Which military force did Roald Dahl join as a fighter pilot during World War II?

Roald Dahl joined the Royal Air Force as a fighter pilot during World War II.

Before becoming a full-time writer, Dahl worked for Shell Oil in East Africa. When World War II began, he joined the RAF and trained as a pilot. He flew operational missions in the Middle East and North Africa, including with No. 80 Squadron.

In 1940, Dahl crash-landed his Gloster Gladiator in the Libyan desert after being sent to an unsuitable landing ground. He suffered severe injuries, including a fractured skull and spinal damage, but later returned to flying after recovering. The accident became one of the defining episodes of his early life.

Dahl’s wartime experiences influenced his first published stories and later memoirs. He did not begin as a novelist; aviation, injury, diplomatic work, and journalism all preceded his children’s fiction career.