Training and substitute unit of the Czechoslovak air force (Czechoslovak depot)

On August 2, 1940, a training and substitute unit was officially established at Cosford. The base was established in 1938 as a technical training and maintenance centre. The first group of Czechoslovaks (11 officers and 320 soldiers) arrived here on July 10, 1940, under the command of Major Karel Šifner. The Czechoslovak depot was moved several times during World War II – from Cosford to Wilmslow, St. Athan and back to Cosford. All Czechoslovak members of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAF VR) went through this unit when they were recruited into the RAF, when they were assigned a service number, during basic training, and they attended an English language course before being sent to training courses, in the period before being sent to a squadron or when being released.