2623 ( East Anglian ) Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment Squadron History . 2623 Squadron is part of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force and is based at RAF Honington , was formed on 1 July 1979 to provide ground defence of the station , Tasked with preventing Soviet Special Forces from disrupting flying operations , personnel were recruited from across East Anglia and formed an integral part of the Station ' s war - fighting capability for the next 15 years . Throughout this period , the Squadron participated in many Exercises and held annual camps in the United Kingdom , Germany and Gibraltar , winning the Strickland Trophy competition in 1991 . The Squadron disbanded as a field squadron on 18 April 1994 , reforming on 1 June 1995 as a training unit , providing centralised training to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment field Squadrons , resulting in the word " Training " being added to the Squadron ' s title to reflect the new role . This role was later subsumed into Training Wing at Royal Air Force Honington and the Squadron subsequently switched roles again . The Strategic Defence Review in the mid - 1990s had identified the need to provide sustainment of the Royal Air Force ' s Ground Based Air Defence Force . As a result , the Squadron resumed its original title and took on a new role in October 1998 with a mix of regulars and auxiliaries operating the highly sophisticated Rapier Field Standard C missile system , being declared operational in its new role in April 2001 . In May 2003 , many of the Squadron ' s personnel were mobilised and deployed to the Falkland Islands to augment 16 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment as the Resident Rapier Squadron , providing the ground based air defence of the Mount Pleasant Complex from July 2003 to January 2004 . Ground based air defence passed to the Royal Artillery in entirety following the 2004 Defence Review , but under Royal Air Force command . At the same time , a need for the Squadron to provide a new capability was also highlighted , resulting in the Squadron re - rolling once again to provide a key component of the Joint Nuclear Biological and Chemical Regiment ' s operational output from March 2004 . Deploying to Canada in 2005 and then Cyprus in 2006 , the Squadron won the Inspector ' s Cup for Excellence in 2007 and Kemp Dirk for recruiting during 2008 . In June 2008 , Number 8 Royal Air Force , Force Protection Wing was stood up to undertake a single operational tour at Kandahar Airfield within Operation HERRICK . The Wing comprised Headquarter elements from Royal Air Force Henlow , together with Number 27 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment ] and Number 2623 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment and resulted in a temporary change to a purely Dismounted Close Combat role for both squadrons . The Wing deployed to Kandahar Airfield from August 2009 - February 2010 and a large number of reservist personnel from 2623 Squadron were mobilised , serving within both 27 Squadron and the Wing Headquarters itself . On completion of the operational tour , both squadron ' s returned to their previous role within the now renamed Joint Chemical , Biological , Radiological and Nuclear Regiment . The Squadron was presented with its Standard to commemorate 25 years service by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at a unique ceremony held at Royal Air Force Marham on 18 July 2010 . The Squadron Crest . The Standard features the Squadron crest , which was awarded in 1998 . The crest demonstrates the Squadron ' s links with East Anglia , with the wolf salient representing the ' Wolfmen ' - the Danes who ravages and then settled in East Anglia during the Dark Ages . The crossed arrows represent the martydom of St Edmund and allude to the Squadron ' s association with the local town of Bury St Edmunds . The motto ' Gebeorgan Ond Werian ' is Anglo - Saxon and can be loosely translated as " Protect and Defend " .