RAF West Malling over the Channel. The three surviving aircraft were rescued only when the fight was joined by Hurricanes from No. 111 Squadron. The remainder of the unit returned north to RAF Prestwick on 25 July due to the ineffectiveness of the Defiant against single-seat fighters. No. 29 Squadron flying Bristol Beaufighters arrived for its first tour of duty on 27 April 1941. One of the Squadron's pilots, Guy Gibson VC, later officer commanding 617 Squadron on the Dambusters Raid, said of the station "Of all the airfields in Great Britain ... we have the most pleasant". A regular and long-standing inhabitant,
No. 342 Squadron RAF their sister squadron No. 88 Squadron to RAF Hartford Bridge. The squadron flew low-level bombing and strafing missions (nicknamed "hedgehopping"), over France and the Netherlands, in particular against V-1 bases in Northern France and selected sites connected with the preparation for D-Day. In October 1944 the squadron relocated to France from where it continued to support the Allied advance. In March/April 1945 the Bostons were replaced by B-25 Mitchells and the squadron relocated to the Netherlands. The squadron was transferred from RAF control to the French Air Force ( "Armée de l'Air" ) on 2 December 1945. No. 342 Squadron