[Routine Order] SQUADRON ROUTINE ORDER No. 28/44 continued.

Sunday, 2 April 1944 Other

Document

SQUADRON ROUTINE ORDER No. 28/44 continued.
PAGE TWO.
Aerodrome Control Officer at 3. (S.A.) Wing advised by telephone.
Para. 105. AMBULANCE.
The Duty Medical Officer will be available at the Control
Office.
(e) Operational Take-offs: The procedure as in the past will
continue, i.e. the Squadron will be responsible for providing its own
Marshalling Officer.
(f) Operational Landings. The Marshalling Officer will meet
the Squadron on return and will be responsible for the control of the
landings. Should return times of other operational aircraft overlap,
the senior Marshalling Officer will assume control. The Marshalling
Officer will display the Landing "T" in the direction in which he wishes
aircraft to land.
(g) Non-operational Take-offs and Landings: These will be
controlled by the Airfield Controller and MUST be reported to the
A.C.O. at Wing Operations.
(h) VEREY Lights. The Airfield Controller will provide himself
with a Verey Light Pistol and Cartridges of the following colours:-
GREEN AND RED.
(i) Verey Light Signals.
GREEN : All clear - Land or Take-off.
RED : Do not take-off or land.
A single YELLOW signal cartridge may be fired from Squadron
Ops. Room to signal cancellation of an operation. No other Verey
Lights will be fired by anyone in the vicinity of the aerodrome
without permission from No. 3 Wing Operations.
Para. 106. AERODROME CONTROL : RADIO TELEPHONY.
(a) Aerodrome control will be carried out by R/T with visual
signals as standby in the event of breakdown or lack of R/T equipment.
Pilots of aircraft while taxi-ing to and from dispersal
points, running up, taking off, landing and while flying in the vicinity
of landing grounds will keep watch on the aerodrome control frequency,
whether on operational or non-operational flights.
(b) Non-operational take-off and Landing.
No aircraft will taxi out on to the runway, take off or land
until the pilot has contacted Control by R/T and received permission to
do so.
(c) Operational Take-off. During taxying, marshalling and take-
off, pilots of aircraft will be under R/T control from the Control Office
but visual signals will be used where R/T is precluded for security
reasons. In cases where R/T is used during marshalling and prior to
take off, the word "Control" and the aircraft letter only, being used
instead. Any reference to the formation "leader" should also be
avoided.
(d) Operational Landing. Complete R/T control will be used,
with visual signals as standby.
(e)

Transcriber's Notes

Transcriber's Historical & Tactical Notes:
* Aerodrome Traffic Control (Visual & Radio):
* The Landing "T": Paragraph 105(f) mentions the Marshalling Officer displaying the Landing "T". This was a large, T-shaped visual aid placed on the ground near the runway threshold. It could be rotated to indicate the direction of the wind and, consequently, the direction aircraft should land (aircraft land into the wind). In the absence of modern instrument landing systems, this white "T" was the primary visual reference for pilots joining the circuit.
* Verey Lights: The use of a Verey Pistol (flare gun) is detailed in 105(h) and (i). "Green" for clear and "Red" for stop are standard, but the specific use of a "single YELLOW signal cartridge" to signal the "cancellation of an operation" is a critical, high-level abort signal used to stop a mass takeoff instantly.
* Radio Discipline: Paragraph 106(c) highlights the tension between coordination and security. "Visual signals will be used where R/T is precluded for security reasons". Allied commanders feared that German listening posts could intercept radio chatter during the marshalling phase, giving them advanced warning of a raid before the bombers even left the ground. When radios were used, strict brevity codes were enforced: pilots used only the callsign "Control" and their individual aircraft letter, explicitly avoiding terms like "Leader" which might help enemy intelligence identify the command structure.
* Operational vs. Non-Operational:
* The orders distinguish strictly between "Operational" (combat missions) and "Non-operational" (test flights, transit, liaison) movements. Operational flights had priority, managed by the squadron's own officers, whereas non-operational flights were strictly controlled by the Wing's A.C.O. (Aerodrome Control Officer) to prevent them from interfering with the war effort.
* Abbreviations:
* S.A.: South African.
* A.C.O.: Aerodrome Control Officer.
* R/T.: Radio Telephony (Voice radio communication).
* Ops.: Operations.

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Verification:
Target File Verification: This document is Page Three of "SQUADRON ROUTINE ORDER No. 28/44 continued." It is a continuation of the orders from 2nd April, 1944 (found in file 269-4__11.jpg and 269-4__12.jpg) and serves as part of Appendix "B" to the War Diary.