No. 186 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was formed on 1 April 1918 at East Retford, providing night pilot training for home defence and on the Western front. On 31 December 1918 it was reformed as an operational shipboard unit aboard HMS Argus. In 1919, the squadron became a torpedo development unit, renumbering to become 210 Squadron on 1 February 1920. Six months later, on 5 October 1944, The squadron was reformed as a Bomber Command Lancaster unit, based at Tuddenham, and flew its first bombing raid 13 days later. The squadron was disbanded on 17 July 1945.