BUILT

JF519, No. 1 Squadron SAAF, Trigno, Italy, June 1944

No. 1 Squadron SAAF was established in February 1940 by renaming of the No. 6 Squadron SAAF

armed with Hawker Hurricane and Fury aircraft.

In the mid of the year 1940 the pilots of this unit

joined the fights above North Africa. At the turn

of 1942 and 1943 the squadron received Spitfires

and flew them in the fights under the African sun.

These fights were followed by the use of these

August 2022

aircraft above Malta and Sicily. At the time of the

armistice the unit operated from Italian air bases.

After WWII, the squadron stayed operational, flying

Spitfires, later Vampires, Sabres and Aermacchi

Impalas. In April 1975, the squadron was rearmed with French Mirages F.1. The squadron was

disbanded on November 25, 1997, at the Hoedspruit

Base. The Mk.VIII Spitfires used by No. 1 Squad-

ron SAAF in Italy were painted in the Day Fighter

Camouflage Scheme. The upper surfaces were

painted in Ocean Grey and Dark Green, the undersides were in Medium Sea Grey color. The wing tips

of Spitfires of this squadron were painted red.

INFO Eduard

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