"Coastal Command squadron strength? " Topic

Does anyone know what the typical squadron size would have been in about 1940? Fighter Command squadrons were typically 12 aircraft and Bomber Command 18, AIUI: what about Coastal?

try this link it has the information you asked for

link

fab link, thanks, but what does "UE" stand for? Eg "2 Sqdns Ansons (UE 18+6)" – is that 18 aircraft plus 6 reserves, or something?

It may stand for Unit Establishment.

Yes, and/or more added, over the original establishment of 18.

Keep in mind, serviceability would be around 60% – 67%, on average, so that brings you back to about 12.

Don't know about for Coastal Command, but for the fighter units, there would be more, extra crews than planes, as well, frequently, to make up for losses, illness, etc..

Thanks. The reason for the inquiry is that I'm building a scenario for the PC game Carriers At War. It's based on a what-if Operation Ikarus, the German thought-experiment invasion of Iceland that never went ahead because they didn't think the effort of holding it would be worth it. I'm including the various carriers and carrier conversions they never proceeded with, and I've added 18 Group into the British orbat, to balance out Fliegerkorps X in Norway a bit.

I had no idea how many aircraft there needed to be per squadron. Some of rhe aircraft types in use in 1940 were built in such small numbers it wasn't obvious that they'd have 18 or 24 aircraft necessarily. Eg 18 Group had squadrons operating the Lerwick (total built: 21), the London (total built: 31), the Supermarine Stranraer (57 built), and the Botha (580 built but only ever operated by one squadron).

Interestingly Wikipedia's information about composition and aircraft aligns with that in the above link, which makes me wonder if the Wiki page was written by someone relying on the same source.

Cheers all!