helis.com News Tracker

British Army

UK 664 Squadron

664 Squadron

Established 1944

Part of 4 Regiment, AAC

History C/N Photos
Initially formed as an RCAF Air Observation Post unit with Auster IV and Auster V at Andover. After disbandment in Germany on 31 May 1946, it was reformed as an Auxilliary unit on 1 Sep 1949 managing Nos. 1964, 1965, 1969 and 1970 Flights - all of which disbanded again on 10 Mar 1957.
Reformed in the UK on 24 Oct 1969 as part of 3 Div Aviation Regiment supporting Airborne forces; indeed between 1971 and 1978 it was known as 664 Para Squadron.

It was re-assigned to British Army of the Rhine in 1978 as part of 4 Regiment. While stationed at Minden, the unit maintained a small detachment of Scout in Belize between Apr 1980 (relieving 656 Squadron) and 1982. In Jan 1983, 664 resumed its independence from Minden, in direct support of 1 (BR) Corps (itself at Bielefeld). Around 1989 the unit with its Gazelle AH.1 became part of 4 Regiment, until Mar 1992 when it returned to the UK.

It deployed to Camp Bastion (Afghanistan) between Aug and Nov 2006. The unit moved its Apache AH.1 from Dishforth to Wattisham and became part of 4 REGT on 31 Aug 2007, as part of the AAC restructuring to single model Regiments.
Between 28 and 30 Aug 2018, prepared for Oman deployment with Exercise Archers Alastor, holding live firing at the Holbeach Air Weapons Range on The Wash and forward re-arming at the disused RAF Sculthorpe. Detached at least 2 Apache AH.1 to Oman around Oct 2018 to RAFO Musannah for Exercise Saif Sareea 3.
During May 2022, four of the unit Apache deployed to Skopje in Northern Macedonia for the NATO Exercise Swift Response.
In the 1970s 664 Squadron was the Parachute Squadron based at Farnborough in support of the Parachute Regiment. The squadron had 6 Bell 47 Sioux AH1 and 6 Westland Scout AH1 helicopters.
The a/c at that time were Sioux AH-1: XT163,XT164,XT250,XT553,XT562,XT800. Scout AH-1: XR636,XR639,XR616,XR618,XP853 - the latter replacing XR636 which was written off in a fatal crash in Northern Ireland on 12 April 1974

News

Locations

1969-1978 EGLF FAB Farnborough
1978-1983 DE Minden
1980-1982 MZBZ BZE BZ Philip S.W. Goldson International Airport
1983-1992 DE Minden
1992-2007 EGXD Dishforth
2006 OAZI AF Camp Shorabak
2007- EGUW Wattisham Flying Station
2018 OORQ MNH OM RAFO Musannah / Rustaq Airport
2022 LWSK SKP MK Skopje Alexander the Great Airport

Models

2007- Westland WAH-64 Apache

Operations

Jun 20062006 Nov 20062006 IQ Operation Telic
Sep 20062006 Jan 20072007 AF Operation Herrick
May 20072007 Sep 20072007 AF Operation Herrick
May 20082008 Sep 20082008 AF Operation Herrick
May 20102010 Sep 20102010 AF Operation Herrick
May 20122012 Sep 20122012 AF Operation Herrick
Jan 20142014 Sep 20142014 AF Operation Herrick
Oct 20182018 OM Exercise Saif Sareea 3