No. 428 Squadron RCAF

No. 428 (Ghost) Squadron RCAF
Active7 November 1942 – 5 September 1945
21 June 1954 – 1 June 1961
Country Canada
Branch Royal Canadian Air Force
RoleBomber/All-Weather Fighter
Part ofRoyal Air Force 1942–1945
Nickname(s)Ghost
Motto(s)Latin: Usque ad finem
"To the very end"
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldryIn a shroud, a death's head[1]
Squadron CodesNA (Nov 1942 – May 1946)[2]
Aircrew and groundcrew of Avro Lancaster KB760 NA:P "P-Peter", from No. 428 Squadron RCAF. The badge for the Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire is visible on the nose. Photo taken after the squadron's 2,000th sortie, a raid on Bremen, Germany.
Damage to a Vickers Wellington Mark X, HE239 'NA-Y', of No. 428 Squadron RCAF. The aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire, while approaching its target at Duisburg, Germany on April 8–9, 1943.

No. 428 Squadron RCAF,[2] also known as 428 Bomber Squadron,[3] and 428 Ghost Squadron,[4] was first a night bomber squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force engaged in strategic bombing during World War II, based in Yorkshire.[3] At the end of the war the squadron moved to Nova Scotia before being disbanded in September 1945. In 1954 the squadron was reformed as 428 All-Weather (Fighter) Squadron, before being again disbanded in 1961.[3]

The motto of the squadron is Usque ad finem (Latin: "To the very end") and the squadron's badge contains a white Death's Head in a black shroud.[4] The badge refers to the squadron's Ghost designation which was earned through its night bombing operations, as 'Hitler's Haunters' and the death and destruction which it inflicted upon the enemy.[4]

  1. ^ Moyes 1976, p. 247.
  2. ^ a b No. 428 Squadron RCAF Royal Air Force Retrieved on 2008-01-13
  3. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference airforce.forces.gc.ca--428sqn_e was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b c Vickers Wellington Bomber Veterans Affairs Canada Retrieved on 2008-01-13