No. 288 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 Squadron formed as an anti-aircraft co-operation unit in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

Formation in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

The squadron formed at RAF Digby

RAF Digby

RAF Digby is a Royal Air Force station which, since March 2005, has been operated by the Ministry of Defence's Joint Service Signals Organisation, part of the Intelligence Collection Group. Formerly a training and fighter airfield, it is currently a tri-service military signals installation located...

 on 17 November 1941 and was equipped with Lysanders

Westland Lysander

The Westland Lysander was a British army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft used immediately before and during the Second World War...

, Blenheims

Bristol Blenheim

The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...

 and Hurricanes

Hawker Hurricane

The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...

  to provide practice for the anti-aircraft defences in Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

 and Yorkshire

Yorkshire

Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...

 by towing targets and conducting simulated attacks. The squadron then moved to Wellingore

Wellingore

Wellingore is a small rural village in Lincolnshire, approximately south of Lincoln, England on the A607 in the district of North Kesteven. It is just south of Navenby.-History:...

, Church Fenton

RAF Church Fenton

RAF Church Fenton is a Royal Air Force airfield at Church Fenton in North Yorkshire, England.- History :Plans for a new airfield adjacent to the village of Church Fenton were announced in June 1935, it was subject to protest from the local population particularly concerning the waste of valuable...

 and Hutton Cranswick

Hutton Cranswick

Hutton Cranswick is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, approximately south of Driffield town centre on the A164 road....

 with detachments at other bases and operated other aircraft types before it was disbanded at East Moor on 15 June 1946.

Postwar

The squadron reformed at Middle Wallop

Army Air Corps Middle Wallop

Army Air Corps Middle Wallop is a British Army base near the Hampshire village of Middle Wallop. The base hosts 2 Regiment Army Air Corps and the School of Army Aviation. The role of 2 Regiment is training and so AAC Middle Wallop is the base where most Army Air Corps pilots begin their careers...

 on 15 March 1953 and operated Spitfire

Supermarine Spitfire

The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...

 and Balliol

Boulton Paul Balliol

|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Donald, David, ed. The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. London: Aerospace Publishing, 1997. ISBN 1-85605-375-X....

 target aircraft before it disbanded again on 30 September 1957.

Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 288 Squadron RAF

From	To	Aircraft	Variant
Nov 1941	Feb 1942	Bristol Blenheim Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...	IV
Nov 1941	Mar 1942	Westland Lysander Westland Lysander The Westland Lysander was a British army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft used immediately before and during the Second World War...	II, III
Nov 1941	Mar 1942	Lockheed Hudson Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson was an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and primarily operated by the RAF thereafter...	III
Nov 1941	1944	Hawker Hurricane Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...	I
Mar 1942	Apr 1943	Boulton Paul Defiant Boulton Paul Defiant The Boulton Paul Defiant was a British interceptor aircraft that served with the Royal Air Force early in the Second World War. The Defiant was designed and built by Boulton Paul Aircraft as a "turret fighter", without any forward-firing guns. It was a contemporary of the Royal Navy's Blackburn Roc...	I
Dec 1942	June 1946	Supermarine Spitfire Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...	VB,IX
Mar 1943	May 1945	Airspeed Oxford Airspeed Oxford The Airspeed AS.10 Oxford was a twin-engine aircraft used for training British Commonwealth aircrews in navigation, radio-operating, bombing and gunnery during the Second World War.-Design and development:...
July 1943	?	Miles Martinet Miles Martinet |-See also:-Bibliography:* Amos, Peter. and Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925, Volume 1. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 2000. ISBN 0-85177-787-0....
Mar 1944	Nov 1944	Bristol Beaufighter Bristol Beaufighter The Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter, often referred to as simply the Beau, was a British long-range heavy fighter modification of the Bristol Aeroplane Company's earlier Beaufort torpedo bomber design...	VI
Mar 1945	Jun 1946	Vultee Vengeance	IV
Mar 1953	May 1953	Supermarine Spitfire	LF 16E
Apr 1953	Sep 1957	Boulton Paul Balliol Boulton Paul Balliol |-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Donald, David, ed. The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. London: Aerospace Publishing, 1997. ISBN 1-85605-375-X....	T.2

External links

• Squadron history (and more) on RafWeb
• Squadron history on the official RAF website