In 1951, 14 Squadron entered the jet age with the introduction of the De Havilland Vampire FB5.  With these aircraft, the Squadron took on a new role as both a day fighter and ground attack unit.  Although the Vampire began to be progressively replaced by the Venom FB1 from 1953, serviceability problems with the Venom meant that the Vampire was never completely replaced.  The Squadron’s Standard, awarded in 1943, was presented to the Unit at Fassberg on 21st August 1954 by Air Vice-Marshall Thomas Traill who had himself commanded 14 Squadron in the 1930s.

Shortly after re-equipment with the Hawker Hunter F4 in 1955, arrangements were made to hand the base at Fassberg to the Luftwaffe, and 14 Squadron was transferred to Oldenburg where it joined 124 Wing in the day fighter role.  NATO policy to return a number of airbases in Germany to the Luftwaffe, and also the contraction of the RAF after the 1957 Defence White Paper caused subsequent moves to Ahlhorn in 1957 and then to Gutersloh in 1958.  While at Ahlhorn the Squadron received the Hunter F6 aircraft which it operated until, as the last Day Fighter squadron in RAF Germany, it disbanded on 17th December 1962.

On the same day, 88 Squadron, flying Canberra B(I)8 strike aircraft at Wildenrath was re-numbered 14 Squadron.  The new 14 Squadron was operational in the nuclear strike and long range interdiction roles.  Although most of the day-to-day flying took place within the low flying system in Germany, there were also a number of detachments to use bombing ranges in the Mediterranean, as well as occasional detachments to Africa and the Middle East.  In 1964, 14 Squadron aircraft and crews deployed to Kuantan, an operational detachment which was part of the RAF’s response to the Indonesian Confrontation. On this occasion, however, the Squadron was not required to take offensive action.

In June 1970, 14 Squadron moved to RAF Bruggen and became the first unit in RAF Germany to be equipped with the McDonnell-Douglas F4M Phantom FGR2.  With supersonic performance and a pulsed-doppler air-to-air radar, the Phantom provided a considerable improvement to the Squadron’s operational capability.  The Phantom era set the pattern for the next twenty years: maintenance of the nuclear strike role, and training for both nuclear and conventional operations within the low flying system in Germany.  Additionally, annual Armament Practice camps were held at the Quadri-national Training Base at Decimomannou in Sardinia.  Shortly after becoming operational with the Phantom, 14 Squadron won the Salmond Trophy, a highly prestigious bombing and navigation competition between the flying Squadrons in RAF Germany.  The Phantom was replaced by the Sepecat Jaguar GR1 aircraft in 1975, making 14 Squadron the first-ever single-seat strike squadron in the RAF, and with this new aeroplane the Squadron went on to achieve the remarkable feat of winning the Salmond Trophy for the three consecutive years of 1975, 76 and 77.  For the ten years in which it operated the Jaguar, the Squadron consistently achieved the highest operational standards as assessed by the NATO Tactical Evaluation (TACEVAL) Team.

The Jaguar aircraft was replaced by the Panavia Tornado GR1 in October 1985, and with the new aircraft came a long-range night/all-weather capability.  In 1990, the Squadron deployed to Bahrain as part of the RAF’s initial response to the Kuwait crisis.  When hostilities started in February 1991, most of the Squadron had returned to Bruggen; however, four of the Squadron’s crews flew operations with the Tornado detachment at Dhahran and two other crews operated from Tabuk throughout the Gulf War.  After the cessation of hostilities, the Squadron was still engaged with air operations over Iraq which continued for the next fifteen years. During this period the Squadron frequently mounted detachments to Saudi Arabia, and later Kuwait, and a number of laser-guided bombs were dropped on targets in Southern Iraq.

During the Kosovo War of April 1999, 14 Squadron flew operational sorties from its base at Bruggen against Serbian military infrastructure in Kosovo and Serbia.  These sorties, many of which lasted in excess of seven hours, were conducted at night and were supported by VC10 air-to-air refuelling.  Two years later, when Bruggen closed as a result of the contraction of the RAF after the end of the Cold War, 14 Squadron moved to Lossiemouth – the first time, apart from a brief period in 1945, that the unit had been permanently based in the UK since its formation in 1915.  The Tornado GR1 aircraft were superseded by the Tornado GR4 variant in 2004.

14 Squadron continued to operate the Tornado GR4 aircraft from its base at Lossiemouth and it regularly participated in training exercises throughout the NATO area including the US and Canada.  The Squadron was also heavily involved in British military operations over Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Defence announced in March 2011 that 14 Squadron, along with 13 Squadron based at Marham, would be disbanded on the 1 June 2011. Subsequently the Air Force Board agreed that 14 Squadron’s numberplate should be passed to a new unit operating in the Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) role.  This unit had previously been operating as a semi-autonomous Flight within 5 Squadron at RAF Waddington.  The new 14 Squadron operates 5 Beechcraft Shadow R1 aircraft, an aircraft which is based on the twin turboprop KingAir 350ER.  It boasts turret-housed Electro-optical /Infra-red sensors, defensive aids and a fully integrated communications suite which includes datalink and satellite capabilities.

The Shadow had been operational in Afghanistan since 2009 and by July 2012 the aircraft had clocked up over 10, 000 hours’ worth of operational flying in theatre.  The Squadron was heavily committed to supporting army operations in Afghanistan (where it maintained a permanent detachment) and elsewhere in the world where the aircraft’s unique ISTAR capabilities can play a vital role in national contingency operations.

Thus the present 14 Squadron’s role, working in close co-operation with army units, is very similar to that of 14 Squadron RFC during its first operational deployment in late 1915.