need military help

If anyone knows...

What rank would the guy in charge of a (major) British air base be?

If he was going to send out a small strike force to carry out a mission in enemy territory during a time of war, what rank would the leader of that expedition most likely be? How many men would such a force most likely be comprised of? (Frex, would it tend to be some number that's a multiple of 8 or of 10 or 12, for example? Like, would 24 men be reasonable?) What rank would the general members of such an expedition probably be?

Thanks in advance (-:

(no subject)

Darn it! I was waiting for a particular market's reading period to open up so I could send off my story Lima Bean. Unlike all my other stories, which are mostly Space Opera with all the subtlety of a brick to the head (an entertaining brick, I like to think) this one is so barely genre if you blink you'll miss it. So I've had a really hard time figuring out where to try to place it.

Anyhow, said market did indeed reopen to subs today as expected, but only for flash fiction. Brief I ain't. Bah humbug! Back to waiting I go.