After years of reading about RAF aircraft and always having this question in the back of my mind…
Could someone please explain the significance (if any) of the letters in RAF serial numbers?
Were certain types allocated specific letters (I don’t think so…) or was it by manufacturer? Date?
Or is the whole thing completely random?
Thanks,
By: uksceneryman - 8th April 2005 at 07:32
Here’s a quick answer.
Certain types weren’t allocated specific letters, nor were manufacturers.
The current system began with just numbers until the number 10000 was reached. From 1916 serials started having letter prefixes, starting with A1. When Z9999 was reached in 1940, the next sequence began, namely two letters and three digits and it began with AA100. This sequence continues today, although in 2004 a decision was taken not to start with 100 each time a new sequence began and so Merlin ZK001 will appear shortly.
Currently the sequence is running in the ZK… range, although personalised serials can now be allocated (ZZ171-174 being C-17s, for example).
Until recently ‘black-out’ blocks were issued to confuse matters. These were blocks of serials deliberately not allocated to any airframe. This practice has now been stopped.
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April 8, 2005 at 7:09 am