No. 358 Squadron RAF was a Bomber and Special duties squadron of the
Royal Air Force flying with
South East Asia Command from 1944 to 1945.
History
The squadron was formed on 8 November 1944 at
Kolar,
India with personnel of the disbanded 1673 Heavy Conversion Unit. Its role was as a heavy bomber unit flying the
Consolidated Liberator. The squadron performed only one bombing mission on 13 January 1945, bombing
Mandalay
Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census).
Mandalay was fo ...
and by then flying from
Digri
Digri ( sd, ڊگھڙي, ur, ڈگری) is a Tehsil in Mirpur Khas District Sindh, Pakistan. It is the second largest town of Mirpurkhas District.
Geography
Digri is connected to several towns by main roads:
* Tando Ghulam Ali Road (Disstt Badin) ...
. Thereafter the squadron role changed to a special duties squadron,
starting operations as such in the night from 22 to 23 January 1945,
when 11 of the squadron's Liberators were dispatched on missions around
Hanoi. Three aircraft were lost, with only two successfully completing their missions.
On 10 February 1945 the squadron moved to
Jessore. For the rest of the war the squadron dropped agents and supplies to resistance groups in Japanese-held territory. After the Japanese surrender the squadron then dropped supplies to POW camps and repatriated released prisoners. It was disbanded on 21 November 1945 at
Bishnupur Bishnupur or Vishnupur may refer to:
Administrative divisions
* Bishnupur district in Manipur, India
* Bishnupur district, West Bengal in West Bengal, India
* Bishnupur subdivision in West Bengal, India
Municipal division
* Bishnupur Rural Munic ...
.
Aircraft operated
Squadron bases
See also
*
List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons
References
Citations
Bibliography
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External links
No. 358 squadron history
{{DEFAULTSORT:No. 358 Squadron Raf
Aircraft squadrons of the Royal Air Force in World War II
358 Squadron
Military units and formations established in 1944
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945