Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article

The Selected article box on the portal chooses one of the following at random when displaying the page. Follow the instructions below for adding or nominating a new article to the list.

Usage

Royal Air Force related articles can be added directly to this list without nomination.

Template

{{Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/Layout
  |image=
  |size=
  |caption=
  |text=
  |link=
}}<noinclude>
[[Category:Royal Air Force portal selected articles|{{SUBPAGENAME}}]]
</noinclude>

Note that the prefix Image: is not required when using this template, also - the template will auto-wikilink the article entered in the link= field. Further information on this template can be found at Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/Layout.

To add a new article

1. Click on the next successive empty entry or red link from this page.
2. Paste the above layout template if it isn't already there.
3. Write three or four paragraphs in the text field using information from the selected article, you may find it useful to examine the existing entries for an idea of the length required.
4. Ensure the main title of the article is in bold and add this same article to the link field.
5. Add a free image and caption.
6. Preview the page, check that the image size is correct. If the image is too big, add 100px to the size field.
7. Save the page.
8. Go to the main Portal:Royal Air Force page.
9. Click on edit page.
10. Update "max=" to its new total for the {{Random portal component}} on the main page. The line which is edited is this one: {{Random portal component|max=4|header=Selected article|subpage=Selected article}} Make sure that "max=" is the same numerical value as the article entry added above (i.e. if you added article 43, then max=43)

Selected articles list

articles 1 - 20

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/1 Pink's War was an air to ground bombardment and strafing carried out by the Royal Air Force, under the command of Wing Commander Pink, against the mountain strongholds of Mahsud tribesmen in South Waziristan in March and April 1925.

Following attacks by tribemen on British Army positions in southern Waziristan, it was decided that the Royal Air Force would conduct air operations against the tribesmen independently of the army. Bristol Fighters and de Havilland DH9s from Nos. 5, 27 and 60 squadrons were deployed to the airstrips at Miranshah and Tank.

Operations commenced on 9 March 1925 and the RAF squadrons strafed tribal mountain strongholds in a successful attempt to crush the rebellion. On 1 May 1925, the tribal leaders sought an honourable peace bringing the short campaign to a close. Pink's War was the first air action of the RAF carried out independently of the Army or Navy.

---

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/2 RAF Bomber Command was the organisation that controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II, the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s, was at the peak of its postwar power with the V bombers and a supplemental force of Canberra light bombers. RAF Bomber Command had 19 Victoria Cross winners, and in August 2006, a memorial was unveiled at Lincoln Cathedral.

One of the most controversial aspects of Bomber Command during World War II was the area bombing of cities. Until 1942 navigational technology did not allow for any more precise targeting than at best a district of a town or city by night bombing. All large German cities contained important industrial districts and so were considered legitimate targets by the Allies. Thus the attacks of the British Bomber Command were at times targeting highly populated city centres. The single most destructive raids in terms of absolute casualties were those on Hamburg (45,000 dead) in 1943 and Dresden (25,000–35,000 dead) in 1945. Each caused a firestorm and left tens of thousands dead.

In the postwar period, the RAF slowly declined in strength, and by the mid-1960s, it was clear that the home command structure needed rationalisation. To that end, Fighter Command and Bomber Command were merged in 1968 to form Strike Command.

---

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/3 The Victoria Cross (VC) is a military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of armed forces of some Commonwealth countries and previous British Empire territories. It takes precedence over all other postnominals and medals. It may be awarded to a person of any rank in any service and civilians under military command, and is presented to the recipient by the British monarch during an investiture held at Buckingham Palace. It is the joint highest award for bravery in the United Kingdom with the George Cross, which is the equivalent honour for valour not "in the face of the enemy".

There have been a total of 26 recipients of the VC who were serving in the Royal Air Force, including the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, at the time of their valiant deed or deeds. All of the 26 served as aircrew and no RAF ground branch officers or tradesmen have ever won the VC while serving in the RAF. The vast majority of air force VCs awarded in a single conflict were for the Second World War and no RAF personnel have been awarded the VC since the end of that conflict.

---

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/4 The Air Training Corps (ATC) is a cadet organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is a voluntary youth group which is part of the Air Cadet Organization and the Royal Air Force (RAF). It is supported by the Ministry of Defence, and, although a number of its members do go on to join the RAF or other services, the ATC is not set up as a recruiting organisation. The enrolment age for the Air Training Corps is 13 years and 3 months, however cadets can join at the age of 13, and enter as Junior Cadets.

The ATC is the largest part of the Air Cadet Organization (ACO), along with the RAF sections of the Combined Cadet Force. It is divided geographically into six regions (each commanded by an RAFR Group Captain), each of which are sub-divided into wings. Wings are further sub-divided into squadrons.

Headquarters Air Cadets (HQAC), based at RAF Cranwell, controls the organization; and there are subordinate HQs at Region and Wing levels staffed by officers of the RAF Reserve and civil servants. A regular RAF Air Commodore serves as Commandant Air Cadets.

---

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/5

File:Red.arrows.single.arp.750pix.jpg

The Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force. They were formed in late 1964 as an all-RAF team, replacing a number of unofficial teams that had been sponsored by various RAF commands.

Originally equipped with seven Folland Gnat trainers which were inherited from the RAF Yellowjacks display team, they flew at 65 shows across Europe during their first season. In 1966, the team was increased to nine members, enabling them to develop their Diamond Nine formation. In late 1979, they switched to the BAE Hawk trainer. The Red Arrows have now performed over 4,000 displays world-wide in 53 countries.

Such is the popularity of the Red Arrows that at a recent charity auction, a British woman paid £1,500,000 to fly with them.

---

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/6 The Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Service (RAFMRS) provides land rescue over the mountain areas of the United Kingdom. Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue teams (MRTs) were first organised during World War II to rescue aircrew from the large number of aircraft crashes then occurring on high ground. The practice at the time was to organise ad-hoc rescue parties from station medical sections and other ground personnel. Experience demonstrated that this could be dangerous. While the mountains of the United Kingdom are not very tall, they contain much formerly glaciated terrain with steep cliffs, talus slopes, high peaks and cirque basins, and generally experience a sub-Arctic climate at relatively low altitudes. Snow and high winds, sometimes in excess of 100 mph (161 km/h), are posssible any month of the year. Rescue operations in these conditions require personnel with specialized mountaineering training and equipment.

The RAFMRS comprises four teams, based at RAF Valley in North Wales, RAF Leuchars and RAF Kinloss in Scotland, and RAF Leeming in England with Central Headquarters located and associated with the MRT at RAF Valley. Helicopter operations, frequently used in mountain rescue, are conducted in cooperation with No. 202 Squadron RAF and No. 22 Squadron RAF. These two squadrons, with the four remaining MRTs and headquarters, and the Rescue Coordination Centre at RAF Kinloss, comprise RAF Search and Rescue.

---

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/7 The Royal Air Force Police (RAFP) is the military police branch of the British Royal Air Force. It was formed on 1 April 1918 and is responsible for policing the RAF and its installations. Members of the RAFP are distinguished by their white-topped caps (giving rise to their nickname of "Snowdrops"), which they have worn since 1945, and black/red/black flashes worn below their rank slides, known as "Mars Bars". Unlike their Army colleagues in the Royal Military Police, they do not wear a distinctive red beret when wearing camouflaged uniform, although they do wear MP flashes on the sleeve of their uniforms not unlike their army counterparts.

There is a detachment of RAFP on most RAF stations with larger bases having a security squadron, with a Squadron Leader in command as Officer Commanding (OC) Security, who is also responsible for the general security of the station. The RAF Police also fulfills the RAF's counter-intelligence (CI) role, similar to that carried out by the British Army Intelligence Corps. They provide specialist counter-intelligence and computer security support.

---

Portal:Royal Air Force/Selected article/8

Marshal of the Royal Air Force (MRAF) is the highest rank in the Royal Air Force. In peacetime it was granted to RAF officers in the appointment of Chief of the Defence Staff, and to retired Chiefs of the Air Staff, who were promoted to it on their last day of service. Promotions to the rank have ceased since the British defence cuts of the 1990s. While surviving Marshals of the RAF retain the rank for life, the highest rank to which officers on active service are promoted is now Air Chief Marshal. Although general promotions have ceased, further promotions to Marshal of the Royal Air Force are still possible in wartime and also for members of the Royal Family and certain other very senior officers in peacetime at the discretion of the Monarch.

Marshal of the Royal Air Force is a 5 star rank and unlike the air marshal ranks, can properly be considered a marshal rank. MRAF has a NATO ranking code of OF-10, equivalent to an Admiral of the Fleet in the Royal Navy or a Field Marshal in the British Army.

The rank was instituted in 1919 and the first officer to be promoted to MRAF was Lord Trenchard in 1927. Since that time, including Trenchard, there have been 26 men who have held the rank. Of those, 21 have been professional RAF officers and five have been senior members of the British Royal Family. The only two RAF officers ever to have held the rank without serving as Chief of the Air Staff were Lord Douglas of Kirtleside and Sir Arthur Harris.

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

Nominations

At the moment there is no requirement to nominate articles. When enough featured content relevant to this portal is available, unhide the text contained in this section and amend the Usage section above.