Operations

Every major RAF operation from 1918 to the present day. From the first bombing missions of the Western Front to the strike campaigns of the 21st century.

18 Operations Profiled
Featured Operation

Operation Corporate

2 April–14 June 1982

success

How the RAF supported Operation Corporate through Vulcan raids, Victor tanker missions and later tactical air operations in the Falklands War.

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Era Cold War

First World War · 1 operation

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First World War

North Russia Intervention

A concise history of the North Russia Intervention, showing how early RAF units supported Allied operations at Archangel, Kronstadt and…

1918–1919

Formation & Interwar · 1 operation

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Formation & Interwar

Operation Pink’s War

Pink’s War was the RAF’s 1925 campaign in South Waziristan, testing inter-war air control through sustained coercive operations.

success 9 March–1 May 1925

Second World War · 7 operations

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Second World War

Operation Gomorrah

How RAF Bomber Command carried out Operation Gomorrah against Hamburg using concentrated area bombing and the new Window countermeasure.

success 24 July–3 August 1943
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Second World War

Battle of Britain

How the Battle of Britain saw RAF Fighter Command defeat the Luftwaffe’s attempt to gain the air superiority needed for…

success 10 July–31 October 1940
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Second World War

Operation Chastise

On the night of 16–17 May 1943, 617 Squadron breached the Möhne and Eder dams using Barnes Wallis's revolutionary bouncing…

success 16-17 May 1943
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Second World War

Operation Torch

How the RAF supported Operation Torch through airfield seizure, tactical air power and the wider struggle for air superiority in…

success 8 November 1942–13 May 1943

Cold War · 5 operations

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Cold War

Operation Grapple

How the RAF supported Operation Grapple through V-bomber delivery, cloud sampling and Pacific infrastructure during Britain’s H-bomb tests.

success 1957–1958
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Cold War

Operation Black Buck

Operation Black Buck was the RAF’s long-range bombing and anti-radar effort during the Falklands War, flown by Avro Vulcan bombers…

partial 30 April–12 June 1982
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Cold War

Operation Plainfare

How the RAF’s Operation Plainfare helped sustain West Berlin during the Soviet blockade, flying food, coal and vital supplies into…

success 26 June 1948–30 September 1949
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Cold War

Operation Musketeer

How the RAF supported Operation Musketeer through transport flying, strike operations and airborne assault during the Suez Crisis.

failure 29 October–7 November 1956

Modern RAF · 4 operations

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Modern RAF

Operation Telic

How the RAF supported Operation Telic through strike aircraft, reconnaissance, tankers and transport in Iraq from 2003 onward.

partial 2003–2011
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Modern RAF

Operation Herrick

How the RAF supported Operation Herrick through Harrier, Tornado, Reaper and wider air operations in Afghanistan.

partial 2001–2014
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Modern RAF

Operation Granby

How Operation Granby saw the RAF fight in the 1991 Gulf War, from Tornado strike missions to the wider lessons…

success 17 January–28 February 1991
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Modern RAF

Operation Allied Force

How the RAF contributed to Operation Allied Force through strike aircraft, tanker support and coalition air operations over Yugoslavia in…

success 24 March–10 June 1999

A–Z Index