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'No. 8 Squadron is one of the largest squadrons in today's Royal Air Force with over 300 personnel.
The first RAF operational squadron to fly the Boeing E-3D AWACS aircraft, the squadron moved to RAF
Waddington in 1991 from RAF Lossiemouth where it previously operated the Avro Shackleton AEW Mk2.
In the eighteen years of E-3D operations, crews from No. 8 Squadron have been involved in many conflicts,
providing Airborne Early Warning (AEW), Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and Command and
Control (Cē) functions to other aircraft and land units. This started shortly after the Squadron's
re-formation with operational tasking over Bosnia. The Squadron remained focussed on Balkan
operations during the Kosovan campaign. Shortly after this finished, the crews were deployed to
the Middle East where they participated in operations over Afghanistan. Most recently, crews were
involved in Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. Today No. 8 Squadron regularly operates all over the world
and in the last year alone crews deployed to Alaska, Hawaii, the Falkland Islands, Norway, various European
locations, and continental USA. In addition, the Squadron has participated in operations in the
Baltic, Central America and Cyprus, making it as ready as ever to deploy at short notice in support of UK
and NATO operations anywhere in the world. The Squadron's proud motto Uspiam et Passim - Everywhere
Unbounded, rings truer now than ever.'
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