RAF Balloon Command

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= Balloon Command


caption= Barrage balloons over London
start_date= 1 November 1938
country= United Kingdom
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branch= Royal Air Force
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motto= "Vi Et Ictu" (Latin: By Force and Impact) [Leslie Gilbert Pine: "A Dictionary of Mottoes", 1983, Routledge, ISBN 0-710-09339-X] .
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battles= World War II
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Balloon Command was the Royal Air Force command which was responsible for controlling all the United Kingdom-based barrage balloon units during World War II.

Balloon Command was formed on 1 November 1938 at RAF Stanmore Park in Middlesex. It consisted of a headquarters and several groups. By July 1942, the command had the following organization:
*Headquarters at Old Church Lane, Stanmore in Middlesex. This in turn directly controlled:
**RAF Cardington
**RAF Chessington
*No. 30 Group headquartered at Chessington, near Surbiton, Surrey
*No. 32 Group headquartered at Claverton Manor, Claverton, near Bath, Somerset
*No. 33 Group headquartered at Parkhead House, Abbey Lane, Sheffield, Yorkshire
*No. 34 Group headquartered at Tor House, Corstorphine Road, Edinburgh

Balloon Command was disbanded in February 1945.

Commanders

*1 November 1938 Air Vice-Marshal O T Boyd
*1 December 1940 Air Marshal Sir Leslie Gossage
*1 February 1944 Air Vice-Marshal W C C Gell
*13 February 1945 Air Commodore P L Lincoln

References

* [http://www.rafweb.org/Cmd_H3.htm Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation - RAF Home Commands formed between 1936 - 1938]
* [http://www.bbrclub.org/development_of_balloon_command.htm Balloon Barrage Reunion Club Website - Development of Balloon Command]