This equated to an annual task of some 11,500 sorties to train 83 RAF, 12 RN and 5 foreign ab-initio students, as well as 13 instructors and a brace of refresher courses. ‘Target 160’ was the buzz-phrase of the day, which is the number of sorties that the entire Station would be required to fly per day. This is astonishing when you think that Heathrow, with all of its resources, does not fly very many more than this. ‘Project Reformation’ was the title given to the Squadron’s efforts to improve its efficiency.
What this all m
eant, however, was that for the first time in RAF history, every future RAF combat pilot would have to pass through a single training squadron (3). Therefore, although 208 Squadron was no longer ‘operational,’ it had, perhaps, its most critical role of all time in safeguarding the very future of the RAF. So, regretfully, mine is not a tale of derring do, no operations, no overseas deployment and certainly no sunny days on the beach with a beer in hand (although Trearddur Bay does have its attractions!). Instead, it is a story of how 208 Squadron achieved that massive flying task.
However, having assumed the responsibility of training
every single future RAF combat pilot, I was determined that the Squadron’s illustrious history, ethos and spirit would play a very big part in their education, both as pilots and as junior officers, and I am extremely grateful for all of the wisdom and advice that I received from Association members during my time in command. The historic theme was pursued in as many ways as we could. For example, as part of the changes to the administration of RAF flying training, we were required to give each student a written arrival brief about the Squadron, its current operations and what was expected of them. I saw that it would be a vital part of that brief to give them a comprehensive Squadron history (4) to encourage and reinforce the ethos of the service. I managed to obtain a few hundred copies of David Styles Book ‘All the Eights’ and hope that at least a few have been kept and treasured.
Thanks to the outstanding
efforts of Simon Stocker, my predecessor (and now ‘OC A Flight’), the new Squadron markings were approved in April 2001 (5). The new scheme was intended to reflect the whole history of ‘official’ Squadron markings as part of an overall effort to inculcate a sense of historical pride in the student population, for whom 208 was their
