Product Code Database
Royal Air Force Luqa (or more simply RAF Luqa) is a former Royal Air Force station located on the island of Malta, now developed into the Malta International Airport.
It hosted aircraft of AHQ Malta (AHQ Malta) during the Second World War. Particularly during the Siege of Malta from 1941 to 1943, RAF Luqa was a very important base for British Commonwealth forces fighting against Italy and Germany for naval control of the Mediterranean and for ground control of North Africa. Air combat over and near Malta was some of the most ferocious of the war, and a series of airfields were built on the small, rocky island: at Luqa, Ta' Qali, and Hal Far, plus satellite fields at Safi, RAF Krendi and on Malta's second island of Gozo.
RAFWeb writes that the original Malta "photographic reconnaissance unit was No. 69 Squadron RAF." "B" Flight, No. 69 Squadron RAF was formed into No. 683 Squadron RAF on 8 February 1943. No. 683 Squadron flew Spitfire Mark IVs, Mark XIs and later Mark XIXs. Just over eight months later, in November 1943, No. 683 Squadron moved to Tunisia.
No. 203 Squadron RAF disbanded on 31 December 1977 at Luqa, by which time it was part of No. 18 Group within RAF Strike Command. It had been flying BAe Nimrod maritime patrol aircraft.
The RAF left in 1979 following a British government decision not to renew the lease on the station from the Maltese. The payments demanded for a lease extension were several times higher than the payments under the previous lease. A No. 120 Squadron RAF Nimrod made the last flight out of Luqa on the morning of 1 April 1979.
|
|
