440 Transport Squadron

"440 Squadron" redirects here. For the USAF 440th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, see 440th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron.

440 Transport Squadron
440e Escadron de transport (French)
Active5 October 1932–present[1]
CountryCanada
BranchRoyal Canadian Air Force
Part of8 Wing
HeadquartersCanadian Forces Northern Area Headquarters Yellowknife
Motto(s)Ka ganawaitak Saguenay (Innu for 'He who protects the Saguenay')
Equipment4 CC-138 Twin Otters
Battle honours
  • Fortress Europe, 1944
  • France and Germany, 1944–1945
  • Normandy, 1944
  • Arnhem
  • Rhine
  • Aleutians, 1942–1943
Websitewww.canada.ca/en/air-force/corporate/squadrons/440-squadron.html Edit this at Wikidata
Commanders
Current
commander		LCol Steve Thompson
Aircraft flown
TransportCC-138 DHC-6 Twin Otter

440 Transport Squadron is a unit of the Canadian Armed Forces under the Royal Canadian Air Force. It is part of 8 Wing and works closely with Joint Task Force (North) in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.

Based at Yellowknife Airport and operating throughout Northern Canada, the unit's primary role is to provide support to the Canadian Forces, including the Canadian Rangers and the Royal Canadian Air Cadets, with search and rescue as a secondary role. The squadron operates four CC-138 DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft that can fly on tundra tires, skis or floats, though the float program was abandoned in 1999 when it was determined that there was not enough call for that capability in the CF.[2][3][4][5]

The squadron was founded in the 1930s as an army cooperation squadron. It was for a time an air defence squadron from the start of the Second World War before moving to the United Kingdom. There it equipped as a fighter-bomber squadron under Royal Air Force (RAF) operational control, flying Hawker Typhoon aircraft. 440 Squadron supported the ground campaign through Northwest Europe until the end of the war.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference hist was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Joint Task Force North – Units". Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 2 March 2011.
  3. ^ 440 Squadron Web Page – Canadian Forces Web Site
  4. ^ "CC-138 Twin Otter". Archived from the original on 6 March 2011. Retrieved 2 March 2011.
  5. ^ "17 Wing Squadron". Archived from the original on 6 December 2010. Retrieved 2 March 2011.