No. 488 Squadron

No. 488 Squadron was a Royal New Zealand Air Force unit formed on 1 September 1941 at Rongotai and initially deployed as a day fighter squadron to RAF Kallang, Singapore, where it flew Brewster Buffalos during the Japanese assault of early 1942 before being lost with the fall of the island. The squadron was reconstituted on 25 June 1942 at RAF Church Fenton in Yorkshire, this time as a dedicated night fighter unit, and equipped with Bristol Beaufighters before converting to de Havilland Mosquitoes in August 1943. Operating under the code letters ME, it flew intruder sorties over occupied France from February 1943, interdicting enemy railway traffic behind the lines, before switching to a defensive night fighter role later that year. During the Normandy campaign the squadron formed part of 149 Wing under No. 85 Group, 2nd Tactical Air Force, flying Mosquito XIIIs from RAF Zeals to provide nocturnal cover over the beachhead. After the breakout the unit followed Allied forces onto the Continent, moving through bases in France before disbanding at Gilze-Rijen in the Netherlands on 26 April 1945. Across its wartime service the reformed squadron flew 2,899 sorties, destroyed 67 enemy aircraft and eliminated 40 trains during its intruder operations. Its Māori motto, “Ka ngarue ratau” — meaning “We shake them” — reflected both the squadron’s New Zealand identity and its aggressive record in the night-fighter role.