35 Squadron
	Motto:	Shaya Amanzi
	Meaning:	Strike at the Water.

Home of the Shackleton.

This squadron was formed on February 2,1945 by renumbering No. 262 Squadron RAF, which had operated Catalina flying-boats from Congella, with detachments at St Lucia, on the eastern Natal coast, and Langebaanweg on the western Cape coast. The renumbering of No. 262 Squadron as a SAAF unit was logical, since it had received drafts of SAAF personnel as early as 1943 and from July 16, 1944 had had a SAAF commanding officer. It was awarded the battle-honour `South African Waters', granted for operations within a 1 600 km radius off the South African and South West African coasts in 1944 and 1945.   On April 24, 1945, less than two months after its birth, the new squadron received the first of 16 Short Sunderland GR.5 flying-boats and was earmarked for an operational tour of the Far East where fighting was still in progress. But before this occurred, peace came to the eastern theatre of war and the Sunderlands were diverted to shuttling South African troops home from Cairo. Both squadron and aircraft responded magnificently, and the Sunderlands ferried 1 786 troops as well as 55 tons of equipment back to South Africa without a single cancellation as a result of unserviceability.   No.35 Squadron made two entries in the record books in the early post-war years. One of its Sunderlands, NJ262, made the first South African and South West African round trip (Durban-Cape Town-Walvis Bay-Johannesburg) in July 1948, taking 20 hours; and an Avro Anson on unit strength was fitted with floats taken from a Blackburn Roc and used as a seamanship trainer - the only Anson, it is believed, ever to have been turned into a float plane.

In 1948, No. 35 Squadron took on a distinctly heterogeneous appearance when a Citizen Force element flying no less than four different types of land-based aircraft - Harvards, Venturas, Oxfords and Spitfires - joined its complement. The part-time airmen, operating out of Stamford Hill aerodrome near Durban, gradually whittled down the number of types they were using, and when they were detached from No. 35 Squadron to become No. 5 (Citizen Force) Squadron in December 1950, they were flying only Harvards.   The last Sunderland flight took place on September 27, 1957, after which the squadron was re-equipped with Shackletons and moved to Cape Town, and all the Sunderlands were scrapped in Durban. In 1959 and 1960 the squadron also operated the last Venturas in SAAF service -  mostly leftovers from Nos. 17 and 22 Squadrons SAAFÄ as part of Maritime Group, before these were withdrawn.   On 19 November 1980 the sqdn received the Freedom of Cape Town. The Shackletons were withdrawn from service on 23 November 1984 and replaced in January 1985 by  C-47 Dakotas. With the closing of 25 and 27 Sqdns, 35 Sqdn also received the added role of transport, by using King Air and Dakota aircraft. The Sqdn was involved with the much published "Oceanos" rescue mission near East London on 4 August 1991. Since 1991 the Turbo Dak has been used in the transport role and from 1994 also in the maritime reconnaissance role. 

Info from Aircraft of the SAAF - Potgieter & Steenkamp.