No. 87 Squadron — United Provinces

No. 87 (United Provinces) Squadron entered the war as a Hurricane unit with the Air Component of the British Expeditionary Force in France, flying defensive patrols before the German offensive forced a withdrawal to England in June 1940. Rebuilding quickly, it joined No. 10 Group Fighter Command at Exeter to defend the south-west during the Battle of Britain, then moved to RAF Charmy Down and evolved into one of Fighter Command’s dedicated night-intruder units, flying Hurricane IICs on offensive sorties over occupied France from early 1941 into 1942. In late 1942 the squadron transferred to the Mediterranean theatre, supporting Operation Torch and the North African and Tunisian campaigns before pressing on through Sicily into Italy. Re-equipped with Spitfires, it flew offensive sweeps over the Balkans and conducted fighter-bomber operations supporting the Italian ground campaign until the German surrender. Notable wartime pilots included Ian Gleed and Roland Beamont.