Country United Kingdom Role Fighter Squadron | Branch Royal Air Force Part of RAF Fighter Command | |
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Active 22 February 1941 – 18 December 1946 Allegiance Polish government in exile | ||
No. 317 "Wilno" Polish Fighter Squadron (Polish: 317 Dywizjon Myśliwski „Wileński") was a Polish fighter squadron formed in Great Britain as part of an agreement between the Polish Government in Exile and the United Kingdom in 1941. It was one of several Polish fighter squadrons fighting alongside the Royal Air Force during World War II.
History
The squadron was formed at RAF Acklington on 22 February 1941 and reached operational readiness on 24 April 1941. It was equipped with Hurricane Mk.Is until July when it received Mk.IIs. The squadron moved south in June and received Spitfires in October. As with most Fighter Command squadrons it alternated its operations between offensive sweeps from bases in the south and defensive duties whilst based in the north and midlands. In June 1943 the squadron was allocated to the 2nd Tactical Air Force and moved to RAF Heston. During the buildup to the invasion of Normandy the squadron carried out offensive sweeps in preparation for the landings. After the invasion they conducted ground attack operations in support of Allied ground forces, moving to the continent in August. The squadron arrived in Belgium in October 1944 and Germany in April 1945, remaining there as part of the occupation forces until disbanding as a Polish fighter unit on 3 January 1947 (it had earlier disbanded as a RAF fighter unit at RAF Hethel on 18 December 1946).