RAF Strength August 1945.

[NeilStirling]

Taking inspiration from Mustang Numbers

I think I may have posted this before, however, most of my history on this site has vanished.

Mustang numbers for example 801 MkIV and 470 MkIII for example.

AIR 20/2022

Neil.

 

[Snautzer01]

Strange this is it. NeilStirling

 

[NeilStirling]

Strange this is it. NeilStirling

Problem solved.

Thanks.

Neil

 

[Geoffrey Sinclair]

Air 22/285 has a report dated 24 November 1945, which includes an RAF Lend Lease Aircraft Statement as of 30 August 1945, which has different numbers to the inventory, some of which is due to earlier versions being cash purchases. Lost = Non effective aircraft through August 30th 1945, which includes transfers.

Argus I, II, III 810 received, 230 lost, 580 on strength
Baltimore IIA, IV, V 1,090 received, 857 lost, 233 on strength
Black Widow 1 received, 0 lost, 1 on strength
Boston IIA, IV, V 470 received, 248 lost, 222 on strength
Catalina IB, IVA 263 received, 206 lost, 57 on strength
Cornell I, II 1,676 received, 230 lost, 580 on strength
Coronado GR.I 10 received, 4 lost, 580 on strength
Crane IA 182 received, 26 lost, 156 on strength
Dakota I, II, III, IV 1,810 received, 363 lost, 1,447 on strength
Expeditor I, II, 348 received, 69 lost, 279 on strength
Fotress II, IIA, III 162 received, 71 lost, 91 on strength
Gliders 1,257 received, 250 lost, 1,007 on strength
Goose 2 received, 0 lost, 2 on strength
Harvard IIA, IIB, III 2,693 received, 423 lost, 2,270 on strength
Hoverfly I, II 36 received, 0 lost, 36 on strength
Hudson I, II, III 1,028 received, 825 lost, 203 on strength
Invader 3 received, 1 lost, 2 on strength
Kingcobra 87 received, 86 lost, 1 on strength
Kittyhawk IA, III, IV 1,617 received, 1,487 lost, 130 on strength
Liberator B.III, B.VI, GR.VI, C.IX, GR.V, B.VIII, GR.VIII, C.VII 1,639 received, 618 lost, 1,021 on strength
Liberator C.VI 300 received, 0 lost, 300 on strength
Lodestar IA, II 22 received, 13 lost, 9 on strength
Marauder II, III 450 received, 230 lost, 220 on strength
Mariner GR.I 5 received, 4 lost, 1 on strength
Mitchell, B25, C, G, J, II, III 748 received, 286 lost, 462 on strength
Mustang II, III, IV, P-51F, P-51G 1,840 received, 613 lost, 1,227 on strength
Navigator 5 received, 4 lost, 1 on strength
Norseman 4 received, 1 lost, 3 on strength
Piper Cub 4 received, 3 lost, 1 on strength
Sentinal I, II 100 received, 44 lost, 56 on strength
Skymaster 11 received, 0 lost, 11 on strength
Thunderbolt I, II 828 received, 302 lost, 526 on strength
Traveller 30 received, 20 lost, 10 on strength
Vengeance IA, III, IV 767 received, 344 lost, 423 on strength
Ventura II, GR.V 338 received, 175 lost, 163 on strength
Vigilant I, IA 20 received, 14 lost, 6 on strength
Widgeon 1 received, 0 lost, 1 on strength

 

[Spinners]

Kingcobra 87 received, 86 lost, 1 on strength

What's going on there?

 

[EwenS]

Per Geoffrey above
"Lost = Non effective aircraft through August 30th 1945, which includes transfers"

2 P-63A were delivered to Britain for trials. FR408 & FZ440 intended for drag research with the former being lost.

Another 85 forming part of the contract were instead "transferred" to the USSR.

 

[Snautzer01]

Two delivered to Britain: FR408, ex 42-68937, delivered Speke to RAE Farnborough on May 17, 1944. Crashed there July 31 when gear failed to lower after 5:15 flyng hours. Replaced by FZ440, ex 42-69423, delivered Renfrew to Farnboriugh on September 20, 1944. Used for laminar flow wing trials until 1948 and sold for scrap in 1949.

Source: Air Arsenal North America by Phil Butler

Bit more detail: Both aircraft were used for laminar flow trials. FR408 was camouflaged in standard RAF fighter scheme. Before disposal, wings from FR440 were removed and used for wind tunnel trials.

Source: Lend-Lease Aircraft in World War II, Arthur Pearcy Bell P-63A RAF trials 1945

 

[John D. Voss]

Some of the Skymaster's (aka C-54) were VIP configured A/C and were handed over for usage by Winston Churchill (e.g.EW-999), Charles deGalle, et.al. A number were used transporting VIP's to the Yalta conference. At war's end the A/C were returned to the USN/ USMC.

 

[J.A.W.]

Interesting that 2 Tempest Mk VI are included in the list of RAF fighters on strength.

I recall reading in a Norman Franks book about Tropical suitability testing the Tempest Mk VI in Khartoum.

This was well prior to the RAF re-equipping their Africa/Middle East units with them, & IIRC, he duly quoted
a sardonic RAF 'Erk' - as having pushed (unused, still inhibited in their crates) spare Sabre VA engines,
straight off the end of the military pier, into the Nile - when it was 'job done'. Likely they're still there, too.

Be a bit of a bugger to mount an expedition there & haul 'em out, though...

Edit: Fixed typo.