617 Squadron History

No 617 Squadron was formed at RAF Scampton on 21 March 1943, under the  command of by Wg Cdr Guy Gibson specifically to undertake an operation  to breach the Ruhr Dams using Barnes Wallis’ Upkeep weapon – the  bouncing bomb. After intensive training the Mohne and Eder dams were  breached on the night of 16/17 May 1943, in a spectacular low-level  operation resulting in the loss of 8 of the 19 participating aircraft. 

Following  this success the Squadron was retained as a specialist bombing unit.  After a costly low-level attack on the Dortmund Ems Canal in September 1943 Canal command of the Squadron passed to Wg Cdr Leonard Cheshire.  Under his leadership, the Squadron mounted highly destructive precision  raids on targets in occupied territory, using 12,000lb blast bombs.  Using Mosquito aircraft to mark targets, new and even more accurate bombing  techniques were pioneered.

On D-Day, the Squadron performed a  vital role in deceiving German forces as to the true destination of the  invasion fleet. Precision attacks continued with Barnes Wallis' 12,000lb  “Tallboy” deep penetration bomb, targeting a railway tunnel, U-boat pens and large V-weapon sites. After completing his 100th operation Wg Cdr Cheshire relinquished his command to Wg Cdr “Willie” Tait. The autumn of 1944 saw attention turn to the German battleship Tirpitz, which was finally sunk after three operations, one being mounted from Russia. Dams again featured on the target list, and in October the Kembs Barrage was  breached by Tallboys dropped from low level. 

The spring of 1945  saw an addition to the Squadron’s arsenal, with the advent of the 22,000  lb Grand Slam. Under the command of Gp Capt Fauquier RCAF the Squadron’s specialist skills and weapons were exploited against railway viaducts and naval targets, culminating in a final operation against Hitler’s Berchtesgaden retreat on April 25 1945. 

Japan’s  surrender precluded the Squadron’s participation in Tiger Force, Bomber  Command’s contribution to the war in the Far East, and in January 1946  the Squadron was dispatched to India, returning to the UK after four months to commence re-equipment with Avro Lincolns. The following year saw a goodwill tour of the United States, involving the first direct crossing of the Atlantic by an RAF squadron. January 1952 saw the Squadron re-equip with Canberras. After 10 years of peace, the Squadron again saw action in 1955 with operations against the Communist Terrorists in Malaya. 

The Squadron disbanded at the end of 1955 and re-formed on 1 May 1958, again at RAF Scampton, equipped with the Avro  Vulcan. As part of V-Force the Squadron’s offensive capability was  enhanced in 1963 when it became the first Squadron to become operational  with Blue Steel. Reverting back to a low-level conventional role during  the 1970s the Squadron’s Vulcans continued to be a familiar sight in  the Lincolnshire skies until the Squadron disbanded in December 1981.

Reformed  as a Tornado unit at Marham in 1983 the Squadron soon re-confirmed its  precision bombing capabilities and in 1984 became the first non-American unit to win not only the Le May but also the Meyer trophies in competition against its American counterparts.

In 1990 the Squadron sent detachments to the Middle East for Operation Granby, the RAF’s contribution to the Gulf War to free Kuwait from the Iraqi invasion where it pioneered the introduction of the TIALD laser guidance pod. After the cease-fire the Squadron crews continued to serve in this theatre, patrolling the Southern “No-Fly” zone. 

On return to the UK, the Squadron transferred to RAF Lossiemouth in 1994, re-equipped with Tornado GR1B and the Sea Eagle anti-ship missile. There it operated alongside 12 Squadron in support of SACLANT. 

The onset of Operation TELIC against Iraq in March 2003 saw the Squadron enter battle again, under the command of W/Cdr David Robertson. On 21 March 2003, almost exactly 60 years after its formation, the Squadron once more had the honour of introducing ‘Storm Shadow’ into operational use.

The squadron continued in theatre until 2009, when regular rotations to Afghanistan, under Operation HERRICK, began. In 2011 617 crews flew Storm Shadow attacks during Operation ELLAMY over Libya, while continuing their Afghanistan deployment. With the withdrawal of Tornado from service the Squadron disbanded on 28 February 2014, on return from a final HERRICK deployment.

In 2016 RAF and Naval personnel began work up in the USA with the Lockheed Martin F-35B, and re-formed as the UK’s first joint service frontline Lightning unit on 18 May 2018. By the end of the year it had declared initial operating capability for land based operations and began carrier trials aboard HMS Queen Elizabeth.

Exercise ‘Lightning Dawn’ saw the Squadron deploy to RAF Akrotiri in May 2019 to test their F-35 capabilities, crews and support on an overseas tour. From there they flew their first operational missions, 14 armed reconnaissance overflights of Syria and Iraq, as part of Operation ‘Shader’ and trained alongside Israeli and Italian F-35s. 

In June 2020, the Squadron embarked operational Lightnings aboard HMS Queen Elizabeth for the first time. Returning to the ship with 8 aircraft in September, they were joined by visiting US Marine Corps F-35Bs. In May 2021 the Queen Elizabeth sailed on her first operational deployment, ‘Operation Fortis’, as part of Carrier Strike Group 21. During the 49,000 nm voyage, lasting until December, the Squadron completed more than 1,278 sorties, flew more than 2200 hours, made over 3,000 deck landings and conducted 44 combat missions in support of the counter-ISIS mission — Operation ‘Inherent Resolve’.

2022 saw deployments to Estonia, Finland, participation in Exercise ‘Ocean Hit’ in the Bay of Biscay and concluded the year with Operation Achillean, effectively demonstrating that the Squadron is equally at home operating from land or at sea.