#1692 662 Sqn AAC Apache AH-64E print
Description
Squadron Prints Lithograph No. 1692 - ZM712, Apache AH-64E V6, 662 Squadron AAC, 3 Regiment AAC, Wattisham.
662 Squadron Army Air Corps was formed at Old Sarum airfield on the 30th September 1943. The Squadron was equipped with Auster Mk III aircraft and after a short training period moved to Westerly near Newmarket as part of 2 ATAF. On ‘D-Day’ (6th June 1944) the Squadron Recce Party landed on the Normandy beaches just 90 minutes after ‘H-Hour’ with the remainder landing on the 7th and 8th June. The Squadron was involved in the advance through France and Holland, and into Germany, during which time they supported twenty different Divisions and occupied over forty landing grounds. The Squadron was disbanded on the 30th October 1945 at Melsbroek in Belgium. 662 Air OP Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force was reformed again on the 1st February 1949 and was based at RAF Colerne. The Squadron was equipped with Austers, this time Mk V and VI. Eight years later, on 10th March 1957, the Squadron was disbanded with the rest of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. 662 Aviation Squadron was reformed in Munster, West Germany on the 24th September 1969, equipped with Sioux and Scout helicopters, and flying in support of The British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). In 1973 the Squadron was re-named 662 Squadron Army Air Corps. The Squadron completed emergency tours of Northern Ireland in 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1981. In 1977 the Sioux helicopters were replaced by Gazelles and, in 1980, the Scout aircraft were replaced with the new Lynx AH1. In 1982, the Squadron became part of 3 Regiment AAC, moving from Munster to Soest. This time their role was as the Corps Anti-Tank Squadron, and it was equipped with twelve Lynx AH1. In the mid-1980s the Squadron changed roles again, reverting to a ‘normal’ Anti-Tank Squadron of six Lynx and six Gazelle. The Squadron remained in Soest until 1993 when 3 Regiment AAC moved as a whole to Wattisham Airfield in Suffolk, becoming part of 24 Airmobile Brigade. In August 1995 the Squadron deployed to Croatia and Bosnia with the Brigade on Operation HAMDEN, as part of the United Nations Rapid Reaction Force. In 2003, as part of 16 Air Assault Brigade, the Squadron deployed to Iraq on Operation TELIC, playing a vital role in Anti-Tank and Reconnaissance missions. 662 Squadron converted to the Apache AH Mk1 in 2007 and first deployed to Afghanistan in May 2009 on Operation HERRICK where it formed the core of the Joint Helicopter Force (Afghanistan). The Squadron deployed to Afghanistan for the fourth and final time in June 2014. In 2022, 662 Squadron became the first UK squadron to convert to the Apache AH-64E Version 6, the most advanced variant. The Squadron remains in 3 Regiment Army Air Corps and the 1st Aviation Brigade Combat Team, the latter of which was formed in April 2020.