The No. 345 Squadron RAF was a Free French ground attack fighter squadron

Squadron (aviation)

A squadron in air force, army aviation or naval aviation is mainly a unit comprising a number of military aircraft, usually of the same type, typically with 12 to 24 aircraft, sometimes divided into three or four flights, depending on aircraft type and air force...

 given 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 number during 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...

.

History

The squadron was formed in Ayr

Ayr

Ayr is a town and port situated on the Firth of Clyde in south-west Scotland. With a population of around 46,000, Ayr is the largest settlement in Ayrshire, of which it is the county town, and has held royal burgh status since 1205...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 on 30 January 1944 from GC II/2 Free French airmen who had been based in the Middle East and was equipped with British 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...

 aircraft. It then moved to RAF stations in England including Shoreham

Shoreham

Shoreham is the name of several different places:* Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, UK** Shoreham 1974–1997** New Shoreham 1295–1885* Shoreham, Kent, UK* Shoreham, Michigan, USA...

, Fairwood Common

RAF Fairwood Common

RAF Fairwood Common was a World War II aerodrome located at Fairwood Common on the Gower Peninsula to the west of Swansea. It is now the location of Swansea Airport.-History:...

 and Biggin Hill.

It followed the allied advance from the Normandy beachheads across Europe and by November 1945 was based at Friedrichshafen

Friedrichshafen

This article is about a German town. For the Danish town, see Frederikshavn, and for the Finnish town, see Fredrikshamn .Friedrichshafen is a university city on the northern side of Lake Constance in Southern Germany, near the borders with Switzerland and Austria.It is the district capital of the...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. It was under RAF control until 27 November 1945 when it transferred to French control.

Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 345 Squadron RAF

From	To	Aircraft	Variant
Mar 1944	Sep 1944	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
Sep 1944	Apr 1945	Supermarine Spitfire	HF IX
Apr 1945	Nov 1945	Supermarine Spitfire	XVI

External links

• Squadron history on the official RAF website