First World War (1915–1920) As No. 8 Squadron of the
Royal Flying Corps (RFC) it was formed at
Brooklands,
Surrey on , equipped with the
Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2c. The squadron moved to
Fort Grange,
Gosport later on 6 January for further training, and crossed to France on 15 April 1915 to
Saint-Omer. While its main equipment was the B.E.2c, it also operated a fighter flight between May 1915 and early 1916 equipped with a mixture of aircraft, including the
Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.8 and the
Bristol Scout, while it also evaluated the prototype
Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.9, a modified B.E.2 that carried the observer/gunner in a
nacelle ahead of the aircraft's propeller. Operating from airfields near Saint-Omer, the squadron was initially used for bombing and long-range
reconnaissance, carrying out flights of up to behind the front lines. In February 1916, it moved to Bellevue and specialised in the Corps Reconnaissance role, carrying out contact patrols and artillery spotting in close co-operation with the army. The squadron flew in support of the
Battle of the Somme in the summer of 1916 and the
Battle of Arras in April and May 1917. It received the improved B.E.2e from February 1917, but despite this, losses were heavy as all marks of B.E.2 were outclassed. The
Armstrong Whitworth FK.8 replaced the B.E.2s in August 1917. In June 1918, No. 8 Squadron, part of the
Royal Air Force since 1 April 1918 and commanded by
Major T. Leigh-Mallory, was allocated to the
Tank Corps, flying contact patrols in support of the Tank Corps attacks during the
Battle of Amiens, and becoming expert in spotting and destroying German anti-tank guns. The FK.8 and some tanks were equipped with
wireless sets, although wireless communications between tanks and aeroplanes remained at a very basic stage for the rest of the war. On 12 August 1918,
Captain Ferdinand West of No. 8 Squadron was flying a F.K.8 on a contact patrol when he was attacked by seven German fighters. Despite a severe leg wound, West managed to manoeuvre his aircraft so that his observer could drive off the attacking fighters, before making a forced landing behind Allied lines and insisting in reporting the results of the flight. He was awarded the
Victoria Cross for this action. In December 1918, a few weeks after the
Armistice with Germany that ended the
First World War, the squadron re-equipped with
Sunbeam Arab-engined
Bristol F.2 Fighter. It served briefly in Germany as part of the
British Army of Occupation, before moving back to the United Kingdom in July 1919 and disbanding on 20 January 1920.
Interwar period (1920–1939) No. 8 Squadron reformed on 18 October 1920 at
Helwan, near
Cairo, Egypt, as a day-bomber squadron equipped with the
Airco DH.9A. With the security of Iraq the responsibility of the RAF, the squadron moved to
Basra in February 1921 to carry out air policing. The squadron was deployed to
Kirkuk in July 1922, where it operated against a
Kurdish rebellion and Turkish infiltration, and helping to evacuate forces allied to the British from the city of
Sulaymaniyah in September 1922. In November and December 1923, the squadron was deployed against
Marsh Arabs in the
Mesopotamian Marshes. In April 1935, it re-equipped again with the
Vickers Vincent, a general purpose aircraft based on the
Vickers Vildebeest biplane torpedo bomber. The squadron started to receive
Bristol Blenheim twin-engined
monoplane bombers in April 1939, but it retained a flight of Vincents for operations over the rough interior of the
Aden Protectorate.
Second World War (1939–1945) On 10 June 1940, Italy declared war on Britain and France. No 8 Squadron flew its first combat missions of the war on 12 June, when nine Blenheims bombed an airfield at
Assab in Italian-occupied
Eritrea, across the
Red Sea from Aden, with five Vincents attacking the same airfield that night. On 5 August 1940,
Italy invaded British Somaliland, and No. 8 Squadron's Blenheims flew missions against advancing Italian troop columns. The Italians heavily outnumbered the British and
Commonwealth defences, and the port of
Berbera was occupied by the Italians on 19 August. The unit continued to be based at
RAF Khormaksar in Aden equipped with
Bristol Blenheims. The
Vickers Wellington XIII was flown from December 1943 until May 1945.
Post-War (1945–1971) On 15 May 1945, No. 8 Squadron reformed by renumbering
No. 200 Squadron at RAF Jessore in India, equipped with the
Consolidated Liberator VI. The squadron again disbanded on 15 November 1945. The squadron was reformed at Khormaksar on 1 September 1946 by renumbering
No. 114 Squadron and the role of fighter bomber was adopted, initially with the
de Havilland Mosquito FB.6. These were replaced by the
Hawker Tempest, and the
Bristol Brigand. These fighter was supported by the Anson C.19 and
Auster AOP.6. The squadron's first jet aircraft were received in 1953 when it equipped with the
de Havilland Vampire FB.9. The squadron disbanded on 21 December 1971. It moved to
RAF Lossiemouth on 14 August 1973, where it stayed until 1991 when it moved to
RAF Waddington near Lincoln and re-equipped with the
Boeing E-3D Sentry. The first of seven Sentries was handed over to the RAF on 26 March 1991 and the last during May 1992. The squadron was deployed over the
Balkans in the early 1990s; it also saw action over
Iraq in 2009 and
Afghanistan in 2010 and was then involved in
Operation Ellamy in 2011 during the
Libyan Civil War. In early 2015, No. 8 Squadron deployed with two Sentries to
RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, to participate in
Operation Shader. Two Sentries deployed to
RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus in late May and early June 2021 to support
Carrier Strike Group 21 as it passed through the
Mediterranean Sea. The E-3D's final operational sortie was carried out on 30 July, with the two aircraft returning to Waddington on 2 August and 4 August. The Sentry was officially retired by the RAF on 28 September 2021. == Future ==