RAF Scampton originally referred to as "Squadron X", was formed at Scampton in order to carry out the proposed raid, codenamed Operation Chastise. More commonly referred to as the "Dambusters Raid", the raid would go down as the most famous and widely remembered in the history of the Royal Air Force. On the night of 16–17 May 1943, 617 Sqn despatched 19 Lancasters from Scampton. Led by Wing Commander Guy Gibson, the main bulk of the squadron attacked the Sorpe, Eder and Möhne dams with an additional aircraft tasked to perform an attack on the Schwelm Dam. Both the Eder and Möhne
RAF Scampton and as the retention of the base as an operational RAF Station was then looking uncertain, it was hoped that the decision would have led to making its future more secure. However, financial problems meant that infrastructure improvements were not possible and these units moved to RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire instead. In 2005 Scampton was again placed under the control of RAF Strike Command, becoming home to the UK Air Surveillance and Control System (ASACS) Control and Reporting Centre (CRC) and Mobile Met Unit (MMU). The No1 Air Control Centre deployed to Afghanistan in 2006 as part of Operation