History
Narrative Summary
An Army Flying School was first established in July 1912, its first equipment being a donated by a civil flying school. In 1913 the Army Air Forces established a permanent airfield at Kløvermarken. In February 1923 the Army Flying Corps was officially created, changing its name to Army Air Corps in 1932. It was considered as one of the regiments of the Army.
When Nazi Germany invaded in April 1940 one army air corps was shot down. The German occupiers prohibited all military flying and so the army aircraft were dismantled and stored in a hangar. In 1943 these aircraft were tkaen over by the Germans and pressed into service.
After the liberation of Denmark in 1945 the arm air corps was re-established, but did not have any aircraft until a number of aircraft from Britain were received late in the year. In 1950 the army air corps was merged with the naval air service to form the Royal Danish Air Force.
Key Dates
| 1 April 1912 |
|
First army officer completes pilot training |
| 2 July 1912 |
|
Army Flying School established |
| 1913 |
|
First army air station opened |
| 1 February 1923 |
|
Army aviation branch officially created |
| 1 November 1932 |
|
Army Air Corps formally established |
| 9 April 1940 |
|
German invasion of Denmark |
| April 1940 |
|
Army air corps disbanded by German occupiers |
| late 1943 |
|
Stored army aircraft taken over by the Germans |
| December 1946 |
|
Army air corps re-established |
| 1 November 1950 |
|
Army and Navy air arms merged to form the Royal Danish Air Force |
Current Status
Not applicable.
Future Plans
Not applicable.
Markings
National Insignia
Historical
Aircraft Serial Numbers
1912-1926:
HF aircraft were initially assigned serials comprising a two letters, usually an abbreviation of the manufacturers name, and a number, e.g. Nielson & Winther Aa with the serial N&W.2.
1926-1932:
In 1926 type letters were introduced, followed by a number, e.g. D.H.60 S-100.
R for Fokker C.V, with numbers in the range 1-50
O for Fokker C.I, with numbers in the range 51-99
S for D.H. Moths, with numbers in the range 100-150*
J for fighters, with numbers in the range 151-200*
* in 1932 these numbers were revised to start at 301 to avoid duplicating Navy serials.
1932-1950:
In 1932 the numerical serials were reset to start from 1 in each category, e.g. Bristol Bulldog J-1.
Unit/Base Codes
Coding system not used.
Aircraft
Aircraft Designations
Aircraft type codes were assigned from 1932 onwards. These consisted of a roman number follwed by a role letter, e.g. II J for the Gloster Gauntlet. The role letter indicated Fighter (J), Reconnaissance (R), School trainer (S), Operational trainer (o) or Molleplan/autogyro (M). The roman number indicated the chronological order in the class, so the Gauntlet was the second type of fighter acquired under this system.
Current Aircraft Inventory
Not applicable.
All-Time Aircraft Used List
All-Time Table of Aircraft Used
Aircraft NOT Used
No false reports known.
Organisation
Main Headquarters
To be added.
Organisational Structure
By 1940 the HF was organised into two Flyveafdelinger (air wings), the Army Flying School and a Balloon Park.
Current Order of Battle
Not applicable.
Historical Orders of Battle
To be added.
All-Time Flying Units List
Sjællandske Flyverafdeling
Jydske Flyverafdeling
Flyveskolen
Ballonparken
1. Eskadrille
2. Eskadrille
3. Eskadrille
5. Eskadrille
Air Bases
Current Air Bases
Not applicable.
All-Time Air Bases Used List
The main air bases were Kastrup and Vaerlose. Other bases used included Klovermarken and Lundtofte.
More Information
Books
Danish Military Aviation Bibliography – to be added.
Magazines
To be added.
Websites
Danish Air Force, Danish Army Air Corps and Royal Danish Naval Aviation
wikipedia: Haerens Flyvertropper
The History of Danish Military Aircraft
