7. Commonwealth Air Forces were to operate from bases in Okinawa
Planners for Operation Olympic created a joint Commonwealth air group designated Tiger Force. Tiger Force was to have consisted of Royal Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force, and Royal New Zealand Air Force units, as well as veteran aircrews from Bomber Command in England. Among them was the 617 squadron, known as the Dam Busters, who would be used for special air operations, such as the destruction of Japanese bunkers. Tiger Force was to have been equipped with Avro Lancasters, Avro Lincolns, and the American-built Consolidated B-24 Liberator. They were to be supported with Hawker Tempest fighters, and P-51 Mustangs flown by American pilots.
Among the plans for Tiger Group was inflight refueling, using a process developed by the British before the war using converted Halifax tankers. Inflight refueling had been used prior to the war over the Atlantic using the system to be deployed at Okinawa, but development had been curtailed during the war in Europe, and inflight refueling had yet to be attempted during combat. Nevertheless, it was necessary to increase the range of the British bombers in order to make them effective against Japan, allowing them to strike targets and return to their base in Okinawa. In addition to the ground-based bombers, the British were to supply 18 aircraft carriers, 25% of the sea-based airpower.