Originally Posted by
frodo_monkey
Formations will normally use a formation callsign - allocated to a particular Squadron - plus a numerical identifier corresponding to a place within the formation. So ‘Vandal 2’ would be the no 2 in Vandal formation - Vandal being a 617 Sqn callsign (or at least it was in Tornado times). Some variations on this theme, so if there were two Vandal formations launching in a day the first four might be Vandal 11-14, and the second 4-ship Vandal 21-24 etc.
Thanks. That's how I understood it; that's how I'd always approached stuff when these aircraft were supposed to be on actual operations.