Squadron code
{{short description|Military aircraft marking}}
A squadron code is a marking used on a military aircraft to visually identify the squadron that it is assigned to.
Squadron codes of the World War II era, notably for Royal Air Force (RAF) and United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) aircraft operating in Europe, typically consisted of two characters (commonly two letters; sometimes a letter and a number) to denote the squadron, plus a third character to identify a specific aircraft and serve as its call sign.{{cite web |url=http://air-war.org.uk/GENERAL/rafcode.htm |title=RAF Squadron Reference Section 1939-1945 |website=air-war.org.uk |accessdate=November 21, 2022}}{{cite web |url=https://www.worldwarphotos.info/usaaf-codes/ |title=USAAF squadron codes |website=worldwarphotos.info |accessdate=November 21, 2022}} In general, when an aircraft was lost or withdrawn from use, its call sign was applied to its replacement or another aircraft.{{cite book|last=Lake|first=Alan|title=Flying units of the RAF|publisher=Airlife Publishing|location=Shrewsbury|year=1999|edition=1st|pages=294–303|isbn=1-84037-086-6}}
Gallery
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| image1 = Spitfire - Season Premiere Airshow 2018 (cropped).jpg
| caption1 = A Supermarine Spitfire with squadron code ZD, designating No. 222 Squadron RAF{{cite web |url=http://air-war.org.uk/SQNCODES/zmisc.htm |title=RAF Squadron Reference Section 1939-1945 {{!}} z to Misc |website=air-war.org.uk |accessdate=November 21, 2022}}
| image2 = Barksdale Global Power Museum September 2015 08 (Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress).jpg
| caption2 = A Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress with squadron code PU, designating the 360th Bombardment Squadron of the 303rd Bombardment Group
| image3 = 576th Bombardment Squadron - B-24 Liberators.jpg
| caption3 = A Consolidated B-24 Liberator with squadron code CI, designating the 576th Bombardment Squadron of the 392nd Bombardment Group
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