No. 286 Squadron RAF was a non-operational

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 ...

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 operated a variety of aircraft to provide targets for anti-aircraft gun practice in the

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Glo ...

of England.

History

The squadron was formed at

RAF Filton Royal Air Force Filton or more simply RAF Filton is a former Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and Royal Air Force (RAF) station located north of the city centre of Bristol, England. Throughout its existence, RAF Filton shared the airfield with the Bri ...

on 17 November 1941 from No. 10 Group AAC Flight. From 24 January 1942 the squadron was headquartered at newly operational

RAF Lulsgate Bottom Bristol Airport , at Lulsgate Plateau, Lulsgate Bottom, on the northern slopes of the Mendip Hills, in North Somerset, is the commercial airport serving the city of Bristol, England, and the surrounding area. It is southwest of Bristol city ...

. However, as the facilities there were still unfinished, from 2 March to 30 April the headquarters used

RAF Colerne Royal Air Force Colerne or more simply RAF Colerne is a former Royal Air Force station which was on the outskirts of the village of Colerne in Wiltshire, England, and was in use from 1939 to 1976. The site is now known as Azimghur Barracks and ...

. It returned to Lulsgate only briefly before leaving for

RAF Zeals Royal Air Force Zeals or more simply RAF Zeals is a former Royal Air Force station in Wiltshire, sited to the north of the village of Zeals, next to the village of Stourton and the Stourhead estate. History The station was in operation fro ...

on 26 May. The squadron served at various locations and detachments around the west country before finally moving to

RAF Weston Zoyland RAF Westonzoyland is one of the country's oldest airfields being established in the early 1920s. Somerset, England. The airfield is located approximately east-southeast of Bridgwater; about west-southwest of London. It was opened in 1925 ...

, where it was disbanded on 16 May 1945.

Aircraft operated

Jefford 2001, p. 85.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Halley, James J. ''The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force and Commonwealth, 1918-1988''. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. . * James, Ian. ''The Story of RAF Lulsgate Bottom''. Bristol: Redcliffe Press, 1989. . * Jefford, C.G. ''RAF Squadrons: A Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of All RAF Squadrons and Their Antecedents Since 1912'', Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988. . (second revised edition 2001. .) * Rawlings, John D.R. ''Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. . *

External links

squadron histories nos. 286-290 sqn
Aircraft squadrons of the Royal Air Force in World War II 286 Squadron Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 Military units and formations established in 1941 {{RAF-stub