Formed by the Royal Rhodesian Air Force at New Sarum on 28 Feb 1962, the first 3 (of eventually eight) Alouette III arrived by air towards the end of Mar 1962 and 501 was reassembled and flown on 29 Mar. Two more Alouette III arrived on 6 Jul 1962 and three more were ordered in Jan, which arrived in Aug 1963. From c Oct 1967, the unit maintained more or less permanent detachments at Hwange (Wankie) and Kariba.
During a long campaign against insurgents, (sometimes in co-operation with the Portuguese in adjacent Mozambique) the unit deployed detachments for specific operations, such as 4 Alouette III to the airstrip near Chicoa between Nov 1970 and Feb 1971 and another 4 Alouette III deployment to Nyamasoto in support of ground forces in 1972.
The unit merged with 8 Squadron in 1980 but was reformed in 1983, with the AB412.
During a long campaign against insurgents, (sometimes in co-operation with the Portuguese in adjacent Mozambique) the unit deployed detachments for specific operations, such as 4 Alouette III to the airstrip near Chicoa between Nov 1970 and Feb 1971 and another 4 Alouette III deployment to Nyamasoto in support of ground forces in 1972.
The unit merged with 8 Squadron in 1980 but was reformed in 1983, with the AB412.
|
Models 7 Sq List of helicopters |
| C/N | Version | Built | In this Org | In other Org | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1466 w/o 1973 | se3160 | 1968 | 5087 : after completing a 2 person casevac, the helicopter was heading back to Ne+ | ||||
| 1015 w/o 1973 | se3160 | 1962 | 7500 : crashed E of Gungwa (c 12 nm NNE of Rushinga, from where it was operating)+ RRAF500 : to 7 Squadron, Royal Rhodesian Air Force. | ||||
| 1016 w/o 1979 | se3160 | 1962 | RRAF501 : damaged during heavy landing in Macheke while with RRAF 7 Sq. Repaired. | ||||
| 1017 | se3160 | 1962 | RRAF502 : Aerospatiale SA.316 Alouette III cn1017, ff:?:
del RRAF as RRAF502, 27Mar+ | ||||
| 1037 | se3160 | 1962 | RRAF503 : Aerospatiale SA.316 Alouette III cn1037, ff:?;
del RRAF as RRAF503, 13Jul+ | ||||
| 1038 w/o 1994 | se3160 | 1962 | RRAF504 : Aerospatiale SA.316 Alouette III cn1038, ff:?;
del RRAF as RRAF504, 13Jul+ | ||||
| 1131 w/o 1979 | se3160 | 1963 | RRAF505 : Aerospatiale SA.316 Alouette III cn1131, ff:?;
del RRAF as RRAF505, 21Aug+ | ||||
| 1132 w/o 1976 | se3160 | 1963 | RRAF506 : Aerospatiale SA.316 Alouette III cn1132, ff:?;
del Royal Rhodesian AF as + | ||||
| 1133 w/o 1972 | se3160 | 1963 | RRAF507 : Aerospatiale SA.316 Alouette III cn1133, ff:?;
del Royal Rhodesian AF as + | ||||
7 squadron Operations |
| Dates | Operation | |
|---|---|---|
| 1972-dec-31 | 1980-jan |  Operation Hurricane |
