Seaplane Defence Flight
| No. 213 Squadron RAF | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1 April 1918 - 31 December 1919 8 March 1937 - 30 September 1954 1 September 1955 – 31 December 1969 |
| Country |
 United Kingdom
|
| Branch |
 Royal Air Force
|
| Nickname(s) | The Hornets (1918); Ceylon |
| Motto(s) |
Irritatus Lacessit Crabro Latin: "The Hornet Attacks When Roused" |
| Battle honours | Western Front 1914-1948*; Channel and North Sea 1939-1940; France and the Low Countries 1939-1940*; Dunkirk*; Battle of Britain 1940*; Home defence 1940-1945; Egypt and Libya 1940-1943*; Syria 1941*; El Alamein*; Mediterranean 1942-1943; South East Europe 1942-1945* Honours marked with an asterisk are emblazoned on the Squadron Standard |
| Insignia | |
| Squadron Badge | A Hornet |
| Squadron Codes | AK (Apr 1939 - Jan 1950) |
No. 213 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The squadron was formed on 1 April 1918 from No. 13 (Naval) Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service. This RNAS squadron was itself formed on 15 January 1918 from the Seaplane Defence Flight which, since its creation in June 1917, had had the task of defending the seaplanes which flew out of Dunkirk.
Formed originally from the Seaplane Defence Flight, which was itself founded in June 1917 at Dunkirk, it was reorganized as No. 13 Squadron RNAS on 15 January 1918. As the SDF, it operated Sopwith Pups. When the Royal Naval Air Service merged with the Royal Flying Corps to form the Royal Air Force, it was renumbered as 213 Squadron. In this incarnation, it flew Sopwith Baby floatplanes and transitioned to Sopwith Camels. It was during this time that the squadron derived its Hornet insignia and motto for the squadron badge, after overhearing a Belgian General refer to the squadron's defence of his trenches, "Like angry hornets attacking the enemy aircraft". The Hornet became affectionately known as "Crabro," latin for hornet. The squadron's official motto became, "Irritatus Lacessit Crabro" (The Hornet Attacks When Roused). In March 1919 the squadron went back to the UK where it disbanded on 31 December 1919.
During its wartime existence, the squadron had 11 flying aces serve with it, including such notables as John Edmund Greene, Colin Brown, George Chisholm MacKay, Leonard Slatter, Maurice Cooper, Miles Day, Ronald Graham, John Paynter, John Pinder, andGeorge Stacey Hodson.
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