The gratitude of all household on our island... belongs to British airmen who... turn the tide of the planet war around. Never before in any conflict so many have owed so few," said Winston Churchill on August 20, 1940. More than a period earlier, the conflict of England began, in which 144 Polish pilots fought.
Spitfire planes of Polish Hunting Squadron 303 in the UK. photograph by NAC
The first conflict in past to be settled in air combat – according to British historians – it ran from July 10, 1940 to October 31, 1940. Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of large Britain and Minister of Defence, speaking in the home of Commons about reversing the destiny of planet War II, could not yet announce the triumph of the British Royal Air Forces (RAF) over the Luftwaffe Air Force. In August, the fight for dominance in the air had not yet been settled. The tide of triumph only crossed in favour of the RAF in the second half of September.
In October, although German bombers continued to fly over England, the Germans had already reconciled with the Luftwaffe defeat in the air and halted preparations for the invasion of the British Isles. But they began to shift their forces eastward, preparing to attack the Union of russian Socialist Republics. German historians, on the another hand, find the duration of the conflict of England from August 1940 until mid-May 1941 – until the first plan to launch the German attack on the USSR as part of an operation under the code name "Barbarossa".
Operation Sea Left
On May 10, 1940, King George VI appointed Winston Churchill as Prime Minister of large Britain and Minister of Defence. The same day it started German offensive in France. On 14 June 1940, Wehrmacht troops entered Paris, and a fewer days later – 22 June – France capitulated. These events forced Churchill to act. On June 18, in a speech in the home of Commons, he announced Hitler's next steps and what his triumph could end. "What General Weygand called the conflict of France ended. I anticipate the conflict of England to begin now," he said. He besides pointed out that "the endurance of Christian civilization depends on its outcome." “Hitler knows he must defeat us on the island, or he will lose the war. If we can face it, all Europe can be free. If we lose, the full planet will sink into the abyss of the fresh mediate Ages," he stressed.
Douglas Bader commanded Squadron 242 during the battle. He besides led the Duxford wing.
Hitler realized that winning Britain would not be easy. The invasion plan received the codename ‘Seelöwe’ (‘the sea lion’). On 16 July 1940, Hitler issued an order to launch the August 15 invasion and to earlier destruct the RAF Fighter Aviation Command. He reduced the number of troops planned to be spread to about 70 thousand. 9 land divisions were expected to enter the action and the air-desanant division supporting them. The German Navy – Kriegsmarine – was to prepare hundreds of barges and tugboats. To facilitate its task on the La Manche Channel, Germany had previously planned to enlist the Royal Navy in operations in the North and Mediterranean Seas and destruct or neutralize coastal fortifications. In turn, the Royal Navy was ready to send any cruisers and about 40 destroyers to the waters of the La Manche Canal.
However, the start of the war on water was to be the Luftwaffe triumph over the RAF in the air war. Eliminating as many Spitfires and Hurricanes as possible would make it easier for German aircraft to attack British cruisers and destroyers. In the end, however, the planned sea lion operation failed. Failures in air combat and slow preparations for Kriegsmarine invasion made Hitler decision the operation to 15 September 1940. Neither did the invasion begin at this date. On September 17, the leader of the 3rd Reich due to unfavourable weather moved the operation to an indefinite deadline, and on October 12 to the following year. Finally, on February 13, 1943, Hitler rejected plans to invade the United Kingdom.
Investment in the fighter
The key to getting the Germans out of Britain was winning the RAF over the Luftwaffe. In turn, success in the air undoubtedly ensured fighters and combatants in them, who, as Churchill emphasized, unhindered by adversity constantly took on challenges and put themselves in danger. On the another hand, behind the controversial plan to invest in fighter aviation, while all were in favour of developing the possible of bombers, was Air Marshal Sir Hugh Downing. It besides created a network of radar stations along the confederate coast of England – the usage of the fresh invention besides contributed to RAF's final success in the air combat with Luftwaffe.
Radar station on the east coast.
Marshal Dowding in 1937, erstwhile he led the Fighter Aviation Command, led to the fact that the operation of the fresh radar station network was secretly tested. This year, the first Hurricanes parties went to his commanding squadrons, and the next Spitfires. The marshal besides sought to guarantee that fresh aircraft were equipped with high-frequency radio transmitters, allowing pilots to have conversations with each another and to communicate with the operating centre on the ground. Dowding besides convinced another commanders that the office of the Fighter Aviation Command should not only coordinate the operations of the fighter squadrons, but besides guide the course of the expected conflict with Germany.
The Fighter Aviation Command realized that fighters would not defend against bombings of all cities and crucial strategical points. The tactics of carrying out attacks on enemy aircraft in tiny formations have been developed. A perfect coordination of squadron operations was established. They were to rapidly exchange in the air – erstwhile 1 had to return to the airport to replenish fuel and ammunition, the another was to take his place. Finally, the advantage of British fighters was to equip them with 8 Browning Mk II kal device guns. 7,7 mm with a velocity of 1200 shots per minute, installed in teams of 4 per wing with a supply of 334–350 rounds of ammunition per rifle.
The Defiant Formation of the 264 RAF Squadron (PS-V was shot down on 28 August 1940 above Kent by Bf 109).
Unfortunately, despite the efforts of Marshal Dowding at the beginning of the conflict of England, RAF had less fighters than Luftwaffe. The British owned about 800 fighters, and the Germans owned 1000. Germany had an even greater advantage in the number of bombers – they had about 1500 aircraft and RAF 400. The British industry, however, produced more than 1,900 machines from July to October 1940. It turns out there was no 1 to fly them. Therefore, RAF had to benefit from the assistance of pilots from another countries. A full of 2900 airmen from 14 countries fought in the conflict of England, including 144 from Poland, 98 from fresh Zealand, 86 from Canada and 84 from Czechoslovakia.
Airmen of Polish Hunting Squadron 303 watch the remains of the shot down German aircraft "Ju 88". On the right visible plane "Spitfire" belonging to pilot Jan Zumbach. photograph by NAC
Poles entered action on July 19. On that day Lieutenant Antoni Ostowicz, a pilot in the 145th British squadron, shot down a German bomber. On August 15 and 31, 2 Polish fighter squadrons reached the conflict readiness: 302 and 303. Poles besides created 2 bomb squadrons: 300 and 301. Our pilots were very effective in the air. On 1733 destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft, Poles shot down 203, and out of 66 Allied squadrons Polish 303 dropped the most due to the fact that as many as 126 machines. In total, Germany lost 1733 aircraft in the conflict of England and about 2,500 airmen. However, RAF losses amounted to 515 pilots and 915 aircraft.
