323 Squadron

History

Establishment

On June 27, 1948 — with the arrival of the first Gloster Meteor Mk.4 in The Netherlands — the Jachtvliegschool (Fighter Pilot School) was established at Twenthe Air Base. Nr. 1 Jachtvliegsquadron was established on November 15, 1948. On April 14, 1949 this first Dutch squadron operating jet fighters was re-designated 323 Squadron as a result of Western European Union naming conventions. The squadron was moved to Leeuwarden Air Base.


Gloster Meteor T.Mk.7

No two-seat Meteors were available at this time and training was rather primitive. In order to familiarize student pilots, ammunition boxes behind the cockpit were removed in order to create space for the instructor pilot. On a typical training run speed was gained until the nose landing gear was lifted after which the student would slow the aircraft down again.

On January 26, 1949, Major Flinterman, 323 Squadron Commander since the unit's establishment, landed the first Meteor at Leeuwarden Air Base, with runways that were hardly suited for jet aircraft (runways were severely damaged during WWII). Together with 324 Squadron (established at May 1, 1949) the unit formed Fighter Group North (Jachtgroep Noord).

Training unit

In May 1950, 323 Squadron was responsible for weapons instruction for pilots that were recently licensed at Twenthe Air Base. Because of this, the squadron was moved to Twenthe Air Base, though most of the training took place above the North Sea and the aircraft often operated from Leeuwarden.

After a short period, the squadron was moved back to Leeuwarden on April 21, 1952. In 1954 the unit owned eight Meteor F.Mk.8's and four F.Mk.4's, of which the latter only were used to tow targets. During the 1950's the unit owns more than 40 Meteors: Mk.4's, Mk.8's and T.Mk.7's. The T.Mk.7's were not operational and therefore lacked the squadron code Y9.

Change of focus

323 Squadron switched to the Hawker Hunter in 1957 as the last squadron. On October 18, 1957 the unit's first Hunter with 323 registration code made its operational flight. In 1960, the squadron's training task was dropped.


Hawker Hunter T.Mk.7

The Hunter's empty shells and clamps were ejected out of the aircraft into the air after firing, which could cause Foreign Object Damage (FOD). This was solved by a belly mounted reservoir. However, the obstructed air stream could cause compressor stalls which was overcome by reducing the fuel flow whenever the gun's trigger was operated.

During 1960-1961 the unit was involved in the evaluation of the AIM-9B Sidewinder infrared guided air-to-air missile (in early days also referred to as GAR-8), which later was purchased by the RNLAF.

On March 25, 1963 the Squadron's operational task was abandoned, though part of the unit was still used for towing targets until September 1, 1963. The abandonment was a result of the transition to the F-104G Starfighter. On March 17, 1964, the unit was reactivated after the arrival of the first six F-104's at Leeuwarden Air Base. 323 Squadron was the first European unit to fire the F-104's gun.

Transitie Conversie Afdeling

Once all squadrons were operational on the F-104, the conversion flight at Twenthe Air Base was split up: one part was moved to Volkel Air Base as CAV and the other part was moved to Leeuwarden Air Base as Transitie Conversie Afdeling. TCA was integrated into 323 Squadron.

In early 1978 the TCA was deactivated and would remain inactive until the introduction of the F-16.

323 Vipers

On September 1, 1981, 323 Squadron was reactivated after it was deactivated for a brief period to allow transition to the F-16 and declared operational on April 2, 1982.

In 1986, 323 Squadron was again integrated with the Transitie Conversie Afdeling (TCA, Transition Conversion Section), a unit responsible for the training of recently F-16 licensed pilots.

TACTESS

On July 3, 1992, 323 Squadron was re-designated 323 TACTESS Squadron. TACTESS stands for Tactical Training Evaluation and Standardization Squadron (Tactische Training Evaluatie en Standaardisatie Squadron).

The squadron consisted of 4 flights: STAN/EVAL (standardization/evaluation), instruction, tactical training, and a support flight. The squadron offers training for instructors and weapons instructors, also offers ICT (Integrated Combat Training), and sets up exercises like DWIC and DIAWACS. The squadron remains fully operational.


Photo: Taken without permission, origin unknown
First interception of Tu-20 Bear over the North Sea in October 1982 by 323 F-16 (J-256) during exercise Northern Wedding.

Squadron Crest

The squadron crest consists of an image of Diana on a black background. In Roman religion, Diana was the goddess of wild animals and the hunt. The name has the root "di" ("to shine") and probably means "Bright One". In Roman art Diana usually appears as a huntress with bow and quiver.

Squadron's motto

The squadron motto is Impetu Feroci, which means Undismayed On The Offensive (Onvervaard in de aanval).

Chronology

323 TACTESS Chronology
Date Location Type Remark
15Nov1948 Twenthe Meteor F.Mk.4 Establishments of No 1 Fighter Squadron.
28Jan1948 Leeuwarden ,, Unit transferred.
14Apr1949 ,, ,, Unit renamed to 323 Squadron (Interceptor Day Fighter).
1May1950 Twenthe ,, Unit transferred.
21Apr1952 Leeuwarden ,, Unit transferred. Unit acted as weapons firing training school.
1954 ,, Meteor F.Mk.4/F.Mk.8/T.Mk.7 Mk.4's being replaced by Mk.8's. T.Mk.7 only used for training purposes, aircraft have no sqn code.
18Oct1957 ,, Meteor F.Mk.8/T.Mk.7/Hunter F.Mk.4 First flight for 323 owned F.Mk.4.
1958 ,, Hunter F.Mk.4/T.Mk.7 First Mk.7's added to the sqn.
Sep1961 ,, ,, Weapons firing training school abandoned.
25Mar1963 ,, ,, Deactivated as operational sqn. Target tow flights continue.
1Sep1963 ,, ,, Target towing task canceled.
17Mar1964 ,, (T)F-104G First F-104's arrive at Leeuwarden. Sqn reactivated as 323 AWX sqn.
1Oct1965 ,, ,, Establishment Quick Reaction Alert as NATO requirement.
1Nov1965 ,, ,, Operational on the F-104G
1978 ,, ,, Disbandment of Transitie Conversie Afdeling.
17May1979 ,, ,, 322 Sqn and 323 Sqn put under one single commander.
1Aug1980 ,, ,, Sqn no longer operational because of the phasing out of the F-104.
1Nov1981 ,, F-16A/B Limited Operational Capability reached with the F-16.
1Apr1982 ,, ,, Operational on the F-16A.
6Mar1986 ,, ,, TCA integrated into 323 Squadron.
7Aug1991 ,, ,, 2 323 F-16's are being intercepted above international waters of the Baltic Sea by 2 Su-27's.
3Jul1992 ,, ,, Unit re-designated as 323 TACTESS.
1Jan1993 ,, ,, Operational in swing role (CWI and FBA).
15Nov1998 ,, ,, 50th Anniversary.
Sep1999 ,, F-16AM/BM Initial Operational Capability with modernized F-16.