No 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron
Association Newsletter
1/26
The Squadron Standard was formally dislodged from the Rotunda of the RAF College Cranwell on 30th September 2025, after which those present followed the Standard to its final resting place in the church of St Michael and All Angels
Out of the DV Window
I am generally averse to New Year’s Resolutions and I promised myself as I sat down to assemble this edition that I would steer clear of the enticing trap of commenting on the bizarre antics of that famous resident of Mar-a-Lago. In any case I couldn’t possibly keep up with the tempo of change and by the time this draft reaches the printer whatever I may have opined will be hopelessly out of date. Instead it would be better to shrug off the debilitating effects of Ms Reeves’ last budget and focus on more agreeable topics, such as the coming of Spring and our annual reunion in May. To this end you will find the reunion booking form on the Reunion 2026 page which I would be most grateful if you could complete and return to me as soon as possible.
In this Spring edition you will find Kevin Mapley’s account of the Victory in Europe event at RAF Spilsby and reports of the Remembrance Day ceremonies at RAF Waddington, Spilsby and Dunholme Lodge Farm. The remembrance theme is concluded by a description of the 85th Anniversary of the loss of a 44 Squadron Hampden in the woods of Northrepps, Norfolk. You will also find a full account of the Laying Up of 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron’s Standard at RAF Cranwell; a poignant but memorable ceremony which took place on 30th September 2025.
Membership Matters
Annual Subscriptions
Annual subscriptions were due on 1st November and the amount payable each year is £15. My thanks to those who paid their dues and particular gratitude to the majority who remembered to increase their annual payments. The Hon Treasurer has pointed out that despite several reminders in successive newsletters, no less than 33% of members have so far failed to increase their payments from £10 to £15. For those who still need a gentle nudge, please do so and may I remind you that subscriptions can be paid by BACS bank transfer to 44 R SQUADRON ASSOC, Sort Code 30-95-05, Account No. 01414860. Alternatively, subscriptions may be paid by personal cheque mailed to the Membership Secretary, whose address appears in the lefthand yellow box at the foot of Page 1 of this newsletter.
Email Addresses
Often the only way to quickly spread the word to members is by email; the problem is that the best source of email addresses is from the booking forms submitted by those who attend our annual reunions. Currently we have 171 paid-up members but I am missing email addresses for 63 of them. So if you have yet to advise the Membership Secretary of your email address, or if your email address has changed, please do so as soon as possible.
President & Chairman:
Air Commodore S A Baldwin MBE
Treasurer:
Squadron Leader A C Marson (Ret’d)
Editor and Membership Secretary:
Squadron Leader P J Leckenby (Ret’d) MBE