No. 300 Squadron — (Masovian) Polish

No. 300 (Land of Masovia) Squadron was a Polish bomber squadron formed at RAF Bramcote on 1 July 1940, manned by aircrew who had escaped occupied Poland and France. After a brief spell on obsolete Fairey Battles, the unit converted to Vickers Wellingtons in late 1940 and joined Bomber Command’s main force, flying against naval targets including the Gneisenau at Brest and U-boat facilities at Saint-Nazaire. Moving through Swinderby, Hemswell and Ingham, the squadron settled at RAF Faldingworth in March 1944, converting to Avro Lancasters — the only Polish squadron to operate the type. Its crews flew the full arc of the strategic air campaign: the Millennium raids on Cologne, the Battle of the Ruhr, the Battle of Berlin, V-weapon sites, D-Day support, the Rhine crossing, and a final mission against Obersalzberg on 25 April 1945. In all, 300 Squadron flew 3,891 sorties and logged over 20,000 flying hours, suffering heavier losses than any other Bomber Command squadron.