Events during the history of 616 Squadron
| December 1938 | Sqdn formed |
| 30 January 1939 | Squadron received its Gloster Gauntlet Mk.IIs |
| 26 March 1939 | Ken Holden became first sqdn trained pilot to get his wings |
| 18 September 1939 | S/Ldr Walter 'Bike' Beisiegel became 616 CO |
| 24 September 1939 | E.W.S. Scott joined 616 |
| 27 September 1939 | Denys Gillam joined 616 |
| 8 November 1939 | First Spitfire arrives |
| 14 November 1939 | Another 10 Spitfires delivered |
| December 1939 | Operational training begins |
| 1940 | |
| 11 January 1940 | First war patrol flown |
| 21 February 1940 | J.S. Bell collided with a Magister during take-off, killing P/O Coysh |
| 21 February 1940 | Wilson disappeared into mist at sea, never found |
| 1 May 1940 | S/Ldr Beisiegel posted to the Staff College |
| May 1940 | Marcus Robinson took command of 616 |
| 27 May 1940 | 616 took part in providing air cover over Dunkirk |
| 1 June 1940 | J.S.Bell ditched after combat with 109s, rescued |
| 4 June 1940 | E.W.S. Scott crashed and killed at Rochford during a poor weather landing |
| 4 August 1940 | J.P. Walsh killed during a practice dogfight |
| 7 August 1940 | R.A.D. Smith killed night flying at Leconfield |
| 15 August 1940 | Squadron intercepted a raid against Bridlington and claims 8 bombers |
| 19 August 1940 | Squadron moved to Kenley with 22 pilots and 18 Spitfires |
| 22 August 1940 | Hugh Dundas shot down and wounded |
| 25 August 1940 | P.T. Wareing crashed near Calais and captured, escaped via Sweden |
| 25 August 1940 | T.E. Westmoreland killed in combat over Canterbury |
| 26 August 1940 | J.S. Bell crash-landed after combat with a 109. |
| 26 August 1940 | P. Copeland shot down and wounded near Wye |
| 26 August 1940 | Roy Marples force landed at Adisham, wounded in leg |
| 26 August 1940 | G.E. Moberley shot down and killed over Eastchurch |
| 26 August 1940 | M. Ridley shot down, crashed and killed at Adisham |
| 26 August 1940 | E.F. StAubyn crashed-landed with burns at Eastchurch |
| 26 August 1940 | W.L.B. Walker wounded in the foot during a patrol over Dover |
| 30 August 1940 | J.S. Bell killed during landing at West Malling following combat with a 109. |
| 30 August 1940 | James Hopewell overshot whilst landing and wrecked his aircraft |
| 2 September 1940 | Denys Gillam shot down and baled out |
| 3 September 1940 | Marcus Robinson left 616 |
| 3 September 1940 | 'Billy' Burton took command of 616, sqdn moves to Kirton-in-Lindsay and becomes category C |
| 5 September 1940 | New pilots joined 616 - F/O Forshaw, P/O Johnson, Sgt Ward |
| 18 September 1940 | Squadron declared operational again |
| 19 September 1940 | 616 join 242, 310 and 19 Sqdns in the Duxford Wing |
| 27 September 1940 | D.S. Smith shot down, died of wounds on the 28th |
| This was part of a Duxford Wing attack on 100 Me109s | |
| 5 November 1940 | C.A.T. Jones wounded whilst attacking a He111 |
| 1941 | |
| 15 January 1941 | Dundas and Johnson share a damaged Do17 |
| 26 January 1941 | 616 join 145 and 610 at Tangmere, relieving 65 Sqdn |
| 18 March 1941 | Douglas Bader became Wing Leader at Tangmere |
| 27 March 1941 | Macfie damages a Me110 |
| 1 April 1941 | P/O R.M. Lintoot, Sgt R.C. Brewer (NZ), Jeff West (NZ) joined 616 |
| 17 April 1941 | 616 flies its first Circus operation as bomber escort over Le Havre and Cherbourg |
| 19 April 1941 | Sgt Sherwood joined |
| 21 April 1941 | R.L. Sellars baled out over the Channel but never found |
| 24 April 1941 | Macfie strafed at least 7 109s at Maupertus, but T.F. McDevette was shot down and killed |
| 5 May 1941 | Sgt Bowen joined 616 |
| 8 May 1941 | First trial run of 'finger four' - Bader and Dundas, and Woodhouse and Mains from 610 |
| 9 May 1941 | Squadron moved to Westhampnett (now called Goodwood Aerodrome) |
| 11 May 1941 | Sgt Scott joined |
| 12 May 1941 | Sgt Crabtree joined |
| 17 May 1941 | Dundas destroyed a 109 |
| 19 May 1941 | P/O Walter transferred to No 1 Delivery Flight, Hendon |
| 31 May 1941 | Sherwood left 616 for 266 |
| 2 June 1941 | Sutherland crashed during landing |
| 5 June 1941 | Ken Holden left 616 to command 610 |
| 12 June 1941 | S.C. Walters left for No 11 Group Flight, Croydon |
| 16 June 1941 | P/O T.F.Leckie joined from 53 OTU |
| 17 June 1941 | Squadron flew 7 sorties in this one day |
| 20 June 1941 | P/O Trench joined from 65 OTU |
| 21 June 1941 | Brown, killed by Adolf Galland over Boulogne |
| 23 June 1941 | Derrick Beedham baled out over Channel, rescued |
| 25 June 1941 | Code change from QJ to YQ |
| 25 June 1941 | R.L. Brewer killed in a sweep over St. Omer |
| 25 June 1941 | Jenks killed during a sweep over St. Omer |
| 26 June 1941 | James Johnson destroyed his first enemy a/c |
| 29 June 1941 | E.P.P. Gibbs promoted to S/Ldr, but stays with 616 |
| 3 July 1941 | D.B. Crabtree shot down and evaded capture |
| 5 July 1941 | Colin MacFie shot down and captured |
| 6 July 1941 | J. McCairns crash-landed at Gravelines and captured. Eventually escaped and returned home |
| 8 July 1941 | Hugh Dundas promoted to 'A' Flight commander |
| 9 July 1941 | E.P.P. Gibbs shot down and evaded capture |
| 9 July 1941 | Robert Morton shot down and captured |
| 12 July 1941 | 'Huck' Murray joins 616 from 403 |
| 14 July 1941 | James Johnson credited with a 109 |
| 21 July 1941 | S.W.R. Mabbett shot down and killed |
| 21 July 1941 | Nelson killed during training flight |
| 9 August 1941 | Douglas Bader shot down and captured |
| 9 August 1941 | 'Buck' Casson shot down and captured |
| 10 August 1941 | Roy Marples promoted to F/Lt and posted out of 616 |
| 14 August 1941 | L.M. McKee baled out SE of Calais and made a home run via Gibralter |
| 14 August 1941 | Sgt Allan Smith received his commission |
| 14 August 1941 | 'Mitzi' Darling joined to take command of 'B' Flight |
| 14 August 1941 | P/O Malton posted to 145 Sqn |
| 14 August 1941 | P/O Lionel Pilkington posted from 145 Sqn |
| 30 August 1941 | 610 Sqn left the Tangmere Wing |
| August 1941 | 'Billy' Burton leaves 616 |
| August 1941 | Colin Gray took command of 616 |
| September 1941 | P/O Pilkington promoted to Flt/Lt and posted to 111 Sqn, killed 20 September 1941 |
| September 1941 | Allan Smith left |
| 21 September 1941 | J.C. Carter became a PoW |
| 21 September 1941 | James Johnson credited with two 109s |
| 22 September 1941 | E.H. Burton killed in a training flight over Brighton |
| 22 September 1941 | J.B. Slack killed in a training flight over Brighton |
| 27 September 1941 | Jeff West baled out over the sea and rescued |
| 8 November 1941 | D.R. Scott shot down and killed over Dunkirk |
| 1942 | |
| 6 January 1942 | M.M. Waite killed during a convoy patrol |
| 25 January 1942 | Derrick Beedham left for the Middle East |
| 24 February 1942 | Phil Miller joined 616 |
| 27 February 1942 | 'Huck' Murray left 616 for 416 Sqdn |
| February 1942 | 'Nip' Hepple posted to Malta |
| February 1942 | Jeff West posted to Malta |
| 12 April 1942 | M. Lepel-Cointet went missing afterr a sweep over Hazebrouck |
| 12 April 1942 | E.W. Strouts captured after a sweep over Hazebrouck |
| 13 April 1942 | George Davidson killed in flying accident |
| 15 April 1942 | Phil Miller injured when his Spitfire crashed off Dungeness |
| 22 April 1942 | Started receiving Mk.VI Spitfires |
| 25 May 1942 | C.P. Brown wounded in combat with a Dornier 217 near Leicester |
| 26 May 1942 | Leicester Ware killed in a flying accident returning from patrol |
| 3 June 1942 | P.J. Moore shot down and killed |
| 20 June 1942 | Warwick Clouston (RNZAF) killed |
| June 1942 | Jack Cleland joined 616 |
| 10 July 1942 | James Johnson left 616 to command 610 |
| 28 July 1942 | Tony Gaze gets first confirmed with a Spitfire VI, bringing down a FW190 |
| 30 July 1942 | Mike Cooper shot down and rescued |
| 30 July 1942 | R.G. Large shot down and rescued |
| 30 July 1942 | D. Lee crashed and killed whilst landing - presumably because of damage caused during the sortie |
| 30 July 1942 | J.R. Mace failed to return |
| 19 August 1942 | N.W.J. Coldrey (Rhodesia) killed over Dieppe |
| 19 August 1942 | J.S. Fifield shot down over Dieppe and rescued |
| 19 August 1942 | N.G. Welch safely belly-landed following combat over Dieppe |
| 2 October 1942 | Mike Cooper shot down and rescued |
| 1 November 1942 | J.K. Rodger injured during a convoy patrol |
| 1 November 1942 | Philip Shaw Smith killed during a convoy patrol |
| 1943 | |
| 5 April 1943 | P.B. Wright killed during a Ramrod to Landunvez |
| 13 April 1943 | Phil Miller posted back to Australia |
| 16 April 1943 | G.B. McLachlan killed during a Ramrod to Brest |
| 18 April 1943 | S.J. Fowler ditched with engine trouble and rescued |
| 23 May 1943 | S.L. Watts hit by flak and crash-landed safely |
| 15 June 1943 | Robert Sim shot down by flak and killed near Sark |
| 16 August 1943 | Mike Cooper shot down and evaded capture |
| 22 August 1943 | R.T. Wright ditched at sea and rescued |
| 31 August 1943 | R. McKillop shot down and killed |
| 31 August 1943 | P.W. Shale killed during an ASR sortie |
| 21 October 1943 | Alan Finlay Smith killed in a flying accident |
| 5 November 1943 | W. Gordon ditched at sea but never found |
| 1944 | |
| 6 June 1944 | Jack Cleland left 616 |
| 12 July 1944 | First Meteors delivered |
| 27 July 1944 | MacKenzie (RCAF) flew the first operational sortie in a Meteor |
| 15 August 1944 | D.A. Gregg killed whilst trying to land his Meteor at Great Chart |
| 1945 | |
| 29 April 1945 | B. Cartmel killed when his Meteor collided with S/Ldr Watts' |
| 1 May 1945 | J. Schrader (RNZAF) took command of 616 |
| 1980s | 'Nip' Hepple died |
| 1995 | Phil Miller died |
| 30 November 1998 | Mike Cooper died |
Last Updated on 06/12/00
By Ian Wedge