The squadron flew its first combat operation of the war on 15 August 1940, when six 84 Squadron Blenheims, which were being ferried from Iraq to Aden to reinforce the Blenheim squadrons based there, encountered an Italian Savoia-Marchetti SM.81 near Kamaran Island and shot it down. It moved to Heliopolis in Egypt in September 1940, operating from forward bases at Fuka and Qotaifiya for operations against the Germans from October 1940. The Italian invasion of Greece in October 1940 resulted in Britain diverting much of its aerial strength to support the Greeks, and 84 Squadron was moved to Greece in November 1940. The squadron operated from Menidi near Athens, initially bombing Italian forces on the Albanian front, but as the Italian offensive stalled in December 1940, switched to attacks against the port of Valona and the airfield at Berat, both in Italian-occupied Albania. In April 1941 German forces invaded Greece, quickly over-running the Greek and British defences, and the few surviving Blenheims were evacuated via Crete on 21 April.