No. 617 Squadron RAF - wikipedia No. 617 Squadron RAF No. 617 Squadron RAF 617 Squadron badge Active 21 March 1943 -- 15 December 1955 1 May 1958 -- 31 December 1981 1 January 1983 -- 1 April 2014 Country United Kingdom Branch Royal Air Force Nickname ( s ) The Dambusters Motto ( s ) French : Après moi le déluge ( `` After me, the flood '' ) Battle honours Fortress Europe 1943 -- 1945, The Dams 1943, Biscay Ports 1944, France and Germany 1944 -- 1945, Normandy 1944, Tirpitz, Channel and North Sea 1944 -- 1945, German Ports 1945, Gulf 1991, Iraq 2003 Commanders Notable commanders Guy Gibson Leonard Cheshire Willie Tait John Fauquier RCAF Insignia Squadron badge heraldry Lightning striking a dam, with water flowing from the breach. Squadron roundel Squadron codes AJ 1943 - 1946 KC 1943 - 1952 ( used alongside AJ ) YZ 1945 ( only used on aircraft used to carry ' Grand Slam ' bombs ) AJ Carried on Tornados No. 617 Squadron was a Royal Air Force aircraft squadron based at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland. It is commonly known as the `` Dambusters '', for its actions during Operation Chastise against German dams during the Second World War. In the early 21st century it operated the Tornado GR4 in the ground attack and reconnaissance role until being disbanded in the Spring of 2014. As of 2016 it is in the process of forming ahead of standing up in January 2018 as the first British frontline squadron with the F - 35 Lightning II. Contents 1 History 1.1 Between the wars 1.2 Second World War 1.3 Post-war 2 Aircraft operated 3 Commanding officers 3.1 1943 -- 1955 3.2 1958 -- 1981 3.3 1983 -- 2014 4 See also 5 References 5.1 Notes 5.2 Bibliography 6 External links History This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( May 2017 ) Between the wars According to the Squadron 's entry in Flying Units of the RAF by Alan Lake, 617 was allocated the unit identification code MZ for the period April to September 1939, even though the unit did n't actually exist at the time. Second World War The squadron was formed under great secrecy at RAF Scampton during the Second World War on 21 March 1943. It included Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force and Royal New Zealand Air Force personnel and was formed for the specific task of attacking three major dams that contributed water and power to the Ruhr industrial region in Germany : the Möhne, Eder and Sorpe. The plan was given the codename Operation Chastise and was carried out on 17 May 1943. The squadron had to develop the tactics to deploy Barnes Wallis 's `` Bouncing bomb '', and undertook some of its training over the dams of the Upper Derwent Valley in Derbyshire, as the towers on the dam walls were similar to those to be found on some of the target dams in Germany. The Squadron 's badge, approved by King George VI, depicts the bursting of a dam in commemoration of Chastise. The squadron 's chosen motto was `` Après moi le déluge '' ( `` After me, the Flood '' ), a humorous double entendre on a famous saying of Madame de Pompadour to King Louis XV made on the loss at the Battle of Rossbach by the French. The original commander of 617 Squadron, Wing Commander Guy Gibson, was awarded the Victoria Cross for his part in the raid. Guy Gibson also owned a black Labrador named Nigger, who was the mascot of the squadron for some time. Alas, Nigger was killed on the evening of the raid, being run over outside the base. King George VI visiting 617 Squadron in 1943 After the raid, Gibson was withdrawn from flying ( due to the high number of raids he had been on ) and went on a publicity tour. George Holden became commanding officer ( CO ) in July, but he was shot down and killed on his fourth mission with the squadron in September 1943, an attack on the Dortmund - Ems Canal ; he had four of Gibson 's crew with him. H.B. `` Mick '' Martin took command temporarily, before Leonard Cheshire took over as CO. Cheshire personally took part in the special target marking techniques required which went far beyond the precision delivered by the standard Pathfinder units -- by the end he was marking the targets from a Mustang fighter. He was also awarded the VC. On 15 July 1943 twelve aircraft of the squadron took off from Scampton to attack targets in Northern Italy. All aircraft attacked and proceeded to North Africa without loss. The targets were San Polo d'Enza and Arquata Scrivia power stations ; it was hoped that the attacks would delay German troops who were travelling down into Italy on the electrified railway system to support the Italian front. The operation met little opposition but the targets were obscured by valley haze and they were not destroyed. The 12 crews returned to Scampton on 25 July from North Africa after bombing Leghorn docks on the return journey. The raid on Leghorn Docks was not a great success due to mist shrouding the target. On 29 July 1943 nine aircraft took off from Scampton to drop leaflets on Milan, Bologna, Genoa and Turin in Italy. All aircraft completed the mission and landed safely in Blida North Africa. Seven of the aircraft returned to Scampton on 1 August, one on the 5th and the last on the 8th. Throughout the rest of the war, the squadron continued the specialist and precision bombing role, including the use of the enormous `` Tallboy '' and `` Grand Slam '' ground - penetrating earthquake bombs, on targets such as concrete U-boat shelters and bridges. The Dortmund - Ems Canal was finally breached with Tallboys in September 1944. A particularly notable series of attacks caused the disabling and sinking of the Tirpitz. Tirpitz had been moved into a fjord in northern Norway where she threatened the Arctic convoys and was too far north to be attacked by air from the UK. She had already been damaged by an attack by Royal Navy midget submarines and a series of attacks from carrier - borne aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm, but both attacks had failed to sink her. The task was given to No. 9 and No. 617 Squadrons where they were deployed to Yagodnik, near Archangel a staging base in Russia to attack Tirpitz with Tallboy bombs. On 15 September 1944, the RAF bombers struck the battleship in the forecastle, which rendered her unseaworthy, so she was sent to the Tromsø fjord where temporary repairs were made so she was anchored as a floating battery. This fjord was in range of bombers operating from Scotland and from there, in October, she was attacked again, but cloud cover thwarted the attack. Finally on 12 November 1944, the two squadrons attacked Tirpitz. The first bombs missed their target, but following aircraft scored two direct hits in quick succession. Within ten minutes of the first bomb hitting the Tirpitz, she suffered a magazine explosion at her `` C '' turret and capsized killing 1,000 of her 1,700 crew. All three RAF attacks on Tirpitz were led by Wing Commander J.B. `` Willy '' Tait, who had succeeded Cheshire as CO of No. 617 Squadron in July 1944. Among those pilots participating in the raids was Flight Lieutenant John Leavitt, an American who piloted one of the 31 Lancasters. Leavitt 's aircraft dropped one of the bombs that hit the Tirpitz dead centre. Despite both squadrons claiming that it was their bombs that actually sank the Tirpitz, it was the Tallboy bomb, dropped from a No. 9 Sqn Lancaster WS - Y ( LM220 ) piloted by Flying Officer Dougie Tweddle that is attributed to the sinking of the warship. F / O Tweddle was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his part in the operations against the Tirpitz. During the Second World War the Squadron carried out 1,599 operational sorties with the loss of 32 aircraft. Dam Busters memorial at Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire The Second World War exploits of the squadron and Chastise in particular, were described in Guy Gibson 's own 1944 account `` Enemy Coast Ahead '', as well as Paul Brickhill 's 1951 book The Dam Busters and a 1955 film, though the accuracy and completeness of these accounts were compromised by many of the documents relating to the war years still being secured by the Official Secrets Act. The definitive work however is considered The Dambusters Raid by John Sweetman. It is based on careful research and cross checking of original documents as well as interviews with survivors of the raid. In 2006, it was announced that New Zealand film director Peter Jackson and David Frost would co-produce a re-make of the film. It has been scripted by Stephen Fry and will be directed by Christian Rivers. The last living Dam Buster pilot at the time, New Zealander Les Munro ( 1919 - 2015 ), offered his services as a technical adviser. In 2010 the National Archives released documents that showed it was considered using 617 Squadron to target the Italian leader Mussolini in July or August 1943. The British believed if Mussolini was killed it might take Italy out of the war. It would have been a flight carried out at extremely low level with the targets of Mussolini 's headquarters and residence in Rome. Neither of these targets were within 1,500 yards of the Vatican, which the Allies had promised not to damage. However within two weeks of the plan being suggested, Mussolini was ousted by his opponents and replaced by Pietro Badoglio, leading to an armistice with the Allies in September. Post-war No. 617 Sqn Canberra B2 No. 617 Sqn Vulcan B2 No. 617 Sqn Tornado GR4 After the end of the Second World War, the Squadron replaced its Lancasters with Avro Lincolns, following those in 1952 with the English Electric Canberra jet bomber. The squadron was deployed to Malaya for four months in 1955, returning to RAF Binbrook to be disbanded on 15 December 1955. Reformed at RAF Scampton on 1 May 1958 as part of RAF Bomber Command 's V - bomber force maintaining the UK 's strategic nuclear deterrent, the Squadron was equipped with the Avro Vulcan B1 from Aug 1960. By 23 May 1961 its aircraft were the upgraded Vulcan B1A fitted with the ECM tailpod. The Squadron 's assigned role was high - level strategic bombing with a variety of free fall nuclear bombs. Both the B1 and B1A types were equipped with various free - fall nuclear weapons. These may have included Blue Danube, Red Beard, Violet Club the Interim Megaton Weapon, Yellow Sun Mk. 1 and certainly Yellow Sun Mk2. American bombs were also supplied to the RAF V - bombers for a short period under the Project E arrangements. The Squadron began almost immediately to upgrade yet again to the Vulcan B2, taking delivery of the first on 1 September 1961, although its high - level strategic bombing role remained unchanged until the advent of effective Soviet Surface - to - Air Missiles forced Bomber Command to reassign V - bombers from high - altitude operations to low - level penetration operations in March 1963, when the Squadron 's Vulcans adopted a mission profile that included a ' pop - up ' manoeuvre from 500 -- 1,000 ft to above 12,000 ft for safe release of Blue Steel. Vulcans were configured for the Blue Steel stand - off bomb and 617 Squadron was the first to be declared operational with it in August 1962, until in January 1970 the squadron 's eight Vulcan B2 aircraft were re-equipped with the new strategic laydown bomb, WE. 177 B which improved aircraft survivability by enabling aircraft to remain at low - level during weapon release. Following the transfer of responsibility for the nuclear deterrent to the Royal Navy, the Squadron was reassigned to SACEUR for tactical strike missions. In a high - intensity European war the Squadron 's role was to support land forces on the Continent by striking deep into enemy - held areas beyond the forward edge of the battlefield, striking at enemy concentrations and infrastructure, with WE. 177 tactical nuclear weapons, should a conflict escalate to that stage. The Squadron 's eight aircraft were allocated eight WE. 177 nuclear bombs. As the Vulcan 's bomb bay was configured to carry only one, and assuming that RAF staff planners had factored in their usual allowance for attrition in the early conventional phase of a continental war, leaving sufficient surviving aircraft to deliver the full stockpile of nuclear weapons, it is a reasonable conclusion that the Vulcan force was held in reserve for nuclear strike duties only. The squadron 's Vulcan B2s served mainly in that low - level penetration role until disbandment on 31 December 1981. The Squadron reformed on 1 January 1983 at RAF Marham, re-equipped with twelve Tornado GR1 aircraft and eighteen WE. 177 nuclear bombs, and the Squadron 's role assigned to SACEUR remained one of support for land forces on the Continent. Its Tornado aircraft were each able to carry two WE. 177 bombs and the ratio of weapons to aircraft at full strength increased to 1.5 : 1, with an allowance now made for attrition in the conventional opening phase of a continental war. The Squadron continued in this role until the WE. 177 weapons were retired and No. 617 Squadron relinquished its nuclear delivery capability. F - 35B Lightning II In 1993 No. 617 began the changeover to anti-shipping and by 1994 was operating from RAF Lossiemouth assigned to SACLANT, flying the Tornado GR1B with the Sea Eagle missile. The Squadron also routinely deployed in support Operation Resinate and Operation Bolton, the RAF contribution to Operation Southern Watch, the last time being in the spring and summer of 2000 to Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait. The Squadron continued its pioneering heritage by becoming the first RAF squadron to fire the MBDA Storm Shadow cruise missile, during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In 2011 the Squadron 's commanding officer was Wing Commander Keith Taylor, who had replaced Wing Commander David Cooper, since promoted to Group Captain and appointed to Station Commander at RAF Marham. In July 2013, it was announced that 617 Squadron would become the first operational RAF unit to receive the F - 35 Lightning. 617 Squadron disbanded on 28 March 2014 as part of the draw - down of the Tornado force. As of 2016 it is in the process of forming ahead of standing up in January 2018 as the first British frontline squadron with the F - 35 Lightning II. 617 will be composed of both RAF and Royal Navy personnel, operating both from RAF Marham, and from the Royal Navy 's new Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers. It will fly alongside the Fleet Air Arm 's 809 NAS. Aircraft operated Tornado GR4 in special markings for the 70th Anniversary of the Dams raid Aircraft and dates From To Aircraft Version March 1943 June 1945 Avro Lancaster I, III June 1945 September 1946 Avro Lancaster VII ( FE ) September 1946 January 1952 Avro Lincoln B. 2 January 1952 April 1955 English Electric Canberra B. 2 February 1955 December 1955 English Electric Canberra B. 6 May 1958 July 1961 Avro Vulcan B. 1, B. 1A September 1961 December 1981 Avro Vulcan B. 2, B. 2A January 1983 January 2014 Panavia Tornado GR. 1, GR. 1B, GR. 4 Commanding officers The following men have commanded 617 Squadron : 1943 -- 1955 March 1943, Wing Commander GP Gibson August 1943, Wing Commander GW Holden September 1943 Squadron Leader HB Martin November 1943, Wing Commander GL Cheshire July 1944, Wing Commander JB Tait December 1944, Wing Commander JE Fauquier April 1945, Wing Commander JE Grindon June 1945, Wing Commander C Fothergill April 1946, Squadron Leader CK Saxelby May 1947, Wing Commander CD Milne ( for goodwill visit to USA ) July 1947, Squadron Leader CK Saxelby February 1948, Squadron Leader PG Brodie May 1950, Squadron Leader WH Thallon June 1952, Squadron Leader MJ O'Bryen - Nichols Dec 1952, Squadron Leader D Roberts May 1954, Squadron Leader JA Ruck ( Squadron disbanded December 1955 ) 1958 -- 1981 May 1958, Wing Commander D Bower ( Squadron reformed with Vulcans ) May 1960, Wing Commander LGA Bastard December 1962, Wing Commander HG Currell March 1965, Wing Commander DGL Heywood March 1967, Wing Commander RC Allen March 1969, Wing Commander CA Vasey March 1971, Wing Commander FMA Hines October 1973, Wing Commander VL Warrington September 1975, Wing Commander RB Gilvary July 1977, Wing Commander F Mason ( brief tenure due to illness ) July 1977, Wing Commander JN Stephenson - Oliver August 1979, Wing Commander JN Herbertson ( Squadron disbanded December 1981 ) 1983 -- 2014 January 1983, Wing Commander AJ Harrison ( Squadron reformed with Tornados ) June 1985, Wing Commander PJJ Day January 1988, Wing Commander NJ Day May 1990, Wing Commander RD Iveson March 1993, Wing Commander JH Dickinson July 1995, Wing Commander IL Dugmore March 1998, Wing Commander GE Thwaites September 2000, Wing Commander DG Robertson July 2003, Wing Commander A Monkman January 2006, Wing Commander SP Rochelle January 2008, Wing Commander DJE Cooper October 2010, Wing Commander KD Taylor October 2012, Wing Commander DS Arthurton See also List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons Operation Chastise, the attack by 617 squadron on German dams during the Second World War Enemy Coast Ahead a book by Guy Gibson written in 1944 shortly before his death The Dam Busters a 1951 book by Paul Brickhill about the operation. The Dam Busters, a 1954 film about the operation based on both the Gibson and Brickhill books References Notes Jump up ^ Pine, L.G. ( 1983 ). A dictionary of mottoes ( 1 ed. ). London : Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 14. ISBN 0 - 7100 - 9339 - X. Jump up ^ José M. Rico. `` Battleship Tirpitz ''. Kbismarck.com. Retrieved 6 June 2014. Jump up ^ John Asmussen. `` Tirpitz - Menu ''. Bismarck-class.dk. Retrieved 6 June 2014. Jump up ^ Bomber Command : Tirpitz, 12 November 1944, Royal Air Force Bomber Command 60th Anniversary web site Jump up ^ John Leavitt, Daily Telegraph, 10 January 2010. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Jump up ^ `` Douglas Tweddle DFC ''. Retrieved 2 October 2014. Jump up ^ Garzke & Dulin 1985, p. 272. Jump up ^ Falconer 2003, page 256 Jump up ^ Sweetman, John ( 2002 ) ( 1990 ). The Dambusters Raid. London : Cassell. ISBN 0 - 304 - 35173 - 3. Jump up ^. Alan Veitch, `` Dambusters ' Anzac legend '' ( Courier Mail 1 October 2006 ). Access date : 1 October 2006. Jump up ^ global security.org / wmd / uk / 617 squadron. Globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Jump up ^ Humphrey Wynn. RAF Strategic Nuclear Deterrent Forces : their origins, roles and deployment 1946 -- 69. p566 ISBN 0 - 11 - 772833 - 0 Jump up ^ Tim McLelland. The Avro Vulcan : a complete history. p120. ISBN 978 - 0 - 85979 - 127 - 4 Jump up ^ Wynn. p566 Jump up ^ McLelland. p155. Jump up ^ Wynn. p620 Jump up ^ RAF nuclear front line Order - of - Battle 1970. None. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Jump up ^ `` Weapon overview ''. nuclear-weapons.info. Jump up ^ `` Carriage ''. Jump up ^ RAF nuclear front line Order - of - Battle 1981. None. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Jump up ^ RAF nuclear front line Order - of - Battle 1983. None. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Jump up ^ RAF nuclear front line Order - of - Battle 1993. None. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Jump up ^ `` Final Salute for Historic RAF Squadrons ''. Raf.mod.uk. 28 March 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2014. Jump up ^ Stevenson, Beth ( 20 May 2016 ). `` UK F - 35 commander highlights training challenge ''. Flight Global. Jump up ^ ( 1 ) - Defence Management, 23 March 2013 Jump up ^ Dambusters To Be Next Lightning II Squadron - RAF, 18 July 2013 Jump up ^ `` Immortal air squadron to fly Royal Navy 's newest jets ''. Royal Navy. 9 September 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2014. Jump up ^ Moyes1976, p. 285. Jump up ^ Halley 1988, p. 435. Jump up ^ Jefford 2001, pp. 101 -- 102. Jump up ^ RAF 617 Squadron Crest. Bomber-command.info. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Jump up ^ CO name boards in 617 Squadron Mess, RAF Lossiemouth Jump up ^ D Bower. Rafweb.org. Retrieved 15 May 2012. Bibliography Arthur, Max ( October 2008 ). Dambusters : A Landmark Oral History. Virgin Books. ISBN 1 - 905264 - 33 - X. -- first hand accounts of the planning, preparation and execution of the raid. Bouquet, Tim 617 Going to War with Today 's Dambusters. London : Orion ( Orion Publishing Group Limited ), 2012. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4091 - 4415 - 1 Falconer, J ( 2003 ). Bomber Command Handbook 1939 -- 1945. Stroud, England : Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0 - 7509 - 3171 - X. Garzke, William H. ; Dulin, Robert O. ( 1985 ). Battleships : Axis and Neutral Battleships in World War II. Annapolis, Maryland : Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 87021 - 101 - 0. Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918 -- 1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK : Air - Britain ( Historians ) Ltd., 1988. ISBN 0 - 85130 - 164 - 9. Jefford, Wing Commander C.G., MBE, BA, RAF ( Retd ). RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury : Airlife Publishing, 1998 ( second edition 2001 ). ISBN 1 - 84037 - 141 - 2. Moyes, Philip J.R. Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London : Macdonald and Jane 's ( Publishers ) Ltd., 1964 ( new edition 1976 ). ISBN 0 - 354 - 01027 - 1. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to No. 617 Squadron RAF. 617 Squadron RAF Official Web Page RAFweb.org 617 Squadron Dambusters site Royal Air Force Bomber Command 60th Anniversary : No. 617 Squadron 617 Squadron -- The Operational Record Book 1943 -- 1945 ( PDF ) with additional information by Tobin Jones ; Binx Publishing, Pevensey House, Sheep Street, Bicester. OX26 6JF. Acknowledgement is given to HMSO as holders of the copyright on the Operational Record Book 16. / 17.05. 1943 -- `` Operation Chastise '' Pathe newsreel, 1963, 617 equipped with Blue Steel nuclear missiles Pathe newsreel, 1967, Dambusters re-union Royal Air Force flying squadrons Currently active 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 16 17 18 24 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 39 41 45 47 51 54 56 57 60 70 72 84 99 100 101 202 230 622 Inactive 15 19 20 21 22 23 25 26 34 35 36 37 38 40 42 43 44 46 48 49 50 52 53 55 58 59 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 71 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 353 354 355 356 357 358 360 361 510 511 512 513 514 515 516 517 518 519 520 521 524 525 526 527 528 529 530 531 532 533 534 535 536 537 538 539 540 541 542 543 544 547 548 549 550 567 569 570 571 575 576 577 578 582 586 587 595 597 598 617 618 619 620 621 623 624 625 626 627 628 629 630 631 635 639 640 644 650 651 652 653 654 655 656 657 658 659 660 661 662 663 664 665 666 667 668 669 670 671 672 673 679 680 681 682 683 684 691 692 695 Australian Flying Corps ( AFC ) units attached to the RAF during the First World War 67 ( 1 Sqn AFC ) 68 ( 2 Sqn AFC ) 69 ( 3 Sqn AFC ) 71 ( 4 Sqn AFC ) Commonwealth air force units attached to the RAF during the Second World War Royal Canadian Air Force ( RCAF ) 400 401 402 403 404 405 406 407 408 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429 430 431 432 433 434 435 436 437 438 439 440 441 442 443 Royal Australian Air Force ( RAAF ) 450 451 452 453 454 455 456 457 458 459 460 461 462 463 464 466 467 Royal New Zealand Air Force ( RNZAF ) 485 486 487 488 489 490 Squadrons formed from non-Commonwealth personnel during the Second World War Argentine 164 Belgian 349 350 Czechoslovak 310 311 312 313 Dutch 320 321 322 French 326 327 328 329 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 Greek 13 335 336 Norwegian 330 331 332 333 334 Polish 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 315 316 317 318 663 United States 71 121 133 Yugoslav 351 352 Royal Auxiliary Air Force Special Reserve 500 501 502 503 504 Auxiliary Air Force 600 601 602 603 604 605 606 607 608 609 610 611 612 613 614 615 616 Fleet Air Arm of the RAF ( 1924 -- 1939 ) 712 715 718 800 801 802 803 810 811 812 813 814 820 821 822 823 824 825 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=No._617_Squadron_RAF&oldid=793459010 '' Categories : Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons Military units and formations established in 1943 Military units and formations of the Royal Air Force in World War II Hidden categories : All articles with failed verification Articles with failed verification from June 2014 Use British English from May 2012 Use dmy dates from October 2014 Pages using deprecated image syntax Articles containing French - language text Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2016 All articles containing potentially dated statements Articles needing additional references from May 2017 All articles needing additional references All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from April 2011 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català Deutsch עברית 日本 語 Polski Português Русский Edit links This page was last edited on 1 August 2017, at 21 : 39. 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Question: which raf base did the dambusters fly from
Answer: RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland