Aviation News - February 2016 UK

http://www.aviation-news.co.uk 67

As well as facing the Japanese, the

Sunderland crews had to cross the jungle-

covered heights of the Chin Hills that were

usually shrouded in thick mist and cloud.

The  rst sortie was  own on June 2 and over

the next month during 13 sorties, 537 men

were evacuated from under the noses of the

enemy and resulted in a number of well-

earned decorations to the crews.

Thereafter 230 Sqn resumed its patrol

activities, beginning re-equipment with

Sunderland Mk Vs in January 1945. During

that period it  ew some transport sorties into

central Burma and supported the campaign,

latterly from Akyab and then Rangoon. Armed

recces and anti-shipping patrols into the Gulf

of Siam and to the Andaman Islands were

mounted with Flt Lt E Holstein’s crew locating

the tanker Tohu Maru (subsequently sunk by

RAF Liberators) as well as damaging another

ship and sinking a launch on June 15. Similar

attacks then followed until the end of the war.

BERLIN AIRLIFT

On conclusion of hostilities 230 Sqn spent a

few months on transport work from Singapore

and then returned to the UK, and eventually

settled at RAF Calshot, Hampshire as a part

of Coastal Command’s only  ying boat wing.

When the Soviet blockade of Berlin began in

June 1948 it resulted in the famous airlift. The

Sunderland was a useful addition due to its

spacious hold and 230 Sqn sent four aircraft

• VB887/4X-X, SZ582/4X-O, SZ581/4X-Y
  and SZ573/4X-W – to Hamburg. Flying from
  the River Elbe they  ew into Havel Lake in

Berlin carrying a variety of loads. As the

Sunderland was designed to operate from the

sea, and so had more protection from salt, it

was regularly chosen to carry salt to de-ice

the Berlin runways.

The detachment was withdrawn in

December when ice on the rivers made

conditions too hazardous, by that time 230

had  own 1,000 sorties. Soon afterwards

the Squadron moved west to RAF Pembroke

Dock, Pembrokeshire from where life

continued supporting the Fleet.

One unusual task during the summer

of 1952 was a detachment to Greenland

in support of the British North Greenland

expedition. This operation was repeated

during the brief Arctic summer of 1954, the

task requiring high degrees of  ying and

navigational skill, fully testing 230’s crews.

By the mid-1950s, with most maritime

tasks being achieved by landplanes, the

days of the  ying boat were numbered,

and 230 Sqn was disbanded at Pembroke

Dock on February 28, 1957. Thus its ‘boat’

era ended but in its almost 20 years of

successfully  ying the Sunderland the

Squadron had certainly lived up to its Malay

motto ‘Kita chari jaur’ – ‘We search far’.

Sunderland Is N9029 ‘V’, L2161 ‘Y’, L2160 ‘X’ of 230 Sqn

over the Arabian Sea en route from Galle in Ceylon to

Alexandria on May 2, 1940. 230 Squadron records

Sunderland Mk V SZ567/230-P was serving with 230 Sqn when the unit was disbanded in February 1957.

It is shown here at RAF Wig Bay, Dumfries and Galloway on March 1, 1957. J D R Rawlings

“...gunfi re blew

a large hole in

the hull and

damaged the

fuel tanks that

the enterprising

crew plugged

with Plasticine.”

63-67_sunderlandsDC.mfDC.mfDC.mfDC.mfDC.mf.indd 67 07/01/2016 16:32