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The Royal Air Force Police ('''RAFP'''), also called the '''RAF Provost Branch''', is the Military Police branch of the British Royal Air Force . It was formed on 1 April 1918 , when the RAF was formed from the merger of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). It is responsible for policing the RAF and its installations. Members of the RAFP are distinguished by their white-topped caps (giving rise to their nickname of ''Snowdrops''), which they have worn since 1945, and black/red/black flashes worn below their rank slides, known as 'Mars Bars'. Unlike their Army colleagues in the Royal Military Police , they do not wear a distinctive red beret when wearing camouflaged uniform, although they do wear the same red 'MP' flashes on the sleeve of their uniforms. ORGANISATION AND CURRENT ROLE The RAF Police is headed by a Provost Marshal , who until recently held the rank of Air Commodore . The RAF Police have recently undergone a period of downsizing in line with reductions across the RAF in both manpower and aircraft. The Provost Marshal now holds the rank of Group Captain , with an Air Commodore of the RAF Regiment being in overall charge of security for the RAF. The Provost Marshal is assisted by other officers known as Assistant Provost Marshals (APM), who are in charge of the RAF Police on a unit level and are responsible for advising the Station Commander on all aspects of policing and security. There is a detachment of RAFP on most RAF Station s. Usually it is a Flight , commanded by a Flying Officer or Flight Lieutenant , with either a Flight Sergeant or Sergeant as Senior Non-Commissioned Officer (SNCO) RAFP (sometimes referred to as the "Sheriff"). Larger stations may have a Security Squadron , with a Squadron Leader in command as Officer Commanding (OC) Security, who is also responsible for the general security of the station. The squadron generally also includes RAF Regiment detchments. The Police Flight in such a squadron is usually commanded by a Flight Lieutenant as OC RAFP, with a Flight Sergeant as SNCO RAFP. The RAFP Flight is usually split into shifts, each with a Sergeant in command as SNCO, with a number of Corporal s below him responsible for policing the unit. Within the unit level of policing, there is also a Special Investigations Section (SIS), consisting of further trained NCOs who are responsible for the investigation of the more serious crimes on the unit. The RAFP also fulfills the RAF's Counter-intelligence role, similar to that carried out by the British Army Intelligence Corps . SPECIALIST UNITS Outside the unit level, the RAFP also has its own Special Investigation Branch (SIB) for the investigation of serious crime. This is effectively the RAF's version of civilian police Criminal Investigation Department s. This is known as Specialist Police Wing (SPW), and is split into four geographical regions covering the United Kingdom and Germany . This Section of the RAFP is also responsible for forensic investigation through the RAF's own Forensic Science Flight. The RAFP also has a Tactical deployable Wing know as the Tactical Provost Wing , whose major role is forward policing and Line Of Communication Policing (LoCP) in conflict zones. The TPW was heavily involved in the recent Gulf Conflict . |
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