Introduction
Based at RAF Honington in Suffolk, Number 2623 (East Anglian) Squadron's operational role is to provide Force Protection: involving the usual soldiering skills associated with an RAF Regiment Field Squadron, to elements of the Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment (Jt CBRN Regt). The Squadron works closely alongside No 27 Squadron, RAF Regiment and 2623 Squadron personnel frequently support and exercise alongside their regular counterparts to reinforce the links between the two squadrons.
Recruiting
In part due to the changes brought about by their recent role change, the Squadron are actively looking for additional personnel to fill a number of key posts on the new establishment. Anyone looking for an active spare-time career with the Squadron, can enquire on-line, or call the Recruiting Team for an invite to one of our Open Evening Events. These events are held during week-day evenings and will provide all the information you require in order to further your application without an obligation to join.
Uniquely at this time, there are also a few opportunities for personnel to serve on full-time as well as part-time terms of service. The full-time posts are within the Squadron's Training and Recruiting Teams and will require applicants to hold a number of key qualifications. If you wish to apply for one of these posts and have previous regular service, are currently serving with another RAuxAF Squadron, or are about to leave regular service, give the Squadron Recruiting Officer a call on 95991 7672 or 01359 237672.
History
Number 2623 (East Anglian) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment, was formed on 1 July 1979 at Royal Air Force Honington to provide ground defence of the Station. Tasked specifically to prevent Soviet special forces from disrupting flying operations, the Squadron was an integral part of the Station’s war-fighting capability for the next 15 years.
The Squadron disbanded as a field squadron on 18 April 1994, but reformed on 1 June 1995 as a training unit, providing centralised training to Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment field squadrons. This role was subsumed into Training Wing at Royal Air Force Honington at the end of 1997, and as a result, the Squadron subsequently switched role again.
The Strategic Defence Review in the mid-1990’s identified a need to provide sustainment of the Royal Air Force’s Ground Based Air Defence Force. The Squadron took on a new role in October 1998 with a mix of regulars and auxiliaries operating the highly sophisticated Rapier missile system. The Squadron was declared operational in its new role in April 2001 and, in May 2003, many of the Squadron’s personnel were mobilised and deployed to the Falkland Islands to augment 16 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment as the Resident Rapier Squadron. As a result of the 2004 Defence Review, a need for the Squadron to provide a different capability was highlighted, and their role changed once more, this time to provide Force Protection for a key element of the UK's Armed Forces.
The Squadron badge, awarded in 1988, represents the Squadron’s links with East Anglia. The wolf salient represents the ‘wolfmen’ – the Danes who ravaged and then settled in East Anglia during the Dark Ages. The crossed arrows represent the martyrdom of St Edmund and allude to the Squadron’s association with the local town of Bury St Edmunds. The motto Gebeorgan Ond Werian is Anglo-Saxon and can be loosely translated as Protect and Defend.