JAMES STIRLING

"Spitfire!"

In the desperate months of August to October of 1940, the fate of the British Nation lay in the hands of a few brave fighter pilots of the Royal Air Force that fought daily life and death battles against the might of the German Luftwaffe.

When the German High Command realized they were not going to defeat the RAF so easily, Hitler cancelled his invasion plans, blaming the pompous Luftwaffe Supreme Commander Reich Marschall Hermann Goering for failing to keep his promise to obliterate the RAF from the skies.

It was to become known as the 'Battle of Britain'.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

(To set the scene we follow the first few weeks of a new volunteer pilot just joining a frontline RAF fighter unit.)

The slow moving train finally jolted to a stop in a small rail station somewhere in Kent and I joined several aircraft mechanics clambering into a truck. Arriving at the airfield the vehicle pulled up outside the the administration block, and the tailgate was dropped and we all jumped down to the ground. A RAF Flight Sergeant who was holding a clip board in his hands, and quickly establishing that all the personnel matched the names on his list he pointed at a building close by and shouted “Right lads, you lot report to the duties office immediately - on the double!”

Spotting that I was an officer his tone was a little less gruff.

“Your name, Sir?”

“Tom Finnegan” I replied.

“Pilot?” He asked.

My pilot wings were prominently displayed on the front of my jacket. "No, I’m an ice cream salesman " I thought.

“Yes, from the US of A!” I said wearily. As soon as any British person heard my accent they immediately had to know why in hell I wanted to leave a country at peace to come over and join the Royal Air Force. (Editor; Seven Americans came over and joined the RAF) I had made the long journey from Kansas to England to try and help in any way I could in the stand alone struggle this brave little country was making against the might of Nazi Germany.

“Pardon me for saying so but you must be bloody mad, Sir!” He grinned, and pointed to a small building across from us. “Report to the operations room in that building over there."

I grabbed my duffle bag and had started walking towards the building when I heard a banshee screaming sound over head. I instinctively dropped to the ground, for above me was several Junker Ju 87 Stuka bombers coming in low and already strafing the parked aircraft, moving rapidly on to drop their bombs on a large hanger.

It was all over in a matter of seconds, but it felt like a lifetime of terror as the bullets strafed the ground sending large tufts of grass into the air and the bombs exploded on the runway and aircraft maintenance buildings. I glanced around and saw that the truck was on fire and the body of the Sergeant was lying on the ground like a rag doll.

Welcome to England! I thought. When it was again quiet I picked myself up. I was shaking like a leaf but still in one piece, and grabbing my bag I set off at a run in the direction of the operations building. It was only a wooden hut, since the whole air field had been a private flying club before the war. The door was open and I walked inside.

“Who the hell are you?”

I was looking at a very harassed RAF Squadron Leader.

Stood before him was a bedraggled kid of 21 that had been on the move for over 12 hours, on a train with no lavatory that seemed to stop at every telegraph pole for fifteen minutes or more on the route down from London.

“Tom Finnegan, Sir. I’m an American volunteer and I’ve come to fly with your wing. Sorry to ask sir, but I’m absolutely desperate! - Is there a latrine nearby?”

“So the yanks have come to save us, eh?” he said with a wry smile on his face.

After what had just happened outside, he still managed to take it all in his stride and crack a joke. The phone rang and he picked it up. Listening for only a few seconds he yelled “Well for Christ sakes do something about it! What the hell do you think the RAF pay you for? Get the local fire brigade to come in and help put out the blaze!”

Slamming the phone back in its cradle he lit a cigarette and took a deep drag on the smoke.

He could not have been more than twenty six and yet he had the hard lines of an older man on his face. He could see my discomfort and pointed at a door. “In there –and be quick about it!” When I emerged from the toilet feeling so much better he looked me up and down.

It was not unusual for him to have a foreigner in front of him, for the Royal Air force was already recruiting Polish, Canadian, and Commonwealth pilots to add to their small numbers initially recruited from the home University flying club members, and already stretched serving RAF personnel.

“How many hours in Spitfires?”

“Twenty” I replied.

I had only 20 hours in Spits because that was all the time the RAF could spare in training me. But I had flown in several American single prop aircraft back home and had over 150 hours flying time under my belt.

“Christ! They are sending me boys now.” He mumbled under his breath. The radio operator sat behind him turned and told him it was another scramble.

“Don’t be bloody wet – we’ve only just come down!”

The radio guy said excitedly “It’s true Sir, HQ say there is another wave of enemy aircraft approaching us right now!”

“Bugger!” The officer exclaimed, and looking at me, he grabbed my arm and said “Ok, Tom - here’s your chance to show what you’ve got. Come on - and stick to me like glue!” On the way out of the door he rang the large bell hanging on a rope. Several pilots appeared from various places and began running towards their aircraft.

I found myself being strapped into a spare Spitfire that had been readied, and within five minutes we were airborne. That’s when I learned I had been talking to Squadron leader Charlie Rowans in the ops room. He was the temporary Commanding Officer until a replacement could be found for Bill Waterstone, the station Wing Commander that had been killed in action just four days before.

“Tom, don’t go off on your own no matter what happens. Stick to my tail, and for God sakes keep alert. You must keep your eyes constantly on your wing mirrors and what is above you. The 109’s love to come out of the sun.”

Within ten minutes we spotted at least 100 Heinkel He 111 bombers and charged in amongst them.

It was like a turkey shoot, for they were so slow and easy pickings for the experienced pilots in our flight. I kept behind my Squadron Leader’s wing as he had instructed me, and simply observed what he and the rest of the flight were capable of doing. I really wanted to learn something about tactics on my first sortie with my new posting.

I was thrilled at flying this wonderful machine, for the mark 1 Spitfire was graceful in the air and was responsive to my every whim. I was so pleased that I had made the decision to come over and fight for the British, and leaned back into my seat to enjoy this wonderful airplane.

Whack. It was like an express train hitting me, for the jolt pushed me forward in my harness almost to my instruments panel. I had been hit, but did not know where, for all the controls still worked perfectly.

The intercom burst into life and I heard Rowans yelling at me. “Look out Finnegan! You’ve got a 109 closing in on your tail. For Christ’s sake push your stick down and swerve out of it and lose him. Do not fly in a straight line!”

Fear gripped me and I panicked. I suddenly realized I did not know this aircraft properly, and instead of doing what Rowans had told me, I took forever to start diving and swerve out of the 109’s gun sights.

There was another jolt and I knew I had been hit again.

During training I had heard stories of RAF pilots being trapped in their aircraft and being badly burned, even though they had managed to ditch in the English Channel and be picked up by rescue boats.

Panic stricken, I began to grab at the bullet proof bubble hatch above me and got it open a few inches before it stuck. Even though I was not on fire I had a vision of those poor unfortunates that had suffered this fate.

Suddenly I heard a burst of gunfire behind me and saw the 109 falling away below. If it had not been for Charlie Rowans I would be dead, for he had swiftly turned around and come in behind the 109 and downed him.

Gathering my wits about me, and with my adrenalin pumping at full speed, I managed to close up just under Rowans wing, blasting away with my machine guns at imaginary enemy aircraft.

On landing, my maintenance crew found several holes in the fuselage and a bullet lodged in the metal frame of my seat. If it had come in a quarter of an inch higher it would have cleared the seat and I would have been killed.

Rowans caught up with me as I walked towards the debriefing room.

“You bloody fool! You nearly bought it just now. Remember what I told you about keeping an eye out of your arse for the enemy? You only need to relax for a second and it can be your last. You were lucky today, so for Christ sakes keep your wits about you next time. And by the way, don’t waste ammo. We are short as it is. We’ve all done it, but you must learn quickly to live another day. Only fire for a few seconds when you actually have something in front of you to shoot at!”

He started to walk away, but stopped and turned. “When was the last time you ate a hot meal?”

“Yesterday, Sir.”

He called an air crewman over and said “Take pilot officer Finnegan to the Officers mess and tell cookie to feed him, and then show him where his quarters are.” He turned to me. “You can do your debrief in an hour.”

Later that day I was called to Rowan’s office.

“Follow me Tom and read that.” He took me into the briefing room and pointed to a notice on the wall.

It was ten rules to follow in combat issued to pilots by 81 Group Tactics. In their haste to post me to this fighter unit, someone must have forgotten to give me my copy.

1. Wait until you see the whites of his eyes. Fire short bursts of 1 to 2 seconds only when your sights are definitely ‘ON’.

2. Whilst shooting think of nothing else, brace the whole of your body, have both hands on the stick, and concentrate on your ring sight.

3. Always keep a sharp lookout. “Keep your finger out.”

4. Height gives you the initiative.

5. Always turn and face the attack.

6. Make your decisions promptly. It is better to act quickly even though your tactics are not the best.

7. Never fly straight and level for more than 30 seconds in the combat area.

8. When diving to attack always leave a proportion of your formation above to act as top guard.

9. Initiative, aggression, air discipline and teamwork are words that MEAN something in air fighting.

10. Go in quickly – punch hard – get out!

The Luftwaffe left us alone for the rest of the day so we were all stood down. This did not mean the whole camp, for the air technician’s were busy under the large camoflaged tents they had erected, fixing damaged planes and servicing engines and machine guns.

At 1900hrs a RAF Police jeep stopped outside the ops hut and a German officer was marched at gun point into the C.O.’s adjourning office.

Squadron Leader Rowans was called and entered the room to confront the Luftwaffe pilot, who spoke very good English. He clicked his heels together and stopped short of giving the Nazi salute as he said “My name is Hauptmann Albert Shmidt. I am pleased to meet you!”

He was dressed in a one piece flying suit made of thick black leather with a thermal lining, and wearing wool lined boots. Hatless, his straw blonde hair stood out in contrast to his ruddy red features.

Rowans looked at him, taking his time before speaking.

“Well Albert, you shouldn’t be so pleased to see me, but think yourself lucky you are still alive! Look at the bloody mess you and your pals have made outside!!”

He pointed to the bomb craters, and the still smouldering hanger.

The German drew himself up rigidly to attention and said “I am not personally responsible for the bombing of your airfield Squadron Leader, for like yourself, I am a fighter pilot. I am only carrying out my orders as you are!”

Rowans kept his cool. He was far too experienced to get drawn into an argument with a member of Hitler’s so called master race. He looked at the RAF Policemen and grinned. “We’ve got a live one here, lads! “

After taking his time to light a cigarette Rowans asked “Are you the pilot I shot down over the corn fields?”

The German looked at him and smiled “I think I must be, and I congratulate you on your fine flying. Now what do you do with me?”

Charlie did not return the smile.

“You are now a prisoner of war and will be treated as such. We treat our prisoners with more respect than your lot do, and you will be fed and looked after with proper medical facilities if you need them.

And until my superiors decide what to do with you, I will keep you under guard here in this camp. Perhaps you will be lucky to still be with us when your colleagues in the Luftwaffe next pay us a visit! Now take this bugger away and lock him up!” Charlie shouted to the RAF Police guards.

The story was the topic of the evening in the Officers Mess as we downed a few pints of beer. Fred Gordon, a pilot from Glasgow, was standing next to me relating the story he had got from the WAAF wireless operator who was on duty in the C.O.’s office when the German pilot was brought in.

“Charlie hates the krauts! He spent a year in Berlin before the war as a student, and speaks the lingo well. He saw what Hitler was up to, and predicted he would start something big. Boy, he was not wrong! Want another one?” he pointed at my empty glass.

“No thanks, Fred. I am off to bed for I’ve not slept properly in three days.”

I left the little band of new friends I had made, enjoying themselves singing around the piano as the Padre pounded away at the keys with his pipe belching smoke into the air.

The following morning there was a hive of activity as a convoy of trucks entered the airfield with much needed supplies and personnel. Because the hangers were now useless, the stores where covered over with camouflage netting, the only thing they could use in an emergency. Gangs of airmen were already filling in the bomb craters and repairing the little runway.

It did not matter so much about the strip, for the aircraft were quite capable of taking off and landing on the grass. The weather was good, and there had been no rain for a couple of weeks.

For some reason unknown to us the Luftwaffe did not pay us a visit for 14 hours; a valuable respite that allowed repairs to be completed and several replacement mark 1 Spitfires to arrive, along with a bonus of six brand new Hurricans.

Our problem was a lack of experienced pilots. Charlie Rowans was on the phone daily to HQ asking for pilots, and always got the same answer; ‘you will get them when we have them’.

The next time the Luftwaffe paid us a visit we were up and ready for them, for Dover radar had alerted us via fighter command, and we swooped down on fifty or so Stuka bombers that were heading straight for our base.

I had not wasted my time in the few days previously for Rowans took me up and spent an hour or two teaching me some remarkable aerial maneuvers; showing me how to break away and dive, spin, climb back up without stalling the engine, and also recalibrated my machine guns to be more effective at close range.

There were five hurricans and five spitfires in our flight and Rowans led the attack into the Stukas, warning us to keep a sharp lookout for 109’s coming in from above us.

The Stuka was slower than either the Spitfire or the Hurricane, and we destroyed several before someone shouted over the intercom ‘Bandits at 11 o’clock!”

Leaving the Hurricans to deal with the Stukas we climbed up to 17,500 feet and took on the 109’s. It was a dogfight that I will never forget. We weaved and turned as we chased each other, and I managed to bring smoke from a 109’s wing, and he peeled off to the right in a steep dive.

I saw another 109 coming in behind me and remembering what Charlie had taught me, I pushed the control stick forward gently and went into a graceful dive turning as I did so, with the 109 hard on my tail. I could see his canon tracer passing my cockpit glass as I swerved and dodged out of his way and he went shooting past, giving me the opportunity to get right in behind him.

Getting him firmly in my sights, I pressed the firing button and watched my machine guns rip off his tail, and his sudden loss of control sent him into a spiralling dive. I followed him down to around 5,000 feet and pulled up again when I saw him crash into the English Channel. It was my first kill and I felt sick to my stomach.

“Well done, Tom. First blood laddie!” It was Fred Gordon.

“Shut up you Haggis scoffing Jock, and keep your eyes on what you’re doing!”

Rowans was right of course, for we were supposed to keep silent in the air unless in an emergency.

Finally it was all over when the enemy turned to return home, no doubt having reached the time limit for their remaining fuel.

In the mess that night I was drowned in beer literally, for they were pouring it over my head!

“One definite kill for the yank and a third of a kill for the ditched kite. Sorry Tom old boy, but two others also made a claim on that one with you.”

I didn’t care really, for I was still feeling bad about killing another human being.

Charlie came over and said “Don’t feel sorry for the buggers, Tom. They will do the same to you without blinking an eyelid. Be happy you came home in one piece to fight another day!”

He plonked a large whisky in front of me and said with a big smile on his face “Drink up lad, for this will put hairs on your chest.”

It was now the third week of August and the fighting became more intensive on a daily basis. Sometimes we went up four, even five times to join up with other squadrons to make up a so called ‘big wing’.

The trouble with this routine was that it took so long to get all the aircraft into one place together, that by the time it was established the enemy had finished their bomb drop on the targets they had been sent to destroy, and were long gone when we were dispatched to the area Fighter Command had sent us to.

But somehow we started to keep the Luftwaffe at bay, and although we took far too many losses we did a considerable amount of damage to the moral of the Luftwaffe bomber crews, for many them were highly trained men and irreplaceable.

By the middle of September the Luftwaffe were sending even larger numbers of bombers over the Channel and the 109 escorts had increased. It must have been quite a sight for anyone on the ground to watch the silent dog fights in the skies above, for the vapour trails were the only thing that indicated the life and death struggle that was being played out.

The Luftwaffe then decided that if they sent in their bombers over the North Sea there would be no resistance from the RAF, for they believed (wrongly) that all the RAF fighter planes where based only in the South of England.

When their bombers were surprised by a large group of Spitfires and Hurricans there was carnage when many of them where shot down and destroyed.

By October, the raids on the air fields had began to peter off. The reason, we did not know at that time, was because on a night bombing raid over the river Thames docks, the Luftwaffe bombers had got lost, and decided to drop their bombs and just return to base.

Unfortunately they fell on the city of London, and Hitler was outraged when the British bombers returned the compliment by bombing Berlin.

So the Luftwaffe was told to bomb London and other cities, ignoring the airfields. This was catastrophic for the civilian population as many thousands were killed, but it did give the RAF a chance to rebuild and increase their strength and organize a far better Air Force.

I remained with the RAF until the Americans entered the war after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, and transferred to the US Air force to see out my service days flying Mustang Fighters.

I flew in many different types of aircraft in both services, and also went up in a 109 after the war and found it to be a very capable aircraft.

But out of all of them, for agility and sheer aerodynamics and beauty, my favourite plane was the Mark 1 Spitfire.

oo00oo

The fighter aircraft in the Battle of Britain

The Supermarine Mark 1 Spitfire

Although it was only a front line fighter for eighteen months, the Spitfire mark I earned one of the most enduring reputations of any aircraft. Its sleek lines, graceful appearance and impressive performance combined with its role in the battle of Britain to make it a British icon. The Mk I Spitfire was in constant development during its production run. Amongst the pre-war changes the most visually obvious was the replacement of the level cockpit of the prototype with the instantly familiar curved bubble cockpit. Of perhaps more importance to the pilot, armour plating was added behind the engine and a bullet proof windscreen was fitted.

From the 78th aircraft the two blade wooden propeller was replaced by a de Havilland two-speed 3-blade propeller. From the 175th aircraft the engine was changed from the 1030 hp Merlin II to the similar Merlin III, which could take either the de Havilland propeller or a more advanced Rotol propeller.

These changes increased the performance of the Spitfire at different speeds, as the angle of the propeller blade could be altered to suit high or low speed situations. The maximum speed of the Mk I was reduced from 363 mph at 18,500 in the early version to 353 mph at 20,000 feet after the new armour and other extra equipment was added, but the decrease would have been much more significant without the new propellers.

The de Havilland propeller had increased the maximum speed by 10 mph; the Rotol propeller had a huge impact on rate of climb. One change that did not work out was an attempt to install two 20mm cannon in the Spitfire I. The cannon were unreliable and prone to jam, and would not enter front line service in the Spitfire until the IIb.

Production began slowly. The first production aircraft was completed in June 1938. In August No. 19 Squadron became the first one to receive the new aircraft, when it converted from Gloster Gauntlets. By the outbreak of war on 3 September 1939, 306 Spitfires had been delivered (of which 36 had already been written off!). The RAF went into the war with only eight Spitfire squadrons.

Over the next nine months the most important battles facing the Spitfire were the battle of production and the political battle to keep them out of France. The production battle was slowly won – in all 1566 Spitfire Is were produced before the type was phased out in favour of the Mk V. At the end of the Dunkirk evacuations the RAF had 19 Spitfire squadrons. The Hurricane was still being produced quicker, and despite heavy losses in France, was still more numerous during the battle of Britain.

Just as crucial was the political battle. As the battle in France developed into a crisis, the RAF came under intense pressure to send Spitfire squadrons to France. Fortunately Air Marshal Hugh Dowding, the head of Fighter Command, was able to resist this pressure, and the Spitfires were retained for home defence. The Spitfire mark I’s first major contribution to the fighting in France came over Dunkirk. Here, home based squadrons could reach the beaches, admittedly at extreme range. Their presence changed the balance of the fighting in the air. The Hurricane squadrons had suffered heavily in France, partly because of the rapid German advance, so it was over Dunkirk that the Bf 109 finally met an equal. Dunkirk stands as the Luftwaffe’s first defeat.

Worse would soon follow. At the start of the battle of Britain the Spitfire I represented about half of Fighter Command’s available aircraft (321 out of 848 in July 1940, 372 out of 1081 on 30 August 1940). With the help of the home defence chain of radar stations, and a brilliantly designed control system, the Spitfire and the Hurricane defeated the Luftwaffe’s daytime offensive during the battle of Britain.

In fairness, one must remember that the Hurricane was responsible for the majority of German losses, but it was the Spitfire that captured the imagination. Even German pilots were said to suffer from “Spitfire snobbery” – at least one Hurricane pilot, when meeting with German airmen he had personally shot down, found the Luftwaffe pilot quite convinced he had been shot down by a Spitfire! The Spitfire did perform better against the Bf 109, accounting for 180 of the around 330 Bf 109s shot down by the two types of British fighters.

Head to head comparisons of fighter losses during the battle of Britain are misleading. The Spitfire and Hurricane were designed to intercept and destroy incoming bombers, and at that they excelled. On any given day of the battle, the bulk of German losses would be amongst the bombers. Worse for the Germans, every bomber carried several highly trained crew members, all of whom were lost, as were any fighter pilots shot down. In contrast, many of the British pilots were able to bale out of their damaged fighters and return to the action.

During the battle of Britain the Spitfire was outnumbered in British service by the Hawker Hurricane. The two aircraft had a lot in common – both used the Merlin III engine, both carried eight .303in machine guns. In theory the Hurricane had a higher service ceiling than the Spitfire I, but its performance was poor at height. The Hurricane was at its best at around 15,000 feet, the Spitfire at 18,000. This meant that the Hurricane was ideal for intercepting the German bombers, that usually flew in at or below 17,000 feet, leaving the Spitfires to deal with the higher flying Bf 109s.

Post war studies suggest that the two aircraft scored victories in proportion to the numbers present in the battle, suggesting that they were very well matched. Pilot accounts from both sides suggest that the Hurricane, Spitfire and Bf 109 were so close in performance for pilot skill and the element of surprise to decide most combats. The statistics support the idea that the Spitfire was better able to deal with the Bf 109. The German fighters shot down 219 Spitfires and 272 Hurricanes, reflecting the numerical dominance of the Hurricane. However, the Spitfire shot down 180 Bf 109s, the Hurricane only 153. This would suggest that the Bf 109 was superior to both British fighters. This was not the case. However, as the attacker the Germans normally had the advantage of numbers, and often of altitude. Finally, the German fighters were concentrating solely on destroying British fighters, while the British fighter’s main role was to stop the German bombers.

The Mark 1 Spitfire owes at least part of its fame to the devoted loyalty of its pilots. The Spitfire was a beautiful aircraft to fly. It combined agility, manoeuvrability and speed with a generally forgiving nature. Many pilots described flying a Spitfire as like strapping on wings.

In contrast, the Bf 109, also loved by her pilots, may have been agile, but was also unforgiving. The Spitfire would remain a front line high performance fighter throughout the entire war, something not achieved by any other fighter of the Second World War. R. J. Mitchell’s basic design turned out to be more adaptable than anyone could have imagined when it first flew in 1936.

The Hawker Hurricane

The Hawker Hurricane was developed by Sidney Camm. As a fighter plane, the Hawker Hurricane was to revolutionise all future fighter plane design. It was to play a vital role in the Battle of Britain and eventually in many other theatres of World War Two. The Hurricane first made its mark in February 1938. In this month, a Hurricane piloted by Squadron Leader J W Gillan, commanding officer of 111 Squadron, had flown from Scotland to Northholt, a distance of 327 miles, in 48 minutes at an average speed of 409 mph (admittedly with a tail wind).

The history of the Hurricane went back to 1933 when Sidney Camm discussed with the Air Ministry the possibilities of producing a monoplane fighter. At this time, the Air Ministry was not keen on a monoplane despite the fact that a monoplane had established a world speed record of 423 mph (an Italian Macchi MC.72) in April 1933.

The first prototype Hurricane flew on November 6th 1935. It had been based on the design of the Fury plane built by Hawker and was powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. In February 1936, the Hurricane exceeded all of the demands placed on it and on June 3rd 1936, the Air Ministry placed an order for 600 Hurricane fighter planes. On October 12th, 1937, the first flight of a production Hurricane took place.

By the end of 1938, 200 Hurricanes had been delivered to the RAF’s Fighter Command. In September 1939, 19 RAF squadrons had been equipped with Hurricanes. A Hurricane was the first RAF plane to destroy a Luftwaffe plane in October 1939 when Pilot Officer Mould shot down a Dornier Do-17 over France. It was to prove a short-term success.

In the German attack on France in the spring of 1940, 25% of all Hurricanes were destroyed by the Luftwaffe (some 200 planes). In was in the Battle of Britain that the Hurricane made its mark.

The battle is frequently associated with the Spitfire, but the Hurricane played a major role in this battle. On August 8th, 1940, the RAF could call on 32 squadrons of Hurricanes and 19 of Spitfires. Therefore, the Hurricane was the dominant British plane in this battle.

Though slower than the Spitfire, the Hurricane developed a reputation as a plane that could take more than a few hits from the Germans and continue to fly. To some the Spitfire was a thoroughbred horse; superb until it was damaged.

The Hurricane, though less graceful and slower than the Spitfire, was more a shire horse; incredibly strong and capable of taking many hits before it was taken out. The Hurricane, in various guises, saw combat in most areas of World War Two – the jungles of the Far East, the deserts of North Africa etc. Almost 3000 Hurricanes were delivered to Russia during the war. In total, more than 14,000 Hurricanes fought in World War Two in all theatres of war – a remarkable achievement for a remarkable plane.

The Messerschmitt Bf 109 (E/F/G versions)

“Performance by 1940 standards was good. When put into a full throttle climb at low air speeds, the airplane climbed at a very steep angle, and our fighters used to have difficulty in keeping their sights on the enemy even when at such a height that their rates of climb were comparable.

This steep climb at low air speed was one of the standard evasion manoeuvres used by the German pilots. Another was to push the stick forward abruptly and bunt into a dive with considerable negative 'g'. The importance of arranging that the engine would not cut under these circumstances cannot be over-stressed.

Speed is picked up quickly in a dive, and if being attacked by an airplane of slightly inferior level performance, this feature can be used with advantage to get out of range. There is no doubt that in the autumn of 1940 the Bf 109E, in spite of its faults, was a doughty opponent to set against our own equipment."
Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) evaluation - May 1940

"It was very advanced and equipped with new, more sophisticated technology. Nicknamed Gustav, the 109G was well armed, but not as light as the early E and F versions. Its more powerful engine meant higher power settings whose initial climb rate sent it soaring to 18700 feet in six minutes, but at low speed the plane was difficult to handle." (Luftwaffe Major Gunther Rall - April 1943)

"The 109 was not bad at diving, but the Thunderbolt was much better at diving. In climbing, if you compared it with the Mustang and with the Spitfire, it depended on what height you started to climb. In the altitude between 5000 and 10000 meters, I think the 109 was much better at climbing than all the other types. The version of the 109 that I flew in 1944 and 1945 as a commander of a high-cover fighter group of our FW 190s was a very good one at 8000 to 10000 meters, as it has a special engine for high altitude, but it was very bad at low levels.

Of course, it had a special tank for injections in the fuselage and so at a lower altitude your turning radius was not so good as that of a normal 109 and not even as good as that of an FW 190. So we normally didn't attack Mustangs or Thunderbolts at low altitudes because it was bad for our type of aircraft." (Luftwaffe General Walter Krupinski.)

Stories related by Battle of Britain Pilots from both sides.

The Royal Air Force drew its pilots from a number of sources. As well as the regulars, and those on short service commissions from Britain and the commonwealth countries there were others that formed the University Air Squadrons as well as the auxiliaries.

During the early part of the Battle of Britain, Royal Air Force relied mostly on the reservists and the part time flyers who were the mainstay of Fighter Command. Most were either young, 'green' and under trained or had been with the RAF for so long that they were actually past their peak, although if we look at the records we would find that many of the 'aces' were actually over thirty years of age. The cream of the British fighter pilots. for some reason were transferred to Bomber Command between the two world wars, and at the outbreak of the Second World War it left Fighter Command in a rather dilapidated position.

Quite often we are accustomed to seeing the fighter pilot in silk lined flying jackets with silk scarves bellowing in the wind as they race around in their open wheeler two seater sports cars and with their public school education throw out remarks like " I say old chap, did you enjoy that pancake with the Spit?". News and film media have always displayed the role of the fighter pilot in this fashion, but actually out of the 3,500 Fighter Command pilots that took part in the Battle of Britain, only about 200 had received a public school education. 601 Squadron had a number of these, and the parking lot at Tangmere used to look like a starting point for a 'concours de elegance' with brightly coloured MG's and Austin Healey's looking in far better shape than the Hurricanes that they flew. It has been said that these pilots actually bought the local service station so as to keep their cars on the road. Most of the pilots came from much humbler backgrounds, there were bank clerks, young doctors, factory workers, shop assistants and hundreds who had just ordinary jobs. Many of these were given a hard time by the educated contingent and quite a bit of resentment followed. So do not be fooled into believing that most Fighter Command pilots spoke in university and educated fashion as many movies depict as most of them came from just ordinary backgrounds. But, they did have, as other branches of the services had, a certain form of ‘slang’ sayings and terminology spoken within the RAF:

Pilots were called up to serve in the RAF in a number of ways; many applied to serve with the Royal Air Force after seeing the many recruitment posters displayed all over Britain. Quite a few were already serving with the RAF while others already belonged to University Air Squadrons such as Oxford, Cambridge and London, and Eton although only a school, was very well represented with many Etonians going to the other University Air Squadrons. Many, after having part time training belonged to the Auxiliary Air Force and these pilots were given 'Calling Out Papers' like the one shown above that was issued to 'Sandy' Johnstone who was directed to report to 602 City of Glasgow Squadron. Another was Australian born Pilot Officer Richard Hillary who attended Oxford University who went to 603 "City of Edinburgh" Squadron. Many of these pilots flying for the first time together were sent to France; some immediately became heroes like Edgar 'Cobber' Kain a New Zealander who claimed his first Dornier Do17 in November 1939, then shot down another Do17 and just fifteen days later, 'Cobber' chalked up 17 confirmed victories before being killed in an accident in June 1940. He was awarded the DFC.

“Strange as it was, although I worked in banking, I had applied to get into the RCAF but it appeared that they didn't want me. With the war just started in England, I felt that I had a chance over there. At the time the RAF were taking just about anybody they could get their hands on. They had a terrific shortage of pilots, I think half of the pilots were from the Commonwealth, and a lot of us were Canadians. I applied, got called up on a Monday, had the medical on Wednesday and sailed for England on the Friday”. (Pilot Officer Alfred Keith Ogilvie 609 Squadron RAF)

Prior to 1939 when the possibility of war could become a reality, Britain arranged for short service commissions where pilots that had already received basic and fundamental training, could further their experience with flying and combat skills. A number of pilots that undertook this scheme came from Canada and Australia. Many Australian airmen were trained at the RAAF Training School at Point Cook in Victoria, and many took advantage of the offer of a short service commission with the RAF. Many others applied for enrolment into the Empire Training Scheme and commenced their training in Canada. It was here that they had the opportunity of selecting whether they wanted to go into Fighter, Bomber or Coastal Command. An Australian was asked what he would like to be, and he answered, "I'll be a gunner", to which the desk clerk said "Why do you want to become a gunner? "All right, I'll be a navigator then" to which the desk clerk politely asked "Why do you want to be a navigator?" So the Australian said "Then I'll be a pilot if that's all right with you." And that's what the Australian got - he saw the war through as a bomber pilot.

Many pilots recorded victories, but in general, most pilots complained of the condition of the aircraft saying that they were, in conjunction with the inexperience of the new pilots, no match for the Luftwaffe pilots who already had considerable combat experience.

"Look, you've got to face it, France was a shambles. Everyone tried their best, but most of us pilots were not only new to flying in combat, we were new to flying in general. If an Me was coming towards you firing all guns, you would push the stick forward, your heart seems to go up into your throat as he he flies past you. You know he's going to make a tight turn, the Me was like that, and your ticker would be pounding nine to the dozen as you looked in the mirror, looked from side to side but couldn't see him, but you knew he was there, instinct told you he was there. For the new pilot it was panic stations, okay, we were told not to panic, but it was human nature. We learnt by those mistakes, your leader might call out over the radio that the 'Hun' was on your tail calling you by your code name, but in a state of panic, it was not unusual to even forget what your code name was.” Sgt G.C.Bennett 609 Squadron. (Later killed in 1941)

The conditions in France were backed up by many. "We were ordered to attack the advancing German columns around Sedan. On the 11th and 12th May, everybody got back alright. Then on the 13th May five of our aircraft went again on exactly the same course for the third day running. Only one came back. After that it was chaos. We did some leaflet dropping at night. Those of us that were left were moved from field to field half a dozen times a fortnight. A lot of people just got lost. We ended up with two other Battles from Squadrons we did not know, alone in a field somewhere in Central France...........Our aircraft had been damaged a good bit by then, but we found another that was missing a tail wheel, we put our tail wheel on it, pushed the ground crew in the back, and took off. All I had was a cycling map of Northern France." (Sgt Arthur Power 88 'Battle' Squadron)

“As time progressed, many friendships blossomed between the educated and the ordinary bloke. Soon all were to realize that they were out there to do a job, and that was to become the master of the plane that they were flying, and move in on the 'Hun' for the kill. As news came in telling them that someone had not returned, or was missing or killed in action, they felt as though they had lost a member of their family, but it was the courage of the fighter pilot that he would immediately go down to the pub as if nothing had happened.

"It was hard when word came in that one of your mates was missing, another pilot may have given a graphic account of how he saw someone go down in flames and hadn't a chance to bale out. You sort of somehow found a big hole in your stomach momentarily. But you could not afford to think of such matters, you put your mind to other things, you got drunk or whatever. You train yourself to think of only one thing, and that is the job that lies ahead." (George Barclay 151 Squadron.)

"We were all amateurs. Yet the young pilots lived their lives to the full because they knew that any day they'd be dead." (Gregory Kirkorian. RAF Squadron Intelligence.)

"The waiting was the worst part, we'd sit around playing poker with that tension pit in our stomachs - it was almost a relief when we heard the phone ring to scramble." (Group Captain Peter Matthews.)

Life was not easy for the fighter pilot; every day was a long day, generally up before dawn making preparations for the day that lay ahead. A day in the life of a pilot was a strain on both mind and body. Some days he was on the go from before dawn to well after the sun had gone down. He had to contend with squadron mates who failed to return, maybe missing in action or as was the usual story, killed in the line of duty. No one knew what the next day was to bring, most although were intent on claiming victory over the enemy, they were in fact just fighting for survival, they drank to lost loved ones then prayed for their own safety.

And why did they do it?

; "All you wanted to do was to fly; we were young and had no real moral angle, you wanted action because you were twenty or so, you could fly, you knew how to fly and you knew you had to fly because there was a war on." (P/O H.G.Niven)

But whether or not your prayers would be answered, those that died as well as those who survived, were duly recognized after the war by being able to display a rosette and clasp on their 1939-45 star indicating that they, as pilots of Fighter Command took place in the greatest battle of all time, "The Battle of Britain."

It was a different story with the Luftwaffe. These pilots had received exceptional training, and Germany was producing some 800 trained pilots a month compared with only 200 a month in the RAF. Not only that, the Luftwaffe pilots were combat trained having seen action in such places as Spain, Poland, Norway and Belgium. The Luftwaffe had a comprehensive training program and with so many experienced pilots they helped and assisted any of the new pilots assigned to their squadrons. Relations between the officers of the Luftwaffe and the junior ranks were far superior to that of the RAF and the morale of the men was greater as well. It was back in 1923 that the Reichswehr-Ministerium (The German Defence Ministry) signed an agreement with the Soviet Union that allowed them to set up complete training facilities near Lipezk. Pilots, observers and aircraft mechanics were sent there to undertake a thorough and complete schedule of training. With others being trained at the Deutscher Luftsport-Verband which was a sporting flying club, most of the Luftwaffe personnel were experience men during the period with the Legion Kondor during the Spanish Civil War, then later in the conflicts in Norway, Belgium, and Holland and in France.

Before and during the early part of the Second World War all German aircrew had to undergo at least six months basic training, and keeping in line with the strong Nazi belief in physical training, this included drill, various forms of sport and light gymnastics. In the classroom, they were taught the fundamentals of flight and aerodynamics, navigation and the laws of aviation. Prior to the outbreak of war, the Germans practiced their flying skills in aircraft that were not visually designed as military aircraft in keeping with the restrictions imposed on them by the Treaty of Versailles way back in 1919, but closer inspection of the aircraft revealed a very strong military influence. Later more military style aircraft were introduced and pilots increased their knowledge and skill until they had passed their basic training and moved on to the advanced training centres where they moved on to more advanced aircraft, advanced aircraft skills and learnt more about combat defence and attacking tactics before they were given their licence.

Those that were training as bomber crews were transferred to another school where another 60-80 hours were spent undergoing intense training on more advanced aircraft and then on to specialist training on instrument flying and skills. Once they had practiced simulation sorties on combat operational aircraft they were ready to join a Kampfgeschwader (Bomber unit). Potential fighter pilots also went further additional advanced training and were sent on to mock air battles before passing out and being allocated to a Jaggeschwader (fighter unit). "We were idealists with the honour of being part of the most elite fighting force in the world" said a young aircrew cadet; as along with 3,000 others, they were addressed by Adolph Hitler on their graduation day in the capital Berlin.

"........we listened to the spell binding words of our leader and accepted them with all our hearts. Never before have we experienced such a deep sense of patriotic devotion towards our beloved German fatherland. I shall never, never forget the expressions of rapture which I saw on the faces around me on that glorious day."

But even the young Luftwaffe pilots admitted that their early combat duties often disclosed their inexperience. A young pilot, on one of his very early combat missions came under attack from RAF fighters: "It was the first time I had experienced this. . . it was a kind of ticky, ticky, tick. . but it made me feel good that it had protected me. Anyway, what I did was evade whoever was firing at me by nose-diving. Now, I thought, I've got rid of it, so I climbed up again trying to catch up with the unit. I remember thinking, Well, this isn't so bad . . . The protection had held . . . but I was still climbing and suddenly there was a second attack from behind. It was so fast that I couldn't evade before it came . . . at least, I as a beginner couldn't. Suddenly he was there and immediately I went down again. While I was diving I thought, Well, what do I do now? Some pilots said that in such a case you just go down to tree-top level and go home . . . but I thought, Well, that sounds too easy, so I decided to climb up again.., which was a big mistake that an experienced man would not have made. Then as I was climbing again suddenly I was attacked from below to the right-hand side. Someone who was more at home playing these games had come from below from the right-hand side. In this area there was no protective armour so it was a real problem. The glass from the cockpit was splintering, the instrument panel splattered and now I was really hit. . . or many hits. Somehow at that point I blacked out.

When I came to I found myself in a vertical dive and what I noticed was lots of noise, a kind of fluid coming from the side of the plane and what struck me was that the ground was approaching very fast. I realized that I had to catch the plane immediately and get it out of the dive. I did and in doing so my blood rushed from my head and I blacked out again. When I came to I found I was at tree-top level with little power left in the machine. It could still fly but with no power. I was now very, very low and had to look for somewhere to land.

At this stage I looked around and found that there were two Spitfires behind me and they were shooting occasionally, but I guess it was difficult to shoot at me because I was going so slow and was not flying in a straight line. I don’t know whether they didn’t shoot me because they saw I was in a difficult situation....anyway, I just saw an English park-like landscape, some bushes and trees. There was a group of trees ahead of me and I said to myself, Well, gee, what I have to do is to try to get enough speed by flying directly at the trees and then hope that I have enough speed to jump over them and then go down. I did this and then blacked out once more.” (Bruno Petrenko ex Luftwaffe Bf109 pilot now living in Canada

German pilots generally had far more training than the British, even during the period of war. Luftwaffe training was intense, where the RAF just could not get their pilots into the air quick enough. The reason for this was that the RAF had a shortage of pilots and aircraft. If you had a months training, then you were one of the lucky ones. A few weeks learning the eliminatory physics of flying at a desk, usually up to about 15-20 hours actual flying and you were posted. Most learnt the best way (sometimes not the correct way) to fly and be successful was the actual experience gained in combat flying. But flying was only one part, evasion tactics in combat was another, and a "good pilot" you had to be a good shot to shoot down one of the enemy and evade being shot at yourself and this was not always that easy.

"We learned tactics pretty quickly, but there wasn’t much time during the Battle. We learned to spread the vics. One chap was put in as ‘weaver’ — arse-end Charlie — weaving about behind our formation, keeping look-out. They were often shot down, weaving behind and never seen again.

‘Sailor’ Malan was the best pilot of the war, a good tactician; above average pilot and an excellent shot. In the end it comes down to being able to shoot. I was an above average pilot, but not a good shot, so the only way I could succeed was to get closer than the next chap. This wasn’t easy Johnny Johnson was a pretty good, average pilot, but an excellent shot. The answer was that there was no really successful shooting parameter above 5 degree deflection. Most kills were from behind, coming down on the enemy, or head-on, or in 5 degrees deflection.

The Spitfires guns were harmonized to about 450 yards, but this was spread too far across. Sailor Malan trimmed his own guns down to 200-250 yards, and we all followed suit. At the end of the day, you had to have luck, and I had my share. Once I had my watch shot off my wrist. It was my own watch, and the Air Ministry wouldn’t pay me back for it! Another had a bullet hit his headphones. His ear was a bit of a mess, but at least he was alive.” (Air Commodore Alan Deere CBE. DSO. DFC. ex 54 Sqn, 602 Sqn and 611 Sqn RAF)

Trimming your guns down to 200-250 yards, not easy, but effective if not daring. And you must remember that the Spitfire was traveling at over 300 mph and that 200 yards would be covered in just a matter of seconds. There again, many experienced pilots trimmed their guns down to even less and others opened fire exceptionally close to their targets.

Squadrons of Royal Air Force Fighter Command were made up of a variety of types. As well as the regular squadrons, there were the voluntary squadrons, the auxiliary squadrons, the Fighter Interception Unit and some Fleet Air Arm units. The majority of the pilots were of British nationality although it has now been found that many pilots from commonwealth countries, because they carried British passports and not one from their own country were classified as British. Canada immediately responded by sending many pilots, but Australia and New Zealand did not officially make any contribution of pilots. Only those pilots that were serving on short service commissions with the Royal Air Force from Australia and New Zealand were to fight during the Battle of Britain and represented their respective countries.

The United States, because President Roosevelt was campaigning for re-election of the presidency, would not get involved with the war in Europe, despite many pleas from British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The American government also would not sanction any American citizen going to Britain to fight the war in Europe. Seven men however defied United States law and each of them made their way to Britain to join the Royal Air Force and fight in the Battle of Britain.

With the fall of various countries in Europe, many experienced pilots from the air forces of Czechoslovakia, Belgium and Poland made their own ways, many under very difficult circumstances in an effort to get to Britain and join the Royal Air Force. Because of the number of pilots that had made their way from their invaded countries to Britain, the RAF was able to establish individual squadrons such as the 303 Polish and 310 Czech squadrons. Canada was also given their own squadron which was 401 Squadron that originally was 1RCAF Squadron but was renumbered so as to avoid confusion with 1 Squadron RAF. Australia, New Zealand, United States and Belgium did not have their own units during the Battle of Britain but later in the war all these countries were to have their own squadrons.

“British courage and capability might not have been enough to win; German mistakes were made, and were the key to giving us time to retaliate.”

On July 1940, the situation looked dire for Great Britain. It had taken Germany less than two months to invade and conquer most of Western Europe. The fast-moving German Army, supported by panzers and Stuka dive bombers, overwhelmed the Netherlands and Belgium in a matter of days. France, which had 114 divisions and outnumbered Germany in tanks and artillery, held out a little longer but surrendered on June 22. Britain was fortunate to have extracted its retreating expeditionary forces from the beaches at Dunkirk. Britain itself was next. The first objective for the Germans was to establish air superiority as a precondition for invasion. The Luftwaffe estimated haughtily that it would be able to defeat the Royal Air Force’s Fighter Command in southern England in four days and destroy the rest of the RAF in four weeks.

Winston Churchill, who on May 10 had succeeded Neville Chamberlain as Prime Minister, was resolute. In a ringing speech to Parliament, he declared, "We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender." Not everyone agreed with Churchill. Appeasement and defeatism were rife in the British Foreign Office. The Foreign Secretary, Lord Halifax, believed that Britain had lost already. To Churchill’s fury, the undersecretary of state for foreign affairs, Richard A. "Rab" Butler, told Swedish diplomats in London that "no opportunity would be neglected for concluding a compromise peace" if it could be had "on reasonable conditions."

Joseph P. Kennedy, US ambassador to Britain, informed the State Department July 31 that the German Luftwaffe had the power to put the RAF "out of commission." In a press statement, Sen. Key Pittman (D-Nev.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, declared, "It is no secret that Great Britain is totally unprepared for defense and that nothing the United States has to give can do more than delay the result." Gen. Maxime Weygand, commander in chief of French military forces until France’s surrender, predicted, "In three weeks, England will have her neck wrung like a chicken." Thus it was that the events of July 10 through Oct. 31—known to history as the Battle of Britain—came as a surprise to the prophets of doom. Britain won. The RAF proved to be a better combat force than the Luftwaffe in almost every respect. The decisive factors were British capability and determination, but German mistakes, before and during the battle, contributed significantly to the outcome.

German rearmament was forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles at the end of World War I, but aircraft development continued under the guise of civil aviation. When Hitler came to power in 1933, he pursued militarization openly. The Luftwaffe, formally established as a separate branch of service in 1935, was soon the largest air force in Europe and, in the opinion of many, the best. German pilots honed their skills in the Spanish Civil War. Between 1936 and 1939, they were rotated as "volunteers" through the Condor Legion, supporting Francisco Franco and the Nationalists. They perfected techniques, tested their airplanes—including the Ju 87 Stuka dive bomber and the Bf 109 fighter—and gained experience. America’s most famous aviator, Charles A. Lindbergh, toured German bases and factories in September 1938. "Germany now has the means of destroying London, Paris, and Prague if she wishes to do so," Lindbergh wrote in a report to Kennedy in London. "England and France together have not enough modern war planes for effective defense or counterattack."

The Luftwaffe’s fearsome reputation was enhanced by the pushover German victories in Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. In July 1940, it was about twice the size of the RAF, but the critical measure was not gross numbers. Essentially, the Battle of Britain pitted the first-line fighters of RAF Fighter Command against the fighters, bombers, and dive bombers of two German air fleets. In that matchup, the German advantage was significantly greater. Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding, commander of Fighter Command, said, "Our young men will have to shoot down their young men at the rate of five to one."

But the Luftwaffe was not as invincible as it looked. One of its fundamental weaknesses was unstable leadership. The commander in chief was Reichsmarschall Hermann W. Goering, a World War I ace and the successor, in 1918, to Manfred von Richthofen in command of Jagdgeschwader 1, the Flying Circus. He had become a fat, blustering caricature of himself. He had not kept up with changes in airpower and had little knowledge of strategy. Goering was prone to impulsive and erratic decisions. When Hitler intervened in the decision-making, which he did regularly, the results were even worse.

However, the Luftwaffe’s immediate problem in 1940 was that the subjugation of Britain was not the kind of mission it was prepared to perform. Its strength was Blitzkrieg, the short, fast "lightning war" in which the German Army, supported by Stuka air strikes, swept through Poland in 1939 and Western Europe in 1940. In both the Blitzkrieg and the war in Spain, the Luftwaffe’s forte was close air support of ground forces. The officer corps was infatuated with the dive bomber. It had worked well for the Condor Legion in Spain, where pilots had difficulty hitting targets from high altitude. The dive bomber was accurate in putting bombs directly on compact targets, which predominated in Spain. The foremost advocate of the dive bomber was Ernst Udet, another flamboyant flying ace from World War I. His friend Goering appointed him to be technical chief of the Luftwaffe, a position for which he was utterly unsuited. Udet insisted that every bomber have a dive bombing capability, which added weight and subtracted speed from numerous aircraft in development.

The Luftwaffe’s signature dive bomber was the Ju 87 Stuka, instantly recognizable with its inverted gull wings, sturdy fixed undercarriage, and wheel spats. It was enormously successful as a terror weapon in the Blitzkrieg. A wind-powered siren, used in diving attacks, contributed to the psychological effect. Germany had no long-range bombers and would not field its first strategic bomber, the Heinkel 177, until 1944. What it had in 1940 was an assortment of twin-engine medium bombers, notably the slow-moving He 111 and Do 17. They had been adequate to supplement the Stuka on the continent, but they were out of their league in the Battle of Britain. The best of the German medium bombers was the Ju 88, which had better range and speed, but it was just coming into production at that time. The Luftwaffe also had the Bf 110, nominally a twin-engine fighter. It had good speed and range, but it was not agile enough to take on RAF fighters. Germany might have done well to use it instead as a fighter-bomber—which it did later in the war—but it was rarely employed in that role in 1940.

Germany’s best airplane, and arguably the best airplane on either side, was Willy Messerschmitt’s masterpiece, the Bf 109 fighter. It packed a powerful engine into a small, sleek airframe and was the world’s most advanced fighter when it first flew in 1935. It went on to score more victories than any other aircraft in World War II. Its problem in 1940 was limited range. Flying from bases in France, it had only about 10 minutes of fighting time over London. It could not escort the bombers on deep penetration missions in Britain. For the first time, the Luftwaffe faced a first-class opponent. The RAF had been established in 1918 as a separate military service and was reorganized in 1936 into Bomber, Fighter, Coastal, and Training Commands.

Two superb fighters would bear the brunt of the coming battle. The Hawker Hurricane was regarded as Fighter Command’s "workhorse." It was teamed with a "thoroughbred," the Supermarine Spitfire. In July 1940, the RAF had 29 squadrons of Hurricanes and 19 squadrons of Spitfires. The Spitfire was one of the greatest fighters of all time. It had been introduced in 1936 but was still around to shoot down a German jet aircraft Me 262 in 1944. It became the symbol of the Battle of Britain. The Hurricane was larger and slower, but like the Spitfire, it could turn inside the Bf 109. Bf 109 pilots, if they could, attacked from altitude, which gave them an advantage. The RAF had several force multipliers, the most important of which was radar. The official British term for it was "RDF," for radio direction finding, before a changeover in 1943 to match the American usage of "radar." Britain had no monopoly. The German Navy made limited use of radar. However, the incompetent Udet had rejected radar for the Luftwaffe in 1938 because it did not fit with his notions of air combat.

What the RAF Knew

Dowding was an early champion of radar. Britain had a chain of 29 RDF stations along its southern and eastern coastlines. The radar was effective for more than 100 miles out. Once Luftwaffe formations crossed England’s coastline, the Royal Observer Corps began tracking them. The RAF knew when and where to respond, and could delay scrambling its fighters until the last moment. Unbeknown to Berlin, Britain had cracked the high-level German "Enigma" code. The intelligence product derived from these intercepts was called "Ultra." It provided useful information about the Luftwaffe’s overall moves, but it did not add greatly to the day-to-day intelligence from other sources.

Yet another RAF force multiplier was high-octane fuel. When the war began, both the Luftwaffe and the RAF were using 87 octane aviation fuel. Beginning in May 1940, the RAF obtained 100 octane fuel from the United States and used it throughout the battle. It boosted the performance of the Merlin engines in the Hurricanes and Spitfires from 1,000 to about 1,300 horsepower. Dowding—known as "Stuffy"—had been commander of Fighter Command since its founding in 1936. He was the oldest of the RAF senior commanders—intensely private, eccentric and obstinate, but a leader of exceptional ability. It was on his authority that the first British radar experiments with aircraft had been carried out. Dowding was unbending and thus not favored by the politicians in the Air Ministry. Fighter Command, headquartered at Bentley Priory in the London suburbs, was organized to fight in four groups. The largest was 11 Group, covering southeastern England and the approaches to London. Its commander was Air Vice Marshal Keith R. Park, an excellent officer but, like Dowding, not attuned and responsive to the politicians.

To the immediate north was the area of 12 Group, covering the Midlands and East Anglia and commanded by Air Vice Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory. The other two groups had lesser roles—southwestern England was covered by 10 Group, and northern England and Scotland by 13 Group. Germany would employ two main air fleets. Luftflotte 2, with headquarters in Brussels, was commanded by Field Marshal Albert Kesselring. Its Bf 109 fighters were concentrated in Pas de Calais, across from Dover at the narrowest point of the English Channel. Luftflotte 2 also had bombers and fighters elsewhere in northern France and Belgium. Luftflotte 3, commanded by Field Marshal Hugo Sperrle from his headquarters in Paris, flew from bases in Normandy and Brittany.

Goering and his staff consistently underestimated the RAF. In early August 1940, Goering insisted that the British had no more than 400 to 500 fighters. In fact, Fighter Command on Aug. 9 had 715 ready to go and another 424 in storage, available for use within a day. When France fell, Hitler ordered a strategic pause, believing the British would accept a dictated peace on his terms. The Luftwaffe mounted sporadic bomb raids on southern England and shipping in the Channel. However, in the official reckoning, the Battle of Britain began July 10 with a fighter engagement over the channel; the Luftwaffe lost 13 aircraft and the RAF 10.

On July 16, Hitler ordered preparations started for Operation Sea Lion, an invasion of Britain. The German Navy said Sept. 15 was the earliest possible date it could be ready. On Aug. 1, Hitler ordered the Luftwaffe to "overpower the English Air Force," which stood in the way of the invasion. Goering assured Hitler, "The RAF will be destroyed in time for Operation Sea Lion to be launched by Sept. 15." At first, the Luftwaffe regarded the entire RAF as the target and scattered its efforts for weeks before focusing on Fighter Command. Finally recognizing the value of the radar sites, the Luftwaffe tried to destroy them, but did so by aiming bombs at the radar towers, which were easy to replace and almost impossible to hit. The radar site buildings where the trained operators worked would have been easier targets but were seldom attacked. In yet another mistake, Goering told the Luftwaffe to ignore the radar sites and strike at other targets.

The RAF lost 58 airplanes in July, but the full fury of the battle was yet to come. With great fanfare, Goering declared Aug. 13 to be Adler Tag (Eagle Day), on which he launched 1,485 sorties against Britain. "Within a short period you will wipe the British air force from the sky. Heil Hitler," he said in a message to the air fleets. Among those impressed by the German claims was Kennedy, who wired President Roosevelt, "England will go down fighting. Unfortunately, I am one who does not believe that it is going to do the slightest bit of good." On Aug. 15, Goering ordered a maximum effort from his air fleets. They flew more than 2,000 sorties that day, the most of any day during the Battle of Britain. The German high command claimed 99 RAF fighters destroyed in the air. In actuality, the RAF lost 34 fighters while shooting down 75 German airplanes. The fighting on Aug. 19 was only slightly less intense.

RAF Bomber Command regularly attacked targets on the Continent, flying 9,180 sorties between July and October. This had the effect of freezing some German fighters in place for air base defense, limiting the number that could be committed to the attack on Britain. Bad weather caused a lull in the fighting Aug. 19 to 23. It was a much-needed respite for both sides. When the battle resumed Aug. 24, the Luftwaffe changed tactics and concentrated its force on 11 Group airfields. What the Germans really wanted was to lure the RAF fighters up for air battles, which the Bf 109 pilots believed they would win. Park and Dowding, however, refused to respond to Luftwaffe fighter sweeps. They went after the German bombers instead. The Stuka had made its reputation in the Blitzkrieg under conditions of German air supremacy. It was far less fearsome with Spitfires and Hurricanes on its tail. The Stuka’s top speed was 230 mph (compared to more than 350 for the Spitfire), and it was even slower and more vulnerable when diving to deliver bombs.

"Due to the speed-reducing effect of the externally suspended bomb load, she only reached 150 mph when diving," said German ace Adolf Galland, who was no admirer of the Stuka. The RAF placed so such punishment on the Stuka that Goering on Aug. 19 withdrew it "until the enemy fighter force has been broken." The attacks continued relentlessly. On average, the Luftwaffe sent 1,000 airplanes a day, and seldom fewer than 600. On Aug. 30 to 31, more than 1,600 came. The worst day for Fighter Command was Aug. 31 when it lost 39 aircraft and 14 pilots. Most days the Luftwaffe’s losses were even heavier than the RAF’s, but the production of Hurricanes and Spitfires was no longer keeping up with losses, and there were not enough replacements for the experienced pilots who had been killed.

Some pilots scrambled six times a day. Civilian teams from Hawker and Supermarine joined RAF ground crews, working to get damaged Hurricanes and Spitfires ready to fly again. The British people look back on this part of the battle as "the desperate days." Looking back later, Churchill said, "In the fighting between Aug. 24 and Sept. 6, the scales had tilted against Fighter Command."

Just as things were looking grim, Hitler made a critical mistake. He changed Luftwaffe targeting. In August, two German pilots who had flown off course on a night mission dropped their bombs on London. The RAF bombed the Berlin suburbs in reprisal. Germans were shocked and outraged, having been assured by Hitler and Goering that their capital was safe from British bombers. An enraged Hitler on Sept. 5 ordered a change in basic strategy, shifting the Luftwaffe’s focus of attack from British airfields to the city of London.

That took the pressure off Fighter Command at a critical time. RAF fighter losses fell below the output of replacements. In diverting the offensive from the RAF, the Germans had lost sight of the valid assumption with which they had begun: The key objective was destruction of the RAF. Otherwise, the Sea Lion invasion would not be possible. The Luftwaffe had one massive shot left. On Sept. 15, Germany threw about 400 bombers and 700 fighters into an all-out attack on Britain. In the middle of the afternoon, Park committed the last of his reserves. Every airplane that 11 Group could put in the air was engaged. It was enough. RAF pilots shot down 56 Luftwaffe aircraft, and many others limped back to their bases in France with major damage or went down in the Channel. The RAF lost 28. Never again would the Luftwaffe come against Fighter Command in such strength.

Today, the nation celebrates Sept. 15 as "Battle of Britain Day."

Losses All Around

Both sides gradually came to the realization that the Luftwaffe’s attempt to destroy the RAF had failed. On Sept. 17, Hitler postponed Operation Sea Lion until further notice. This was no doubt a great relief to the German Navy, which was not prepared to carry out an invasion. On Oct. 31, the British Defense Committee agreed that the danger of invasion had become "relatively remote."

That date is commemorated as the end of the Battle of Britain.

However, it was not yet clear to all that the Luftwaffe had failed. The Nov. 10 Boston Sunday Globe published its version of an interview with Kennedy, quoting him as having declared, "Democracy is finished in England." Kennedy denied having said it, but the reporter, Louis Lyons, had a witness to back him up. Kennedy was finished as ambassador and as a player in the Roosevelt Administration. He submitted his resignation that month. Both sides had taken heavy losses, although claims during the battle of enemy aircraft shot down were later shown to be excessive. In all, the RAF lost 1,547 airplanes—1,023 from Fighter Command, 376 from Bomber Command, and 148 from Coastal Command. German losses were even higher—a total of 1,887, of which 650 were Bf 109s and 223 were Bf 110s. More than half of the German aircraft destroyed were shot down by Hurricanes. Whenever possible, the RAF had sent Spitfires to fight the Bf 109s and used Hurricanes against German bombers—but the Hurricanes had downed their share of fighters, too.

At the end of the Battle of Britain, Fighter Command had slightly more airplanes than it did at the start. Surging British industry produced replacements at an encouraging rate. Fighter Command also had more pilots than in July, but had taken terrible losses in its most experienced airmen. The German aircraft industry was unable to surge its production, and between August and December 1940, Luftwaffe fighter strength fell by 30 percent and bomber strength by 25 percent. Later, in a speech to the Canadian Parliament, Churchill recalled Weygand’s prediction from June 1940 that England would "have her neck wrung like a chicken" in three weeks. "Some chicken," Churchill said. "Some neck."

The Battle of Britain was over, but the sustained bombing of British cities—"the Blitz"—was just beginning. Hitler’s motives for the Blitz are not clear. It killed more than 40,000 civilians and destroyed a vast number of buildings, to no strategic purpose. Meanwhile, Berlin turned to a new objective. Hitler in December ordered his forces to prepare for Operation Barbarossa, the invasion and destruction of Russia. Goering was once again optimistic. The Luftwaffe, he promised, would shoot down the Red Air Force "like clay pigeons." The rest is history.

Visit the Battle of Britain memorial websites at;

http://james1-stirling.webs.com/

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