the first to fall on 8 October and become a prisoner of war. British flying ace Claude Melnot Wilson was next to fall, on 14 October and Guy Wareing was shot down on the 27 October. After a short period with the army of occupation in Germany, the squadron returned to the UK in August 1919 and was disbanded on 31 December 1919. From May 1967 the squadron operated the English Electric Lightning F.3 and were based at RAF Wattisham near Stowmarket in Suffolk. In 1987, No. 29 Squadron was one of the first RAF units to receive the Panavia Tornado F3, deploying to Saudi Arabia after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990 and thereafter participating in Operation Desert Storm. The squadron flew the Tornado until disbanding in 1998, as part of the Strategic Defence Review. No. 29 Squadron was reformed in 2003, this time as the Typhoon operational conversion unit. ==Aircraft operated==

between 1987 and 1998 • Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2c (1915–1916) • Airco DH.2 (1916–1917) • Nieuport 17/24bis (1917–1918) • Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a (1918–1919) • Sopwith Snipe (1923–1925) • Gloster Grebe (1925–1928) • Armstrong Whitworth Siskin IIIA (1928–1932) • Bristol Bulldog (1932–1935) • Hawker Demon (1935–1938) • Bristol Blenheim (1939–1940) • Bristol Beaufighter (1940–1943) • de Havilland Mosquito (1943–1951) • Armstrong Whitworth Meteor NF.11 (1951–1958) • Gloster Javelin FAW.9 (1957–1967) • English Electric Lightning F.3 (1967–1974) • McDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR.2 (1974–1987) • Panavia Tornado F3 (1987–1998) • Eurofighter Typhoon F2 (2003–present) • Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 (2007–present) == Heritage ==

Badge and motto The squadron's badge features an eagle in flight, preying on a buzzard. The eagle, attacking another bird of prey, is symbolic of air combat. The badge was approved by King George VI in April 1937, however the eagle had been used in an earlier version between 1914 and 1918. The squadron's motto is . Aircraft markings Since the late 1920s, No. 29 Squadron has used markings with three red X's on its aircraft . Since "XXX" closely resembles the Roman numeral for "29" (XXIX) there is a belief among current squadron personnel that this originated as a misspelling of the Roman numeral. wearing No. 29 Squadron markings at RAF Wattisham in 1972|leftVarious explanations for the tradition have been suggested, the most common being a misunderstood instruction to ground crew to paint "2 X's in front of the roundel and IX behind it" meaning "X,X,(roundel), and 'IX' or 'one-X'" resulted in "XX(roundel)'one times' X". In fact, the marking was always applied as "XXX(roundel)XXX" or as "XXX(roundel)" on smaller types, such as the Armstrong Whitworth Siskin. Call signs As of March 2025, aircraft operated by No. 29 Squadron use the following peacetime air traffic control call signs within UK airspace: Anarchy, Beaufighter, Cobra, Gunfighter, Riot, Sherman, Triplex and Warlord. The Typhoon display aircraft uses the call sign Reheat. == Battle honours ==

in No. 29 Squadron markings in 2015 No. 29 Squadron has received the following battle honours. Those marked with an asterisk (*) may be emblazoned on the squadron standard. • Western Front (1916–1918)* • Somme (1916)* • Arras (1917)* • Ypres (1917)* • Somme (1918)* • Lys (1918)* • Channel & North Sea (1939–1940)* • Battle of Britain (1940)* • Home Defence (1940–1945)* • Fortress Europe (1943–1945) • Normandy (1944) • France and Germany (1944–1945)* • Arnhem (1944) • Afghanistan (2001–2014) ==See also==