No. 156 Squadron RAF

No. 156 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron that was active as a bomber unit in World War II.

Formation and World War I
No. 156 Squadron Royal Air Force was first formed on 12 October 1918 at RAF Wyton and equipped with DH 9 aircraft, but was disbanded on 9 December 1918 without becoming operational.

Reformation in World War II
The squadron reformed in February 1942 from the home echelon of 40 sqn at RAF Alconbury, in the Huntingdonshire area of Cambridgeshire, as part of No. 3 Group RAF and was equipped with Wellingtons. In August 1942 it joined No. 8 Group RAF it became one of the original pathfinder squadrons, converting to Lancasters in January 1943. It continued in the pathfinder role until the end of the war, being based at RAF Warboys, RAF Upwood and finally its original founding base, RAF Wyton, where it disbanded on 25 September 1945.

Notable pilots

 * Gordon Cochrane
 * Peter Isaacson
 * Frank Watkins

Memorials
There is a memorial to the crash of Avro Lancaster ED840, 156 Squadron, which crashed in the town in Lier, Belgium on 17th June 1943. It was on a mission to Cologne when it was shot down by anti-aircraft fire.