No. 544 Squadron
- Group
- No. 106 Group
- Command
- Photo Reconnaissance
History
No. 544 Squadron formed in 1942 as part of the RAF’s expanding photographic reconnaissance force. Equipped mainly with Mosquitoes, it flew long-range reconnaissance missions from Britain over occupied Europe and Germany. The squadron provided imagery for intelligence, target selection and damage assessment, including coverage that supported the strategic air offensive and the invasion of north-west Europe.
Stations operated from
Airfields this squadron flew from during the Second World War.
Photographs
Aerial photograph of Zeals airfield the control tower, technical site and blister hangars are at the bottom (South), 24 March 1944. Photograph taken by No. 544 Squadron, sortie number RAF/NLA/80. English Heritage (RAF Photography).
ⓘ licence & credit
Royal Air Force / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RAF_Zeals_-_29_Mar_1944_Airphoto.jpgView source & full licence →De Havilland Mosquito PR Mk XVI of No. 544 Squadron RAF based at Benson, Oxfordshire, December 1944. Mosquito PR Mark XVI, NS502 ‘M’, of No. 544 Squadron RAF based at Benson, Oxfordshire, in flight.
ⓘ licence & credit
Goodchild A (F/O), Royal Air Force official photographer / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:De_Havilland_Mosquito_PR_Mk_XVI_of_No._544_Squadron_RAF_based_at_Benson,_Oxfordshire,_December_1944._CH14259_(cropped).jpgView source & full licence →De Havilland Mosquito PR Mk XVI of No. 544 Squadron RAF based at Benson, Oxfordshire, December 1944. Mosquito PR Mark XVI, NS502 ‘M’, of No. 544 Squadron RAF based at Benson, Oxfordshire, in flight.
ⓘ licence & credit
Goodchild A (F/O), Royal Air Force official photographer / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:De_Havilland_Mosquito_PR_Mk_XVI_of_No._544_Squadron_RAF_based_at_Benson,_Oxfordshire,_December_1944._CH14259.jpgView source & full licence →De Havilland Mosquito PR Mk XVI of No. 544 Squadron RAF, 26 July 1944. Mosquito PR Mark XVI, NS502 ‘M’, of No. 544 Squadron RAF based at Benson, Oxfordshire, in flight and banking away from the camera to show the aerial camera ports under the fuselage. The arrangement shows a typical camera installation for high altitude reconnaissance, consisting of: a vertical ‘split pair’ of Type F.24s (14-inch) in the forward bomb bay; a further vertical ‘split pair’ of Type F.52s (20- or 36-inch) along the centre line behind the bomb bay, with, between these, a port-facing oblique Type F.24 (14-inch).