In the early stages of World War Two, the Italian Forces in
Abyssinia, East Africa, consisting of 200,000 troops and nearly 400
aircraft constituted a grave threat to Kenya and the Sudan. To meet
this threat three South African Air Force (SAAF) fighter squadrons
were deployed to East Africa to counter the attacking Italian Air
Force. The three squadrons operated mostly old and antiquated
bi-planes in the form of Hawker Furies, Gloster Gauntlets and
Gloster Gladiators. Between then they did also operate a number of
Hawker Hurricane Mk. Is, of which some still had fabric wing
surfaces and two-bladed wooden propellers. These aircraft were also
passed along between the various units, depending on the area that
had the highest requirement. Among the three squadrons, 1 Squadron
primarily used Gloster Gladiators, while 2 Squadron used Furies and
Gladiators, with 3 Squadron being the primary users of the
Hurricanes. These units were joined by 4 Squadron, training on
Furies and Curtiss Mohawks, before moving to Egypt for operations
in the Desert. 3 Squadron later converted to these Curtiss Mohawks,
and eventually ended up with a mix of Mohawks, again supplemented
by Gladiators. 41 Squadron, an Army-Cooperation unit, also
converted to a fighter squadron after the major campaign was
completed and served as a holding unit in East Africa, flying
Hawker Hurricane Mk. IIs. One Detached Flight, operating Mohawks
during the final part of the campaign, was renumbered as B-Flight
of 3 Squadron and joined the primary unit for the last major
operations in East Africa. The squadrons operated on all fronts in
Somaliland and Abyssinia, and made a considerable contribution
towards the victory that was achieved in that campaign. Commenting
on the part, that the SAAF Fighter Squadrons played in the
campaign, Sir Archibald Sinclair said: "When the Italian come to
draw up a list of the factors that caused them to lose the East
African Empire, they will place the South African Air Force
somewhere near the top of the list". This volume covers the combat
history of these fighter squadrons during the campaign, as well as
the colors and markings of their aircraft. Primary sources, such as
Squadron war Diaries and Pilot Logbooks. were used in the
preparation of the text contained herein. This volume contains 23
full-color plates and 112 b&wphotos, indicating the people and
aircraft operated by these squadrons. This volume will be followed
by two further volumes, tracing the onwards history of these
squadrons as well as additional SAAF Fighter Squadrons during the
campaign in North Africa and Malta, and the campaign in Sicily,
Italy and the Balkans. The authors have already written eight books
covering the colors and markings of the SAAF and SA Army equipment
in a series of booklets entitled South African Colours and
Markings, numbers 1 to 8.
General
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