No. 188 Squadron RAF was a Royal Flying Corps and

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) an ...

Squadron that was a night training unit towards the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

History

Formation in World War I

The squadron formed at Throwley Aerodrome on 20 December 1917 to train

night-fighter A night fighter (also known as all-weather fighter or all-weather interceptor for a period of time after the Second World War) is a fighter aircraft adapted for use at night or in other times of bad visibility. Night fighters began to be used ...

pilots and was equipped with

Avro 504 The Avro 504 was a First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind tha ...

s. It also trained pilots to fly the

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the ...

and

Sopwith Pup The Sopwith Pup is a British single-seater biplane fighter aircraft built by the Sopwith Aviation Company. It entered service with the Royal Naval Air Service and the Royal Flying Corps in the autumn of 1916. With pleasant flying character ...

at night. It disbanded on 1 March 1919 and never reformed in later years, however a squadron code was allocated to it in 1939.

Aircraft operated

* No. 188 Squadron is depicted in the 1969 film ''

The Battle of Britain ''The Battle of Britain'' was the fourth of Frank Capra's ''Why We Fight'' series of seven propaganda films, which made the case for fighting and winning the Second World War. It was released in 1943 and concentrated on the German bombardment o ...

'' led by

Squadron Leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is als ...

Canfield, played by

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...

. No 188 squadron is also depicted in the film 'An Appointment in London' starring Dirk Bogarde & Dinah Sheridan.

References

External links

History of No.'s 186–190 Squadrons at RAF Web

188 Squadron history on the official RAF website
{{Royal Air Force 188 Military units and formations established in 1917 1917 establishments in the United Kingdom