No. 330 Squadron RNoAF

being hoisted from the Sea King The 330 Squadron is part of the Rescue Helicopter Service of the Royal Norwegian Air Force. It is based at Sola Air Station, with detachments at Florø, Ørland, Bodø, Rygge and Banak. The unit's primary role is search and rescue. The squadron is funded through a cooperation between the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security and the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs. Operationally the squadron is under the command of the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre of Southern Norway (JRCCoSN) and the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre of Northern Norway (JRCCoNN), respectively. Norway has signed agreements with Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, the United Kingdom and Russia which under given circumstances may result in the 330 Squadron operating within these countries' territories. The squadron operates sixteen AugustaWestland AW101 helicopters. Two are located on each base at any given time, Up to two helicopters are on long-term maintenance at any time. At all bases at least one of the helicopters is on stand-by at any time. The helicopters are manned by two pilots, a systems operator, a navigator, a technician/lift operator, a rescue swimmer and an anaesthesiologist. Five of these are military personnel, while the anaesthesiologists work for the local health trust and are funded through them. Because the unit operates under military rules, it has a stricter training regime than civilian operators. It can also operate under more severe weather conditions. The bases have on-call rooms and a crew on duty at all times. The squadron aims as an average scrambling time of 15 minutes; this varies between 10 and 25 minutes depending on the time of day, the layout of the base and preparations. or about ten percent of the total helicopter ambulance missions in Norway. The unit's helicopters are used when the ordinary helicopter ambulances (Eurocopter EC135, EC145 and AgustaWestland AW139) are unable to operate due to weather; missions in which a large cabin is needed such as due to the number of patients or an incubator; and in areas where the Sea Kings are closer and areas where there is no ordinary air ambulance service. Ambulance use must be permitted by the JRCCs. When not used for SAR missions, the Sea Kings may be used for auxiliary and transport missions within the armed forces, assisting the Norwegian Police Service, aerial firefighting and anti-pollution. ==Bases==

The following is a list of bases used by the 330 Sqn. It denotes the period they were in use, the medical provider, the number of missions and flight-hours in 2013. Iceland torpedo bombers of 330 Squadron The Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service ordered twelve Northrop N-3PB Nomads on 12 March 1940. This was the first-ever order for Northrop Corporation. By the time the first aircraft was finished in December 1940, Germany had invaded Norway. The aircraft were therefore transferred to Little Norway in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. During late fall the Norwegian Nygaardsvold's Cabinet agreed with the Royal Air Force that the exiled Norwegian forces could use the Northrops to operate reconnaissance and escort services around Iceland. The 330 (Norwegian) Squadron was activated on 25 April 1941 and based at RAF Reykjavik, also known as Corbett Camp, in the vicinity of Reykjavík on Iceland. The squadron originally consisted of 128 men, all Norwegian. These had various backgrounds: 80 were trained at Little Norway; most of the rest were sailors from sunken ships or men brought in from Lofoten during the Operation Claymore raid. These lacked military training, forcing the squadron to establish a recruit school. The base consisted of a dozen Nissen huts. The eighteen Northrop N-3PB aircraft arrived by ship on 22 May. After final assembly they were operational on 23 June. The squadron was originally set to carry out Arctic convoy escorts. It was quickly established that the aircraft were poorly suited for their role. Due to the high latitude their compasses did not work properly, often leaving them without proper navigation. Two aircraft were subject to crashes after misnavigation. They participated in anti-submarine patrols and were part of the capture of U-570. From late 1941 the missions changed focus and the squadron instead took up a role as an air ambulance in Iceland. Both Norwegian and British authorities discussed converting the 330 Sqn to use the Lockheed Hudson, but the fighter role was instead placed on two new Norwegian squadrons, 331 and 332. No. 330 was instead issued the Consolidated PBY-5A Catalina in June 1942. However, they were unsuitable for Búðareyri and the Northrops were not needed in Reykjavík, so the squadron ended up with six each of the Catalina and the Northrop. An operating challenge was a lack of spare parts, but the Norwegians were helped both with parts and training by a nearby United States Air Force squadron. The Catalinas retained the same roles as the Northrops: anti-submarine sweeping, patrol and convoy escort. The aircraft rotated between being based at Reykjavík and at Akureyri. They successfully hit U-592 on 30 June and U-580 on 25 August 1942. In December the Norwegian authorities decided to relocate the 330 Sqn. The Akureyri base was immediately ordered to move its aircraft to Reykjavík. Operations of the Catalina had commenced in November and of the Northrops in December. The C-flight continued to operate out of Búðareyri until 11 June 1943. During its period on Iceland the squadron flew 4379 hours, of which 3524 with the Northrops and 855 with Catalinas. Twenty-one soldiers were killed. This involved a switch to the Short Sunderland flying boat. These were expensive aircraft which the Norwegian government-in-exile could not afford. The RAF therefore agreed to lend the aircraft to the squadron, while operating costs were still paid for by the Norwegians. The squadron was set up with six Mk II and six Mk III, the latter having somewhat longer range. There were technical challenges with the Bristol Pegasus engines, which were underpowered and often stopped mid-air. The situation was often aggravated when the feathering malfunctioned. of the 330 Sqn The squadron became operative on 20 April 1943. Three days later a detachment was sent to RAF Scatsta in Shetland. The role continued as before, with submarine sweeping, patrol and reconnaissance, as well as meteorological surveys. They regularly patrolled the areas between Shetland past the Faeroe Islands to Iceland. Also active in the area was the Norwegian 333 Squadron and other RAF squadrons. The Sunderlands would on occasion partake in aerial combat with German fighters. Following the Allied Invasion of Normandy in June 1944, German submarines increasingly moved northwards and the 330 Sqn intensified its sweeping. From August the German tactics changed and the 330 Sqn's patrols moved steadily closer to Norway. During the period in Scotland the squadron flew 12,000 hours, carrying out 655 sweeps and patrols, 50 convoy escorts and 22 search and rescue missions. Five submarines were attacked, sinking one and badly damaging another. No ships escorted by the 330 Sqn were sunk. Six Sunderlands were lost during the war, both due to engine failure and due to enemy action. All but one resulted in loss of life. In April 1945 the Mk II and III Sunderlands were replaced with Mk V, which had more reliable Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp. At the End of World War II in Europe in May 1945, the 330 Sqn had eleven operational Sunderlands. While the fighter squadrons were without work, the amount of work for the 330 and 333 Sqn intensified. There was a massive need for air transport, both from the United Kingdom to Norway and within Norway. Both squadrons were transferred to Norway in June, with the 330 Sqn being based at the water aerodrome at Sola Air Station. These were used on a daily coastal route from there to Bergen Airport, Sandviken and Trondheim, often onwards to Tromsø Airport, Skattøra. Both squadrons were soon operating more as airlines than as military units. Command of the squadron was given to the newly formed Royal Norwegian Air Force on 21 November 1945, when RAF withdrew from Norway. The 330 Sqn was officially deactivated on 15 December 1945. The aircraft were still owned by the RAF, but were not returned until early 1946. Most of the personnel transferred to 333, which had just been relocated to Sola. ==Aircraft previously operated==

World War II Thunderjet of RNoAF Following Norway's entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and as recipients of the Marshall Plan aid, Six squadrons would in the end be set up to operate the aircraft. As the deliveries advanced, the 330 Squadron was reactivated on 20 July 1953 and stationed at Gardermoen. Half the crew were recruited from other F-84G squadrons, the rest were freshly trained. The first aircraft was acquired on 22 August and by November all had been taken into use. After completing its tactical and bombing training at Lista Air Station in March 1954, the squadron was declared operative. Albatross , here depicting an ex-Norwegian heritage aircraft The 333 Sqn had continued to operate the Catalinas through the 1950s, although they by the end of the decade were all but modern. The Norwegian authorities agreed to receive eighteen Grumman HU-16B-ASW Albatrosses through the Marshall Plan. These flying boats were intended for maritime surveillance and transport to Svalbard, as well as submarine sweeping. 330 and 333 Sqn would receive nine airframes each. Combined they would provide 8,100 flight-hours annual, up from 2,400 with the Catalinas. Training was carried out by the United States Coast Guard and Air Force. Despite the leap in technology, the Albatrosses were soon declared obsolete. Allied Forces Northern Europe determined that they needed full anti-submarine capabilities and opted to replace the flying boats with the Lockheed P-3 Orion. Five Orions were capable of the same job as eighteen Albatrosses, and the number of squadrons was cut to one. The 330 Sqn was therefore deactivated on 1 October 1968. The task was given to the Ministry of Justice, who as a temporary solution from 1968 to 1973 signed an agreement with Helikopter Service to operate two Sikorsky S-61 out of Sola and Bodø. Both a private operation with civilian aircraft, a military operation and a joint civilian and military operation were considered. A single operator built with a fast roll-out would give the lowest investments. The Air Force was interested in operating this service to replace its own rescue service, to gain political goodwill and to add to the anti-submarine capability. The latter was rejected by the politicians. The Westland Sea King was chosen over the S-61 due to a better offset agreement. Parliament approved the purchase of ten helicopters in 1970, to be stationed at four bases, Sola, Ørland, Bodø and Banak. This would allow any location along the coast to be reached within 90 minutes. The Oslofjord and Skagerrak was covered by Bell UH-1s of the 720 Squadron at Rygge. The first major was on 7 April 1974, when the Banak flight saved 13 lives off the trawler Longvabakk in Oksfjorden. The National Air Ambulance Service was inaugurated in 1988 and the 330 Sqn became part of this. This involved the acquisition of eight smaller ambulance helicopters—later increased to twelve—which could relieve the Sea Kings. Meanwhile, the air ambulance role of the Sea Kings were increased with the inclusions of an anaesthesiologist on board. This would also aid in SAR missions, where the rescued could be severely injured. The task of providing the anaesthesiologist was placed with the county municipality. The role of the SAR service was evaluated in 1992 and it ended up with Parliament approving the purchase of two more helicopters, bringing the total to twelve. The two new helicopters were delivered in 1995. With the additional helicopters, the 330 Sqn could open a new base, at Ålesund Airport, Vigra. The goal was to increase the coverage in Møre og Romsdal and Sogn og Fjordane, situated midway between Ørland and Sola. By 1998 the government instead determined that the extra helicopters should be based in Eastern Norway and moved the base to Rygge Air Station. The new base became operational on 22 March 1999. This relieved the 720 Sqn for their SAR task, for which they neither had suitable aircraft nor the necessary preparedness. From 2002 the anaesthesiologist became the responsibility of the respective health trust. From 2004 the funding was changed and the 330 Sqn is paid for through the Ministry of Justice and the Police. From the start the service had a reaction time, from alarm to airborne, of 60 minutes. Sola was the first base to receive an on-call room, allowing the response time to be lowered to 15 minutes. This proved successful and was introduced at Banak in 2006, Bodø in 2007, and Ørland and Rygge in 2008. A sixth base was opened at Florø Airport in 2009. AW101 The replacement of the Sea Kings was first discussed in a Norwegian Official Report in 1997. In competition with the AgustaWestland AW101, the Eurocopter AS532 Cougar and the Sikorsky S-92, Norway ordered fourteen NHIndustries NH90 helicopters in 2001 to meet the needs of the Royal Norwegian Navy. Options would be places for a future ten SAR helicopters and fifteen troop transports. By operating only one class of helicopters, the Air Force hoped to cut costs. The Ministry of Justice canceled the options in 2007 and instead initiated a new procurement process. This resulted in a project organization being established, Norwegian All Weather Search and Rescue Helicopter (NAWSARH). The procurement was in cooperation with Icelandic authorities. The project prequalified four models, NH90, AW101, EC-725 and S-92. On 8 November 2013 the project announced that it had selected AgustaWestland as the provider. The contract is for sixteen units with an option for a further six. The first helicopter were delivered in 2017. AW101 replaced Sea King base for base, with Sola Air base declared operative with the new helicopters September 1st 2020. At the same time it was revealed that AW101 in Norwegian service is named SAR Queen. Ørland Air base was the next to be operative in May 2021. The last Sea King retired by December 12th 2023 when it was replaced by a SAR Queen at Bodø Air station. ==Fleet==

The following is a list of the fleet composition of the 330 Sqd. The quantity (qty) specifies the peak number of simultaneously operated aircraft. ==Personnel==

• Christian Roy Kaldager • Stefan Kutzsche • Oluf Reed Olsen • Einar Sverre Pedersen ==References==