SQUADRON HISTORY 1, 2, 3, 4
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No 645 VGS has its origins with No 26 Elementary Gliding School which was formed at RAF Greatham near Hartlepool in 1943, relocating to RAF Middleton St George near Darlington in 1946. No 26 Gliding School, as it was now known (the elementary part being dropped by 1950), continued to operate at Middleton St George for the next nine years, but in 1955 as part of the rationalisation and complete reorganisation of all Gliding Schools 26 GS was disbanded and a new unit was formed from surviving 26 GS staff. As part of the new policy it was renumbered after the Group it came under, this being 64 Group and as it was the fifth GS to be reformed, so it became 645 GS. Disbandment came again for a short while because, the Reserve Flying Schools who administered all the Gliding Schools were themselves disbanded. However Home Command at RAF Detling assumed responsibility for the Gliding School network until finally handing over to Flying Training Command in March 1959, with 64 Group finally disbanding at the end of the same month. |
| 645 GS was re-formed on the 8th day of September 1958 at RAF Middleton St George and was initially equipped with two Slingsby Sedbergh’s WB499 & WB979, accompanied by Kirby Cadet Mk.3s WT904 & XE791. It is interesting to note that WB979 stayed with 645 until conversion to the Vanguard in1983. The last known whereabouts of “979” was in Sweden in 1999 being owned by a member of the Swedish Vintage Gliding club. Accommodation being pre-war buildings with the aircraft being hangared in the No 5 hangar. Ancillary equipment included two single drum ex-barrage balloon winches powered by Ford V8 engines, which were considerably underpowered for glider launching and notoriously difficult to start. Ground handling was undertaken by two Austin one ton pickup trucks that were excellent servants as they were considerably overworked. |
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