No. 181 Squadron

No. 181 Squadron was formed in August 1942 at RAF Duxford, initially equipped with Hurricanes before converting to the Hawker Typhoon IB, which it operated exclusively until disbandment. Beginning with defensive patrols against low-level German intruders, the squadron shifted to offensive operations in February 1943, attacking enemy coastal shipping and targets in northern France. It gained a place in history on 25 October 1943 when its aircraft carried out the first Typhoon rocket attack, striking the power station at Caen. From early 1944 the squadron joined the campaign against V-1 flying-bomb launch sites in the Pas-de-Calais, before transferring to 83 Group, Second Tactical Air Force ahead of the Normandy invasion. Moving to the continent within a fortnight of D-Day, it spent the remainder of the war providing close air support for ground forces, advancing through France, the Low Countries, and into Germany. The squadron disbanded at Lüneburg on 30 September 1945.