INTER WAR 100 YEARS OF THE ROYAL AIR FORCE
Squadron, to mount an all-out
campaign against villages known to
be harbouring Kurdish fighters, this
time with only 30 minutes notice of
attack. This aggressive policy kept
Mahmoud and his forces on the run,
and on several occasions they were
spotted in the open and hit hard.
On January 30, 1931, a Wapiti
of 30 Squadron suffered engine
failure in cloud. The crew baled out,
probably the first use of parachutes
over what is now Iraq.
Vickers Victorias of 70 Squadron
joined the air component and the
combined assaults led to Mahmoud
finally losing support to such an
extent that he retired to Persia on
April 23. The following day the man
widely referred to in the RAF as the
‘Director of Training’ sought terms
with the British administration and
on May 13, 1931, surrendered at
Penjwin to an RAF party.WINDING DOWN
From 1920 there had been sporadic
action in the south occupying 84
Squadron along with reinforcements
when necessary, and between 1925
and 1928 the RAF played a keypart in countering strong raids by
Akhwan. The units in the north
were also committed to dealing with
another recalcitrant Kurd, Sheikh
Ahmed Barzan, whose supporters
were active between 1927 and
1932.
In June 1930 a new Anglo-Iraqi
treaty conferred independence on
the condition that Britain retained
air bases near Basra and Baghdad.
Through its residency in Iraq the
RAF had developed an airmail route
between Cairo and Baghdad in
1921, and they also supported long-
distance flights and airline route-
proving operations.
From 1927 the RAF began
a process of reduction and
re-equipment: 1 Squadron
disbanded in November 1926;
45 Squadron in early 1927 and
in February 8 Squadron took its
DH.9As to Aden. The ageing Bristol
Fighters of 6 Squadron re-located to
Ismailia, Egypt in October 1929.These transfers left 30 Squadron
at Mosul in the north, 55 at Hinaidi
and 84 at Shaibah, all with Wapitis
and 70 at Baghdad with Victorias.
An addition to the force was 203
Squadron which arrived at Basra
with Supermarine Southampton II
flying-boats in March 1929.
Despite criticism of indiscriminate
bombing in the early days, the RAF
performed with distinction in a hostile
environment during the inter-war
years. Many of its wartime leaders
honed their flying and leadership skills
here. Iraq was arguably the salvation
of the nascent RAF.The full story of the RAF in the
Middle East is told in the author’s
book Truculent Tribes, Turbulent
Skies published by Air-Britain. More
details at: http://www.air-britain.comFebruary 2018 FLYPAST 69Two-year tours in Iraq were unaccompanied and senior staff went to great lengths
to provide distractions, which included photography, vehicle restoration and tours of
archaeological sites. Flt Lt Crawford, assisted by Corporal Howden and LAC Farmer,
used his time to design and build a simple monoplane (above) which was completed in
December 1924. CHRIS PARKERKEEPING OCCUPIED
These transfers left 30 SquadronAbove left
The headquarters
of Iraq Command
at Baghdad on the
Tigris, November- CROWN
Left
At its peak the RAF
fi elded six armoured
car companies mainly
equipped with the
Rolls-Royce, as seen
here in the form
of ‘HMAC Terror’
of 1 Armoured Car
Company. ALL AUTHOR’S
COLLECTION UNLESS NOTED