It is a front-line station and home to the RAF's fleet of Westland Puma HC2 support helicopters, used primarily for the transportation of troops & equipment.

It was later home to squadrons flying the Supermarine Spitfire and de Havilland Mosquito which operated in the photographic reconnaissance role.

During the 1970s, various communications and administrative units were present and in the early 1990s the station began its association with the support helicopter force.

[7] In the early hours of 2 August 1940, a Battle took off from Benson for a cross-country training exercise but crashed into a nearby hill.

1 PRU), an experimental unit tasked with evaluating and developing new methods of obtaining photographic intelligence over enemy territory, led by pioneer in the field Squadron Leader Sidney Cotton.

[7] Utilising Supermarine Spitfires, the unit found that their camouflage and operating altitude allowed them to remain virtually invisible to enemy defences and avoid interception.

Additional fuel tanks on the Spitfires allowed missions to take place deep into enemy territory.

[7] Analysis of imagery was undertaken by the intelligence unit at nearby Ewelme Manor, a short distance from the station.

As a result of such work, the station gained considerable fame as the home of photographic reconnaissance for the remainder of the war.

The group was assigned to Coastal Command's photo reconnaissance assets, with the whole of Northern Europe as its operational area.

[9] Spitfire and Mosquito aircraft flew missions over occupied Europe, including the provision of battle damage assessment images after Operation Chastise, the attack on German dams by No.

[11] During the war Vera Lynn, known as 'the forces Sweetheart', visited Benson to entertain the troops, reportedly singing "The White Cliffs of Dover" at the station.

[6][17] Thereafter, Benson became the focus of the RAF's medium-range tactical transport fleet, operating the Armstrong Whitworth Argosy C.1.

[17] Flying activity increased in January 1983 when the Hawker Siddeley Andover arrived from RAF Brize Norton.

[17] The headquarters of the Support Helicopter Force (SHFHQ) relocated to Benson from RAF Gütersloh in 1993, after the German station's closure that year.

[17][23] Due to the increased level of helicopter activity at Benson, it was necessary to relocate the University of London Air Squadron to RAF Wyton during 1999.

[17] To accommodate the new aircraft and personnel, a £25 million investment at Benson saw the refurbishment of the four C-type hangars, upgrading of station services & infrastructure and construction of engineering facilities and 100 homes.

[17] Doubt was cast over the future of RAF Benson during a review of Joint Helicopter Command's (JHC) airfields, known as Programme Belvedere.

Consideration was given to closing at least one JHC airfield, with Benson's support helicopters potentially relocating to RAF Lyneham.

32 (The Royal) Squadron temporarily relocated to Benson between 15 April 2019 and late October 2019 due to the resurfacing of the runway at RAF Northolt.

The facility was established in October 1997 and is operated by CAE Aircrew Training Services through a Private Finance Initiative contract.

It employs around 70 personnel and trains RAF, Royal Navy, British Army, NATO and foreign crews.

606 (Chiltern) Squadron (RAuxAF) is a reserve unit that provides personnel in ground-support roles to assist the Support Helicopter Force.

[48] RAF Benson is also home to the Grob Tutor T1 light training aircraft of the Oxford University Air Squadron and No.

The units offer basic flying training to University undergraduates and graduates and encourage members to embark upon a career in the RAF.

[47] Prior to the establishment of the NPAS in October 2012, a Eurocopter Squirrel of the Chiltern Air Support Unit had been based at Benson since March 1998.

[50] Thames Valley Air Ambulance (TVAA) which moved from White Waltham Airfield in January 2007 and also operates the Airbus H135.

[47] RAF Benson Flying Club (RAFBFC) operate a number of civilian registered light aircraft from the site.

It carries the markings of Flight Lieutenant Duncan McCuaig who died while conducting a photographic reconnaissance mission over Bremen in Germany as part of Operation Crossbow.

They are described by Historic England as "intact examples of the K8 model kiosk, an inventive modernist adaptation of Sir Giles Gilbert Scott's classic K6 design".