page_title: Royal Flying Corps
section_title: Markings
hierarchical_section_title: Royal Flying Corps / First World War / Markings
context_page_description: The Royal Flying Corps was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War, until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC supported the British Army by artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance. This work gradually led RFC pilots into aerial battles with German pilots and later in the war included the strafing of enemy infantry and emplacements, the bombing of German military airfields and later the strategic bombing of German industrial and transport facilities.
  At the start of World War I the RFC, commanded by Brigadier-General Sir David Henderson, consisted of five squadrons – one observation balloon squadron and four aeroplane squadrons. These were first used for aerial spotting on 13 September 1914 but only became efficient when they perfected the use of wireless communication at Aubers Ridge on 9 May 1915. Aerial photography was attempted during 1914, but again only became effective the next year. By 1918, photographic images could be taken from 15,000 feet and were interpreted by over 3,000 personnel.
context_section_description: Early in the war RFC aircraft were not marked with any national insignia. Union Flag markings in various styles were painted on the wings (and sometimes the fuselage sides and/or rudder) at a squadron level, when RFC aircraft were fired upon by friendly ground forces but the large red St. George's cross was liable to be mistaken for the Eisernes Kreuz (iron cross) markings of German aircraft. By late 1915 the RFC had adopted the familiar French cockade (roundel) marking, with the colours reversed (blue circle outermost). Contrary to usual French practice, it was applied to the fuselage sides as well as the wings. To avoid friendly attack, the rudders of RFC aircraft were painted to match the French, with the blue, white and red stripes — going from the forward (rudder hingeline) to aft (trailing edge) — of the tricolour. Later in the war, a night roundel was used for night flying aircraft, especially Handley Page O/400 heavy bombers, omitting the conspicuous white circle of the day marking.
caption: The regulation RFC roundel national insignia in use in late 1915