On This Day, 1988: Sheila Scott died on 20 October 1988, leaving a legacy of solo world flights, polar exploration and record-breaking…
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Second World War
On 3 January 1942, Hawker Hurricanes reached Singapore to strengthen British and Commonwealth air defences as Japanese forces advanced down the Malay Peninsula.
On 3 September 1939, London heard its first air-raid alarm of the war, showing how quickly Britain entered…
How the Battle of the Heligoland Bight exposed the weakness of RAF daylight bombing assumptions at the opening…
On 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland and opened the European war that would soon place the RAF…
By 30 August 1940, No. 303 (Polish) Squadron was nearing operational service and stood on the edge of…
On 27 August 1941, Hudsons of No. 269 Squadron forced U-570 to surrender south of Iceland, an extraordinary…
On 26 August 1945, RAF aircraft began Birdcage and Mastiff, bringing leaflets, medical teams and relief to Allied…
On 25 August 1941, No. 1419 Flight became No. 138 Squadron, formalising RAF special duties support for SOE…
On 24 August 1940, Luftwaffe bombs fell on London in error, widening the bombing conflict and helping trigger…
On 23 August 1944, Dakotas evacuated wounded Yugoslav partisans, showing the flexibility of Allied air transport in resistance…
Churchill’s 20 August 1940 Commons speech immortalised Fighter Command as ‘the Few’, fixing the Battle of Britain firmly…
The RAF’s vast Dieppe air effort shielded Operation Jubilee at heavy cost and exposed lessons that shaped later…
On 18 August 1940, the Hardest Day of the Battle of Britain brought heavy RAF and Luftwaffe losses…