The tartan was created by Katy Barrett during Covid, and while it has slowly been appearing around the island, it made its first outing as official military uniform at the Liberation Day Hangar Ball.
Guernsey’s Own squadron is based in northern Scotland but is affiliated with the island, so was prime for connections with Guernsey and Scottish culture.
‘There are a lot of tartans flying around in Scotland and tartan is all about tribes and identifying which clan you’re in,’ said 201 Squadron Wing Commander Rob McCartney.
‘We were in contact with Katy and said we would be interested in adopting her tartan.’
Representatives from 201 Squadron attended the Hangar Ball wearing Guernsey tartan bow ties, cummerbunds and badges.
‘Our squadron colours, red and green, haven’t changed, but we’re rolling out the tartan as much as we can, and Liberation Day is its first roll out,’ said Mr McCartney.
The tartan features six different colour groups, each one chosen to represent different Guernsey landmarks and traditions.
A seamstress, Mrs Barrett’s idea came during Covid when the island had a direct ‘air bridge’ with the Isle of Man. She learned that the island had its own tartan, but Guernsey did not.
‘When I first heard from 201 Squadron I thought it was a fake account or something, I didn’t believe it,’ she said.
‘They told me they have a lot of functions in Scotland and there’s lots of talk about Guernsey, so they’d like to have a part of Guernsey in their uniform.’
When the squadron came over for last September’s air display, they met Mrs Barrett, and she said it was a done deal after that.
‘The whole thing is beyond anything I could have imagined,’ she said.
Mrs Barrett met the representatives who were over for Liberation Day before they attended the Hangar Ball.
‘We’ve got a really rich identity and Guernsey has formed a large part of our post-war identity,’ said Mr McCartney.
‘The affiliation went from strength to strength, much of it was driven by islanders who wanted to strengthen their ties with the RAF and the mainland.
‘It’s just another string to our bow, and the military is all about identity. It’s one of the things that, when the chips are down, we talk about fighting spirits.’