No. 1586 Flight RAF

No. 1586 Flight RAF
A Halifax similar to those flown by 1586 Flt.
Active	4 November 1943 – 7 November 1944[1]
Role	Special Duties
Garrison/HQ	RAF Derna RAF Brindisi[1]
Equipment	Handley Page Halifax II Consolidated Liberator III Consolidated Liberator IV HAR.10 Hawker Hurricane IID[1]
Insignia
Identification symbol	GR

No. 1586 (Polish Special Duties) Flight was first formed at RAF Derna, in Libya on 4 November 1943, equipped with Handley Page Halifax II special duties aircraft. The flight was disbanded on 7 November 1944 at RAF Brindisi to resume operations as No. 301 Squadron RAF.^[1]

The origin of 1586 flight was the remnants of 301 (Polish) Squadron after disbandment by the Polish HQ due to lack of staff and trained crews. Remaining crews and aircraft formed C Flight of 138 Squadron, which was temporarily renamed as 301 Squadron Special Duties Flight RAF, before becoming 1586 Flight.^[1]

Missions flown by the flight included partisan supply drops and agent insertion.^[1]

References

1. Lake, Alan (1999). Flying units of the RAF : the ancestry, formation and disbandment of all flying units from 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. pp. . ISBN 1-84037-086-6.