No. 138 Squadron RAF was a

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

that served in a variety of roles during its career, last disbanded in 1962. It was the first 'V-bomber' squadron of the RAF, flying the

Vickers Valiant The Vickers Valiant was a British high-altitude jet bomber designed to carry nuclear weapons, and in the 1950s and 1960s was part of the Royal Air Force's "V bomber" strategic deterrent force. It was developed by Vickers-Armstrongs in response ...

between 1955 and 1962.

History

Formation in World War I as fighter squadron

No. 138 Squadron RAF was originally to be formed as a fighter unit on 1 May 1918, but formation was suspended until officially formed on 30 September 1918 as a fighter-reconnaissance squadron at

Chingford Chingford is a town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The town is approximately north-east of Charing Cross, with Waltham Abbey to the north, Woodford Green and Buckhurst Hill to the east, Walthamstow to the ...

, and was disbanded there on 1 February 1919.Rawlings 1982, pp. 104–105.

Special Duties in World War II

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, it was reformed in 1941, from the expansion of No. 1419 Flight, and was the first squadron of the

Royal Air Force Special Duty Service The Royal Air Force Special Duties (SD) Service was a secret air service created to provide air transport to support the resistance movement in Axis controlled territories. The service helped develop and support the resistance by bringing in agen ...

. In February 1942 the squadron's Lysander flight and a number of its Whitleys were hived off to make the nucleus of 161 (Special Duty) Squadron. Based initially at

RAF Stradishall Royal Air Force Stradishall or more simply RAF Stradishall is a former Royal Air Force Royal Air Force station, station located north east of Haverhill, Suffolk, Haverhill, Suffolk and south west of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. Part of th ...

, in March 1942, 138 Squadron moved to its permanent home at the clandestine airfield at

RAF Tempsford RAF Tempsford is a former Royal Air Force station located north east of Sandy, Bedfordshire, Sandy, Bedfordshire, England and south of St. Neots, Cambridgeshire, England. As part of the Royal Air Force Special Duty Service, the airfield wa ...

. The squadron dropped supplies and agents for the SIS and the SOE to Axis

occupied ' (Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 October 2 ...

territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

. From October 1941 there served several all-Polish volunteer crews.Hodyra, Piotr (2016). ''301 Dywizjon Bombowy 1940-1943'' (in Polish). Warsaw: Oficyna Wydawnicza Alma-Press. . P.44-45 Between 1 April 1943 and November 1943 the squadron included Polish Special Duties Flight, as C Flight.Wacław Król: ''Polskie dywizjony lotnicze w Wielkiej Brytanii 1940–1945'' (Polish air squadrons in Great Britain 1940–1945). Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Ministerstwa Obrony Narodowej, 1982. . P. 110 It carried out this role until March 1945 when it was reassigned to

Bomber Command Bomber Command is an organisational military unit, generally subordinate to the air force of a country. The best known were in Britain and the United States. A Bomber Command is generally used for strategic bombing (although at times, e.g. during t ...

, operating under No. 3 Group.Moyes 1976, pp. 164–165. It was disbanded on 1 September 1950.

V-Bomber squadron post-war

On 1 January 1955 the squadron was reformed as the first squadron to be equipped with the

strategic nuclear bomber, based at

RAF Gaydon Royal Air Force Gaydon or more simply RAF Gaydon is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Wellesbourne, Warwickshire and north west of Banbury, Oxfordshire, England. RAF Gaydon opened in 1942 and is known for its role during the ...

and later moving to

RAF Wittering Royal Air Force Wittering or more simply RAF Wittering is a Royal Air Force station within the unitary authority area of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire and the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire. Although Stamford, Lincolnshire, Sta ...

. It flew them from

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

during the

Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...

of October 1956, and was finally disbanded on 1 April 1962.

Aircraft operated

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Bowyer, Michael J.F. and John D.R. Rawlings. ''Squadron Codes, 1937–56''. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1979. . * Flintham, Vic and Andrew Thomas. ''Combat Codes: A full explanation and listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied air force unit codes since 1938''. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd., 2003. . * Halley, James J. ''The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth 1918–1988''. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. . * Jefford, C.G. ''RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912''. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988 (second edition 2001). . * Moyes, Philip J.R. ''Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 2nd edition 1976. . * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. . * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Macdonald & Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 1969 (2nd edition 1976, reprinted 1978). .

External links

No.138 Sqn History RAF.mod.uk

RAF Bomber Command section – 138 Squadron

{{DEFAULTSORT:No. 138 Squadron Raf 138 Squadron Military units and formations established in 1918 Aircraft squadrons of the Royal Air Force in World War II Military units and formations disestablished in 1962 Special Operations Executive 1918 establishments in the United Kingdom