16 FLYPAST March 2018
RHODESIAN
FLEDGLINGS
STEVE MCLEAN DESCRIBES THE FIRST FRONTLINE EQUIPMENT
FOR THE NASCENT RHODESIAN AIR FORCE
S
outhern Rhodesia’s aeronautical
contribution to World War Two
was immense despite the limited
resources at its disposal.
Combat experience in the Battle
of Britain, in Europe and East and
North Africa and the highly successful
Rhodesian Air Training Group
combined to provide a strong basis for
a post-war national air arm.
On November 28, 1947 the
establishment of the Southern
Rhodesia Air Force (SRAF) was
formally gazetted. The Order of Battle
consisted of little more than a handful
of Ansons and Tiger Moths, a Leopard
Moth and a Dragon Rapide. A Dakota
and 12 Harvard IIs came from South
Africa and a further three Ansons were
received from Great Britain.
As 1950 ended it was announced by
Southern Rhodesian Prime MinisterGodfrey Huggins that the fledgling
air force was to receive 22 Spitfire
F.22s along with a quantity of spares,
purchased for the sum of £20,000.
These were to be collected in England
by SRAF crews and ferried across
Europe and down Africa.NOVICE CREWS
On January 22, 1951, Dakota SR
departed Salisbury in South Africa
carrying ground and air crew, a mix
of regular and auxiliary crews, under
the command of Lt Col Ted Jacklin.
As the total permanent SRAF aircrew
strength stood at less than 20, the
operation had to be supplemented
with territorial volunteers to prevent
sorties ‘back home’ from grinding to a
halt. Among the ‘full time’ ferry crew
was John Deall, who had accepted
demotion to sergeant upon resigningfrom the RAF as a Wing Commander
to join the SRAF.
By the time SR25 arrived in the
UK the Spitfires had been ferried to
the Overseas Ferry Unit at Chivenor,
Devon, before transferring to 6
Maintenance Unit at Brize Norton,
Oxfordshire. While pilots familiarised
themselves with the Mk.22s, the
ground crew underwent a number of
courses including time at Rolls-Royce.
While some of the pilots had flown
‘modern’ types during the war few
had experience on anything more
advanced than a Harvard. For the
novices, strapping themselves into
a Rolls-Royce Griffon 61-powered
Spitfire F.22 boasting 2,400hp
(1,790kW) was daunting.
Given the 7,587-mile (12,211km)
distance to be covered to Salisbury,
and the relative inexperience of someBelow
A fi ne study of SR62: the
fl ashes either side of
the roundel were green-
yellow-green.HISTORY AFRICAN SPITFIRES