"effective squadrons of Bomber Command, personified by No 617 Squadron the ""Dambusters"", formed from 5 Group aircrew in March 1943. Most of the group's main airfields were around Lincoln, including RAF Scampton. By the end of the war the group had grown to 15 squadrons. The group was noted for its high accuracy bombing, being involved the sinking of the ""Tirpitz"" in November 1944 and the shattering of the strategic Bielefeld railway viaduct in March 1945. The Group introduced new weapons operationally, including Barnes Wallis's ""bouncing"" and his Tallboy and Grand Slam ""earthquake"" bombs. The group was disbanded on 15"
"originally referred to as ""Squadron X"", was formed at Scampton in order to carry out the proposed raid, codenamed Operation Chastise. More commonly referred to as the ""Dambusters Raid"", the raid would go down as the most famous and widely remembered in the history of the Royal Air Force. On the night of 16–17 May 1943, 617 Sqn despatched 19 Lancasters from Scampton. Led by Wing Commander Guy Gibson, the main bulk of the squadron attacked the Sorpe, Eder and Möhne dams with an additional aircraft tasked to perform an attack on the Schwelm Dam. Both the Eder and Möhne"
"to above 12,000 ft for safe release of Blue Steel Vulcans were configured for the Blue Steel stand-off bomb and 617 Squadron was the first to be declared operational with it in August 1962, until in January 1970 the squadron's eight Vulcan B2 aircraft were re-equipped with the new strategic laydown bomb, WE.177B which improved aircraft survivability by enabling aircraft to remain at low-level during weapon release. Following the transfer of responsibility for the nuclear deterrent to the Royal Navy, the Squadron was reassigned to SACEUR for tactical strike missions. In a high-intensity European war the Squadron's role was to"
"squadron's entry in ""Flying Units of the RAF"" by Alan Lake, 617 was allocated the unit identification code MZ for the period April to September 1939, even though the unit did not actually exist at the time. The squadron was formed under great secrecy at RAF Scampton during the Second World War on 21 March 1943. It included Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force and Royal New Zealand Air Force personnel and was formed for the specific task of attacking three major dams that contributed water and power to the Ruhr industrial region in Germany: the Möhne, Eder"
"in his act, while riding a torpedo. The lion went to the Los Angeles Zoo. A new design replaced the cub with a tiger and parrot on the torpedo, and was approved on 18 April 1949. Sometime in the 1950s, the squadron adopted a shield insignia that featured an eagle's head and a torpedo. On 1 May 1951, squadron aircraft disabled the heavily defended Hwacheon Dam in North Korea, earning them the nickname ""Dambusters"", echoing the original Dam Busters of No. 617 Squadron RAF. Destruction of the dam had been previously attempted by other units many times. In August 1985,"
"Camden Aviation Museum, NSW. No. 618 Squadron RAF No. 618 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, intended to carry off a variation of the Barnes Wallis-designed bouncing bomb code-named ""Highball"". Due to various circumstances the ""Highball"" weapon was never used and the squadron disbanded at the end of the war. No. 618 Squadron was first formed at RAF Skitten on 1 April 1943, as part of No. 18 Group of Coastal Command, from crews of No. 105 Squadron RAF and No. 139 Squadron RAF. The unit was initially equipped with Beaufighter"
"in preparation for its deployment to the Asia theatre of operations. Before this deployment could happen the war with Japan ended. At the end of World War 2 with the draw down from war-time strength the RAF started to disband and renumber squadrons. Higher numbered squadrons were generally replaced with the lower, and so more senior, squadron numbers with the exception of famous units such as 617 Squadron were disbanded. As a result the squadron was disbanded upon re-numbering as No. 54 Squadron RAF on 15 November 1945. The following have commanded 617 Squadron: No. 183 Squadron RAF No. 183"
"as an Operational Conversion Unit, which was formed as 207 Squadron in July 2017. In the summer of 2018, 617 Squadron began the process of bringing its new aircraft across the Atlantic to the home base of the new Lightning Force, RAF Marham in Norfolk. The first four aircraft made the transit on 7 June 2018, with another five following in August. In October 2018, undertook the first trial operations of F-35s during her deployment to the United States. 617 Squadron is planned to declare initial operating capability for land based operations by the end of 2018, before beginning carrier"
"the outbreak of war in 1939 the Squadron took part in the Battle of Britain. It was the first to be equipped with the Gloster Meteor, and in 1944 was re-equipped with Douglas C-47 Skytrain Dakotas after which it was re-based in Southern England to take part in Operation Overlord. For his actions during the Squadron's part in the airborne invasion at Arnhem, Flight Lieutenant David Lord was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. After the departure of 616 Squadron the station was left with No. 271 Squadron RAF, composed mainly of requisitioned civilian aircraft and obsolete twin-engined bombers. After the"
"No. 618 Squadron RAF No. 618 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, intended to carry off a variation of the Barnes Wallis-designed bouncing bomb code-named ""Highball"". Due to various circumstances the ""Highball"" weapon was never used and the squadron disbanded at the end of the war. No. 618 Squadron was first formed at RAF Skitten on 1 April 1943, as part of No. 18 Group of Coastal Command, from crews of No. 105 Squadron RAF and No. 139 Squadron RAF. The unit was initially equipped with Beaufighter Mk.II fighter-bombers, but quickly"
"1 March 1942. As one of the earliest squadrons to be equipped they were heavily involved with the early operations with this aircraft, including the low level mission to bomb the MAN diesel engine factory in Augsburg on 17 April 1942. New Zealander Les Munro (as of 2013 the last surviving pilot who flew on 617 Squadron's Dambuster raid), served with 97 Squadron at Woodhall Spa before being posted to Scampton to join 617 in early 1943. He came back to Woodhall Spa in January 1944 when 617 moved there for the rest of the war. 97 Squadron moved to"
"RAF Bourn in 1943 leaving behind 3 crews. 619 Squadron were formed here on 18 April 1943. They moved to RAF Coningsby on 1 January 1944. 617 Squadron who arrived with 34 Avro Lancasters and 2 de Havilland Mosquitoes, the latter being used for low level target marking. 617 Squadron remained here until the end of hostilities and pioneered the use of the Tallboy and Grand Slam bombs from the airfield. 627 Squadron The low level target marking that had been developed by 617 Squadron was so successful that 627 Squadron, a Mosquito unit in No. 8 (PFF) Group, was"
"No. 614 Squadron RAF No. 614 Squadron was originally formed on 1 June 1937 as an army co-operation squadron unit of the Auxiliary Air Force. It served during the Second World War first in this role and later as a bomber squadron. Upon reformation it served as a fighter squadron until the disbandment of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force on 10 March 1957. Formed at RAF Pengam Moors near Cardiff (the often cited Llandow was not erected yet) as an army co-operation squadron unit and part of the Auxiliary Air Force on 1 June 1937, No. 614 squadron was initially"
"other units, war quickly took its toll on the pre-war personnel and as replacements were drafted in from all walks of life and all parts of the Commonwealth to cover casualties and promotions, the Squadron became as cosmopolitan as any other. The unit reformed in 1946 as a fighter squadron within the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), initially equipped with the Spitfire, followed by the jet powered De Havilland Vampire and the Gloster Meteor twin-jet. The squadron disbanded along with all other RAuxAF units during the defence cuts of early 1957. Reforming on 20 April 2017 at RAF Northolt, 601"
"dams were breached, however eight of the Lancasters despatched failed to return and 53 aircrew were lost. Following the raid Wing Commander Gibson was awarded the Victoria Cross, becoming Scampton's third recipient of the award. On the day of the raid, Wing Commander Gibson's dog, Nigger, was run over and killed on the A15 outside the entrance to the base. He was buried later that night, his grave situated outside Gibson's office at No. 3 Hangar. In July 1943 617 Sqn was again involved in a precision operation, when twelve aircraft of the squadron took off from Scampton to attack"
"RAF squadrons. In April 1950, No. 613 Squadron was transferred to become a unit within RAF Fighter Command. No. 613 re-equipped during February 1951 with the jet-powered De Havilland Vampire FB.5. The Harvard T.2s were replaced by Gloster Meteor T.7 twin-seat trainers. Initial training with the new jet aircraft was carried out at Avros nearby Woodford Aerodrome, with its longer runway, by courtesy of the squadron's honorary air commodore, Sir Roy Dobson. 613's commanding officer, Squadron Leader Jack Wales DFC, a test pilot for Avros, flew the unit's only Vampire FB.9, WR257 'A' between June 1954 and his death in"
"No. 605 Squadron RAF No 605 Squadron was formed as an Auxiliary Air Force Squadron. Initially formed as a bomber unit, it was one of the most successful participants of the Battle of Britain. It also had the distinction of being active during the Second World War at two fronts at a time, when the squadron was split up between Malta and the Dutch East Indies. In its last incarnation as an active flying unit, the squadron served as the first jet fighter unit in the post-war Royal Auxiliary Air Force; 616 having already flown Gloster Meteors during the war."
"No. 17 Squadron RAF Number 17 Squadron (sometimes written as Number XVII Squadron), currently Number 17 (Reserve) Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES), is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was reformed on 12 April 2013 as the Operational Evaluation Unit (OEU) for the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II. No. 17 Squadron formed for the first time on 1 February 1915 at Gosport as part of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). It was first equipped with the Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2c. After an initial training period, the Squadron embarked for Egypt in November and arrived on 11 December. On"
"The squadron was later posted to India, where it remained until disbanding on 1 April 1920, after being re-numbered No. 60 squadron. The squadron reformed on 16 September 1935 at RAF Catfoss, and was equipped with the Handley Page Heyford. The squadron was disbanded again in April 1940. The squadron reformed again on 25 February 1941 at Waddington, and was equipped with the Avro Manchester bomber. Later the squadron was re-equipped with the Avro Lancaster, and in April 1943 became a pathfinder force squadron. The squadron also trained several pilots who were later transferred to 617 Squadron to participate in"
"""Dutch"", and he was known by this throughout his RAF career. He served at No.13 Flying Training School for six months and was assessed ""exceptional"" at the end of his course. He attended the Fighter School at RAF St. Athan in Wales, and in December 1939, joined No. 615 Squadron RAF at Vitry, in France, equipped with the Gloster Gladiator. In April 1940, the squadron re-equipped with Hawker Hurricanes. During the Battle of France, Hugo shot down a Heinkel He 111 bomber on 20 May 1940. 615 Squadron returned to the UK and were stationed at RAF Croydon and RAF"
"No. 627 Squadron RAF No. 627 Squadron was a Royal Air Force Mosquito aircraft pathfinder bomber squadron that operated during the Second World War. The squadron was formed on 12 November 1943 at RAF Oakington from part of 139 Squadron. It was equipped with the de Havilland Mosquito twin-engined fighter-bomber it flew operations as part of No. 8 Group's light bomber force. As well as normal bombing missions it also carried out Pathfinder duties and was involved in attacks on Berlin in early 1944. In April 1944 it was transferred to No. 5 Group as a specialised target marking squadron,"
"617 Squadron and No. 207 Squadron; the second and third RAF squadrons to operate the F-35B in 2018 and 2019. Equipped with 3 F-35B aircraft (ZM135, ZM136 and ZM138), it continues to be the first UK Lightning squadron and is tasked with full time operational test and evaluation of the F-35B, required to bring the aircraft and its weapons into UK service. It operates within the Joint Operational Test Team for F-35 at Edwards AFB, flying operational test sorties alongside all variants from the USAF, USN, USMC and Royal Netherlands Air Force, as part of the UK Partnership within the"
"VFA-147 Strike Fighter Squadron 147 (VFA-147), also known as the ""Argonauts"", is a United States Navy strike fighter squadron based at Naval Air Station Lemoore California. VFA-147 flies the F-35C Lightning II, having began transition from the F/A-18E Super Hornet formerly as part of Carrier Air Wing Eleven (CVW-11) deployed to . Their tailcode is ""NH"" and their radio callsign is ""Jason"". The squadron's insignia was approved by CNO on 30 June 1967. The squadron is named after Jason and the Argonauts, a band of heroes in Greek mythology. Attack Squadron 147 was commissioned as the Navy's first A-7 Corsair"
"No. 615 Squadron RAF No. 615 (County of Surrey) Squadron was a unit of the British Auxiliary Air Force and later the Royal Auxiliary Air Force between 1937 and 1957. No. 615 squadron was formed at RAF Kenley as part of the Auxiliary Air Force on 1 June 1937 and was initially equipped with the Hawker Audax in the army-cooperation role. By the end of the year it had received Hawker Hectors which it flew until November 1938, when it received Gloster Gauntlets and became a fighter squadron at the same time. The squadron went to France as part of"
"and in fact traces its lines back to No. 87 Glider School RAF. No. 621 Squadron RAF No. 621 Squadron RAF was a reconnaissance squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II, flying from Somaliland and Aden. It was after the war stationed in Egypt and Palestine and tasked with air-sea rescue and was also active in Operation Sunburn, looking for illegal immigrants. No. 621 Squadron RAF was at Port Reitz, Kenya, on 12 September 1943 as a general reconnaissance unit. The most unusual sortie flown by the squadron was in November 1943, when it had to look"
"the squadron) way for various marks of specially adapted General Reconnaissance (GR) versions of the Vickers Wellington, which the squadron continued to fly until the end of the war. The squadron disbanded on 9 July 1945 at RAF Langham. No. 612 squadron was reformed on 10 May 1946 at RAF Dyce as a fighter squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. Initially the squadron was equipped with Griffon-engined Spitfire F.14s and in November 1948 it got additional Merlin-engined Spitfire LF.16e fighters. It converted to de Havilland Vampire FB.5s in June 1951, flying these first from RAF Leuchars and later from"
"of Iraq. In 2011 the Squadron's commanding officer was Wing Commander Keith Taylor, who had replaced Wing Commander David Cooper, since promoted to Group Captain and appointed to Station Commander at RAF Marham. In July 2013, it was announced that 617 Squadron would become the first operational RAF unit to receive the F-35 Lightning. 617 Squadron disbanded on 28 March 2014 as part of the draw-down of the Tornado force. Since 2016 it has been in the process of forming ahead of becoming the first British front line squadron with the F-35 Lightning II. 617 Sqn will be composed of"
"It's USAAF Station Code was ""KU"". On 28 June 1944, Northrup P-61 Black Widow night fighters of the 422nd Night Fighter Squadron arrived from RAF Scorton, where their crews had been tutored in this particular aspect of air combat by the RAF. The detachment commenced operational flying on 3 July only to return to Scorton a week later. On 5 August the 397th Bombardment Group arrived from RAF Rivenhall, equipped with Martin B-26 Marauders. The group consisted of the following operational squadrons: The group's identification marking was a yellow diagonal band across both sides of the vertical tailplane. It moved"
"estimated at , far below its designed capability. Hubbard and his four crew members were awarded the Air Force Cross in the 1957 Birthday Honours. His aircraft, Vickers Valiant XD818 is now on display in the Royal Air Force Museum at RAF Cosford. After the Grapple tests Hubbard served at HQ RAF Bomber Command from 1959 to 1961. He was promoted to group captain, and commanded RAF El Adem in Libya. In 1963, he assumed command of RAF Scampton, the base of the Avro Vulcan bombers of Nos 27, 83 and 617 Squadrons RAF equipped with the Blue Steel standoff"
"humorous double entendre on a famous saying of Madame de Pompadour to King Louis XV, made on the loss at the Battle of Rossbach by the French. The original commander of 617 Squadron, Wing Commander Guy Gibson, was awarded the Victoria Cross for his part in the raid. Guy Gibson also owned a black Labrador named Nigger, who was the mascot of the squadron for some time. Alas, Nigger was killed on the evening of the raid, being run over outside the base. After the raid, Gibson was withdrawn from flying (due to the high number of raids he had"
"No. 621 Squadron RAF No. 621 Squadron RAF was a reconnaissance squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II, flying from Somaliland and Aden. It was after the war stationed in Egypt and Palestine and tasked with air-sea rescue and was also active in Operation Sunburn, looking for illegal immigrants. No. 621 Squadron RAF was at Port Reitz, Kenya, on 12 September 1943 as a general reconnaissance unit. The most unusual sortie flown by the squadron was in November 1943, when it had to look for four thousand stolen camels on behalf of the army. In a more"
"Sukhoi Su-17 The Sukhoi Su-17 (NATO reporting name: Fitter) is a Soviet variable-sweep wing fighter-bomber developed from the Sukhoi Su-7. It enjoyed a long career in Soviet, later Russian, service and was widely exported to Eastern Bloc, Arab air forces, Angola and Peru as the Su-20 and Su-22. It is the first variable-sweep wing of Russian/Soviet origin. Seeking to improve low-speed and take-off/landing performance of the Su-7B fighter-bomber, in 1963 the Sukhoi OKB with input from TsAGI created a variable-sweep wing technology demonstrator. The Su-7IG (internal designation S-22I, NATO designation ""Fitter-B""), converted from a production Su-7BM, had fixed inner portions"
"June 1943, the original ""Phantom"" was transferred to 101 Squadron in November that year and finished the war as part of 550 Squadron at Ludford Magna. The Lancaster currently carries the markings of 'Thumper' for the 2014 display season, an aircraft which served with No 617 Squadron after the Dams Raid. Some of the specially-modified Lancasters, which survived the Dams Raid, remained in service with the squadron afterwards. However, these aircraft were not suitable for all operations and they were replaced with standard Lancasters, one example being B Mk1 DV385. PA474 displays the markings of bombs for operations over Germany,"