On 22^nd June 1940 Prime Minister Winston Churchill called for the formation of a corps of at least five thousand parachute troops, suitably organized and equipped.  A parachute training school was formed at Ringway Manchester and No 2 Commando chosen for training in parachute duties.  As the scope of training increased, the title of No 2 Commando was first changed to 11 Special Air Service Battalion and then to 1 Parachute Battalion and subsequently 1, 2 and 3 Parachute Battalions of 1 Parachute Brigade which had been formed under the command of Brigadier RN Gale, OBE MC in the previous month. In October 1941 Major General FM Browning DSO was ordered to form an Airborne Division.  Under his guidance the Parachute Regiment was formally established as a regiment on 1 August 1942.  By the end of the war it comprised 18 Battalions and a number of independent pathfinder units.  Not all the Battalions were raised at home in the UK, three were formed in India and two in Egypt.

By the end of 1942 the major battles of the North African campaign had taken place and the Axis forces were on the retreat.  By early 1943 German forces had been pushed back to within the frontiers of Tunisia and were being battered from both the east and the west.

Extract of F Sqn War Diary December 1942

December 1942  Authority to establish and begin setting up F Parachute Sqn RE.  The Unit to be based at Moascar in the lines of RETD  Major Hardiman appointed Commanding Officer

The order giving authority to set up a new unit of the Parachute Regiment was issued on 1^st December 1942.  It gave the go ahead to begin recruiting men for F Parachute Squadron.
The unit was based at Moascar in Egypt in the lines of the Royal Engineer Training Depot near to the Suez Canal.  It was given the official War Office serial number 51736.  It was to be commanded by Major Jo Hardiman.

Extract of F Sqn War Diary January 1943

January 2  First 5 recruits from RETD attached to unit
January 14  1 more recruit joins unit
January 19  6 more recruits join unit
January 21  6 more recruits join unit.  First 10 men go for parachute training to METS
January 23  Lt Goff, Lt Kerr MC & Lt Treacher join unit along with 4 ORs and go for parachute training

Men begin to join the new unit throughout January & February.  F Squadron was the title that was originally given to the new unit but this was changed soon after.  The role of the Squadron was not clear at this stage.  It was recognized that the newly formed Airborne Battalions just like any others needed support from smaller specialist units.  This was the eventual and more conventional role that it was given, supporting  the Battalions of 4th Parachute Brigade, but initially it seems their task was to be a covert fast acting independent unit which would work behind enemy lines causing damage to installations, communications, bridges and the like.
Hardly surprising then that men selected for the new Squadron were chosen  for their skill, attitude, fitness and aptitude.  They trained hard and many did not meet the demands, being returned to their original unit, or RTUd.  In some cases the men themselves asked to leave the Squadron when they found things too tough.

The first men joined on 2^nd January, a group of five from the Middle East Royal Engineers Training Depot, among them was Jo Johanson. He had come from an Army Engineer background and after some time fighting in the desert found himself at the RE Depot waiting for another posting. He had badly scraped his knees playing rugby and the wounds would not heal, he could not be posted.  He soon became very bored and began volunteering for everything and when the chance to join a new parachute squadron came along he took it.  "One day the office Sergeant came and said 'You're the bloke that volunteers for everything, they're forming a new parachute squadron, how about that'?  And the next thing I knew we were jumping out of aeroplanes."  His story is not untypical of many that joined the Squadron.

On the 14^th one more arrived, on the 19^th six more and on the 21^st another six.  A slow start if the unit was to become operational.
On the 23^rd three more Officers joined, they were Lieutenants Goff, Keer and Treacher.  On the same day Goff and Keer along with four other ranks went for their parachute training at the Middle East Parachute Training School near Kabrit.