No. 251 Squadron was a Royal Air Force Squadron which operated during the

First World War 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 ...

and the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

. The Squadron was disbanded in 1945 and remains inactive.

History

No. 251 Squadron RAF was first formed in August 1918 from Nos. 504, 505, 506 and 510 (Special Duty) Flights based at

Hornsea Hornsea is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The settlement dates to at least the early medieval period. The town was expanded in the Victorian era with the coming of the Hull and Hornsea Railway in 18 ...

but operating from

Atwick __NOTOC__ Atwick is a village and civil parish in Holderness in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The village is near the North Sea coast, and north of Hornsea on the B1242 road. The civil parish is formed by the village of Atwick and th ...

, RAF Greenland Top/Stallingborough) and Owthorne. The Squadron flew anti-submarine patrols on the coast of

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

for the remainder 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 ...

and was then disbanded on 30 June 1919. No. 251 Squadron was then reborn after No. 1407 (Meteorological) Flight, stationed at

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

, was renumbered for air-sea rescues on 1 August 1944. 1407 Flight was formed in October 1941, receiving

Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson is a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built by the American Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. It was initially put into service by the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and p ...

aircraft in April 1942. The number of aircraft was expanded in November with more Hudsons and a few

Handley Page Hampden The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden is a British twin-engine medium bomber that was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was part of the trio of large twin-engine bombers procured for the RAF, joining the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley and Vickers ...

s. The latter were replaced with Lockheed Venturas in 1943. The new Squadron also operated as Meteorological

Reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

until it was finally disbanded in October 1945.Air of Authority
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Aircraft Used

During its first time in operation, the Squadron flew: *

Airco DH.6 The Airco DH.6 was a British military trainer biplane used by the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. Known by various nicknames, including the "Clutching hand" and "Skyhook", many survived to be used as a civil light aircraft in the p ...

. During its second time in operation, the Squadron flew: *

Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engined, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCA ...

(August 1944 - October 1945) * Lockheed Ventura (August 1944 - October 1944) *

(August 1944 - August 1945) * Boeing Fortress II (March 1945 - October 1945) *

Vickers Warwick The Vickers Warwick was a multi-purpose twin-engined British aircraft developed and operated during the Second World War. In line with the naming convention followed by other RAF heavy bombers of the era, it was named after a British city or ...

(August 1945 - October 1945)

References

External links

{{Royal Air Force 251 Squadron

History

Aircraft Used

See also

References

External links