Its most famous service was in 1940 in the Battle of Britain during the Second World War, when it defended London and the south-east of the United Kingdom from attacks by the German Luftwaffe.

It was reformed in late 2018 as a "multi-domain operations group" to ensure the service thinks and acts in a networked way.

The next incarnation of the Group occurred on 22 August 1918 when it was formed as part of the North-Western Area.

The most famous period of the Group was during the Battle of Britain when it bore the brunt of the German aerial assault.

During the Battle of Britain, the Group was commanded by New Zealander Air vice-marshal Keith Park.

Leigh-Mallory's lack of support compromised Fighter Command at a critical time and the controversy caused problems for Park.

When the Battle of Britain was over, Leigh-Mallory, acting with Air marshal Sholto Douglas, conspired to have Park removed from his position (along with the Commander-in-Chief of Fighter Command, Air chief marshal Hugh Dowding).

The English Electric Lightning F.1 entered service in 1960 and the McDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR.2 in 1969, with 43 (China-British) Squadron at RAF Leuchars.

Air Vice Marshal Anthony Bagnall, who took over on 15 July 1994, was the Group's last commander.

No increase in the number of senior officers or staff at headquarters was proposed as part of the reformation.

[2] The group reformed at a ceremony at RAF High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire on 1 November 2018, when Air Vice-Marshal Ian Duguid took command.

The Group is to ensure that the large amounts of data, intelligence and information contributes to the planning and execution of operations in the domains of air, space and cyber.