No. 42 Squadron

No. 42 Squadron entered the war under RAF Coastal Command, initially flying the obsolete Vickers Vildebeest biplane on convoy patrols along the East Coast before re-equipping with the Bristol Beaufort torpedo-bomber in April 1940. Operating from Scottish bases — chiefly RAF Wick and then RAF Leuchars — within No. 18 Group, the squadron flew hazardous anti-shipping strikes and minelaying sorties across the North Sea and Norwegian coast. Crews attacked the Scharnhorst in June 1940, torpedoed the Lützow off Norway in June 1941, and struck the Prinz Eugen in May 1942, suffering heavy losses in unescorted low-level attacks before Beaufighter escorts were introduced in late 1941. In mid-1942 the squadron transferred to the Far East, briefly participating in operations around El Alamein en route, then reforming in Ceylon. It flew Blenheims on Burma bombing raids before converting to Hawker Hurricanes for ground-attack work in the Burma campaign, roles it held until disbandment in June 1945.