[3] After the successful use of aerial bombardment in the Fifth Expedition of Somaliland campaign in 1920, the fledgling RAF was keen to further establish its military credentials.

[3] Operations commenced on 9 March 1925,[4] and following an initial sortie to drop warning leaflets on the targeted areas, the RAF squadrons strafed tribal mountain strongholds in a successful attempt to crush the rebellion.

[2][3] Pink's War was the first air action of the RAF carried out independently of the British Army or Royal Navy.

[2] After the campaign was over, the India General Service Medal with the Waziristan 1925 bar was awarded to the 46 officers and 214 men of the Royal Air Force who took part in Pink's War.

[8] A further 14 men were mentioned in dispatches, including flying officers Edward Dashwood and Noel Hayter-Hames, who both died in the campaign.