| United Kingdom Royal Air Force (RAF) Number 619 Squadron Avro Lancaster III. The squadron was formed out of elements of 97 Squadron at RAF Woodhall Spa in Lincolnshire on April 18, 1943, equipped with Lancaster Mark III bombers, as part of 5 Group in Bomber Command. It also flew Lancaster Mark I bombers. Their 1st mission was flown in the night of June 11, 1943, when 12 Lancasters were sent to bomb targets in Düsseldorf, and the last bombing mission was flown on April 25, 1945, when 6 Lancasters tried to bomb Obersalzberg. The last operational mission was flown a day later, when 2 Lancasters laid mines in the Oslo Fjord near Horten. After that mission the squadron ferried ex-prisoners of war back to the United Kingdom from Belgium in Operation Exodus. The squadron operated out of various Lincolnshire stations, before being disbanded at RAF Skellingthorpe on July 18, 1945. Members of the squadron were awarded 1 DSO, 76 Distinguished Flying Crosses and 37 Distinguished Flying Medals. The squadron was mentioned 10 times in dispatches. LM446, seen here, crashed on a mission the night of May 9/10, 1944; none of the crew survived. This version of the Lancaster has 4 Packard-built Merlin engines. | |
| Image Filename | wwii2205.jpg |
| Image Size | 298.34 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2000 x 1199 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | Royal Air Force Official Photographer |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | February 1, 1944 |
| Location | |
| City | |
| State or Province | |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Archive | Imperial War Museum |
| Record Number | CH 12350 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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