No. 254 Squadron 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) an ...

was the designation of a number of units formed throughout the 20th century.

History

World War One

No. 254 Squadron first formed in 1918 as a coastal reconnaissance squadron operating from Prawle Point. The squadron was divided into flights with 492 (Light Bomber) Flight operating the DH.9s and 515 and 516 (Special Duties) Flights the DH.6s. After the

cessation of hostilities A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state act ...

it was disbanded in February 1919. It operated the

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 ...

and DH.9.

World War Two

254 was reformed shortly after the outbreak of 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 ...

in October 1939 as part of

Coastal Command RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was founded in 1936, when the RAF was restructured into Fighter, Bomber and Coastal Commands and played an important role during the Second World War. Maritime Aviation ...

. Its duties consisted of patrolling the North Sea Fishing fleet, convoy escort work, and reconnaissance. The unit operated

Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim is a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company (Bristol) which was used extensively in the first two years of the Second World War, with examples still being used as trainers until ...

s until 1942, before re-equipping with the Bristol Beaufighter. In 1941 the unit introduced torpedoes and primarily operated in an anti-shipping role for the rest of the war, with a focus on anti-

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

work from early 1945. In October 1946 they re-numbered as

No. 42 Squadron RAF Number 42 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served during the First World War as an army co-operation squadron and during the Second World War in various roles. Between 1992 and 2010, it was the Operational Conversion Unit (OC ...

Cold War

The squadron was reformed again in 1959 as one of 20 Strategic Missile (SM) squadrons associated with

Project Emily Project Emily was the deployment of American-built Thor intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs) in the United Kingdom between 1959 and 1963. Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command operated 60 Thor missiles, dispersed to 20 RAF air stations ...

. The squadron was equipped with three

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...

Intermediate range ballistic missile An intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) is a ballistic missile with a range of 3,000–5,500 km (1,864–3,418 miles), between a medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) and an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Classifying ba ...

s. and based at RAF Melton Mowbray. In October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the squadron was kept at full readiness, with the missiles aimed at strategic targets in the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

. The squadron was disbanded with the termination of the Thor Program in Britain, in 1963.

References

External links