No. 50 Squadron

Group
5 Group
Home station
RAF Skellingthorpe

About

No. 50 Squadron, which had begun life as a home-defence unit in the First World War, converted to the Handley Page Hampden at the end of 1938 and went to war as part of No. 5 Group. It later flew the troubled Avro Manchester before re-equipping with the Avro Lancaster, which it used against German targets until the final days of the war, and it made its home at RAF Skellingthorpe near Lincoln.

The squadron’s most famous airman was Flying Officer Leslie Manser. On the night of the first “thousand-bomber” raid against Cologne, 30/31 May 1942, his Manchester was badly hit; with a crash unavoidable, he held the aircraft steady to let his crew take to their parachutes and was killed when it went down. He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. The squadron carried the fitting motto “From defence to attack”.

Sources: This page was compiled from publicly available historical sources, including No. 50 & No. 61 Squadrons Association — Leslie Manser VC and Wikipedia: No. 50 Squadron RAF. The text is original and has been written from factual source material; no source text has been copied unless specifically quoted and attributed.

Photographs

ⓘ licence & creditPa3ems / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dalfsen_-_cemetery-A.B._Harvey.JPGView source & full licence →
ⓘ licence & creditPa3ems / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dalfsen_-_cemetery-_E.H._Tunnell.JPGView source & full licence →
In the General Cemetery next to the Protestant church of Veendam, the Netherlands, is the collective grave of 10 RAF airmen who died in two plane crashes near Veendam in July 1941. Five were members of 50 Squadron RAF who died in 12 July. The other five were members of 104 Squadron who died on 15 July. One of the crew from 50 Squadron was Sergeant Israel Jacobovitch, from London. He served under the alias of Sergeant H Jackson to protect his Jewish identity.
ⓘ licence & creditNannix / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Commonwealth_War_graves_-_The_Netherlands_-_Veendam_general_cemetery.jpgView source & full licence →
Four Commonwealth War Graves in the general cemetery in Haren, the Netherlands, just behind the entrance at the left side. The grave on the left nearest the camera is that of Flying Officer Donald Taylor, who served in 485 Squadron, RNZAF, and died on 8 February 1945. The other three graves are of members of 50 Squadron RAF, who died on 18 August 1941.
ⓘ licence & creditNannix / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Commonwealth_War_graves_-_The_Netherlands_-_Haren_general_cemetery.jpgView source & full licence →
ⓘ licence & creditPa3ems / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cemetery_Epe-F.H._Shorter.JPGView source & full licence →
Royal Air Force Bomber Command, 1939-1941. Aircrews of No. 50 Squadron RAF gather in front of their Handley Page Hampdens at Waddington, Lincolnshire, shortly after returning , from Kinloss, Morayshire, from where they mounted a raid on the German fleet in the Bergen Fjord, Norway, on 9 April 1940.
ⓘ licence & creditDaventry B J (Mr), Royal Air Force official photographer / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Air_Force_Bomber_Command,_1939-1941._C1179.jpgView source & full licence →
Royal Air Force Bomber Command- the Strategic Air Offensive, 1939-1945. Avro Lancasters of No 50 Squadron, Royal Air Force (No 5 Group), based at Skellingthorpe, Lincolnshire, England, flying in loose formation.
ⓘ licence & creditBellamy (Fg Off), Royal Air Force official photographer / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Air_Force_Bomber_Command-_the_Strategic_Air_Offensive,_1939-1945._CH10715.jpgView source & full licence →
ⓘ licence & creditPa3ems / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cemetery_Epe-_J.F._Lane.JPGView source & full licence →
Avro Vulcan B.2 XM608 of No. 50 Squadron RAF at RAF Mildenhall in 1976
ⓘ licence & creditRuthAS / CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Avro_Vulcan_B.2A_XM608_50_Sqn_MILD_04.07.76_edited-3.jpgView source & full licence →
Lancaster B Mark Is of No 50 Squadron, Royal Air Force, based at Skellingthorpe, flying in spread formation. The two aircraft beyond the wing tip are 'VN-D' and 'VN-J' the former, serial number JA899, was missing on the night of 24 - 25 June 1944 with Pilot Officer L G Peters and crew.
ⓘ licence & creditRoyal Air Force official photographer / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Avro_Lancasters_flying_in_loose_formation.jpgView source & full licence →
Avro Lancaster Bombers in Flight, 26 August 1943 A pilot's view over the two starboard Merlin engines from the cockpit of an Avro Lancaster of No 50 Squadron, Royal Air Force.
ⓘ licence & creditRoyal Air Force official photographer / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Avro_Lancaster_Bombers_in_Flight,_26_August_1943_TR1158.jpgView source & full licence →
Colour photograph of Avro Lancaster VN-N, (R5689). Comment : Squadron code VN appears to identify this with No. 50 Squadron RAF.
ⓘ licence & creditguessed to be RAF official photograph / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Avro_Lancaster_298.jpgView source & full licence →

Operations flown

Aircraft (5)

SerialCodeTypeFate
ED588 VN-G Avro Lancaster Lost on operations
EE174 VN-A Avro Lancaster Lost on operations
L7301 VN-D Avro Manchester Lost on operations
LM394 VN-E Avro Lancaster Lost on operations
R5546 VN-T Avro Lancaster Lost on operations

No service records linked to this squadron yet. Aircraft, crews and sorties will appear here soon.

Further reading & sources

External sites — facts only are reused here; their text and images remain their authors'.