No. 226 Squadron RAF was a unit of the British Royal Air Force that existed as a bomber squadron during the First and Second World Wars, and as part of the UK's nuclear ballistic missile force in the early 1960s.

Squadron history

First formed on 1 April 1918 at Pizzone, Italy, by re-designating the

Bombing School Pizzone A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...

, No. 226 Squadron operated fast bombers and fighter aircraft and formed No. 472, 473 and 474 (Fighter) Flights within it in September 1918. After the Armistice the squadron was disbanded at

Taranto, Italy Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label=Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important commerci ...

. As part of the re-armament plan No. 226 Squadron was reformed at RAF Upper Heyford, as a light bomber squadron, on 15 March 1937, flying Fairey Battle light bombers. Deployed to France as part of the Advanced Air Striking Force, No. 226 Squadron suffered heavy losses during the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

, retreating westwards and evacuating from Brest in mid-June 1940. The squadron was re-assembled at

RAF Sydenham Royal Air Force Sydenham or more simply RAF Sydenham is a former Royal Air Force station in Northern Ireland. In the 1970s it was the main servicing base for Blackburn Buccaneer aircraft, employing 650 civilian workers.Northern Ireland Committee ...

, moving to

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

and re-equipping with

Douglas Havoc The Douglas A-20 Havoc (company designation DB-7) is an American medium bomber, attack aircraft, night intruder, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft of World War II. Designed to meet an Army Air Corps requirement for a bomber, it was or ...

, Douglas Boston and

North American Mitchell The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in ...

medium bombers, whilst carrying out attacks on German ports and anti-shipping strikes.

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The operat ...

in 1944 saw No. 226 Squadron become part of the

2nd Tactical Air Force The RAF Second Tactical Air Force (2TAF) was one of three tactical air forces within the Royal Air Force (RAF) during and after the Second World War. It was made up of squadrons and personnel from the RAF, other British Commonwealth air forces, ...

, supporting the invasion in Normandy and the Allied advance to Germany. The squadron was disbanded shortly after hostilities ceased, at Gilze-Rijen airfield, on 20 September 1945. The squadron was reformed in 1959 as one of twenty Strategic Missile (SM) squadrons associated with Project Emily equipped with three Douglas PGM-17 Thor Intermediate range ballistic missiles, based at

RAF Catfoss Royal Air Force Catfoss or more simply RAF Catfoss is a former Royal Air Force station during the Second World War. It was located west of Hornsea, Yorkshire, England and north-east of Leconfield, Yorkshire, with the nearest village being Bra ...

in Yorkshire as part of the Driffield group of Thor launch sites. During the 1962

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

, the squadron was kept at full readiness, with the missiles aimed at strategic targets in the USSR. Resolution of the missile crisis included the de-activation of the Thor and Jupiter IRBMs in the United Kingdom, Italy and Turkey. The squadron was disbanded with the termination of Project Emily in 1963.

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226 Year 226 ( CCXXVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Marcellus (or, less frequently, year 979 '' Ab urbe con ...

Squadron history

See also

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