Battle of Britain – Triumph of “The Few” This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, one of the most decisive clashes of World War II, when a handful of Royal Air Force pilots fought in the skies over southern England to defeat Germany’s mighty Luftwaffe squadrons and foil Adolf Hitler’s invasion plans Supermarine Spitfire Speed: 585km/h Spitfire remembered as key to battle, although in reality, Hurricane shot down more aircraft Hawker Hurricane Speed: 530km/h Mainstay of RAF Fighter Command squadrons 3m 10ft Heinkel He 111 Speed: 350km/h Main German bomber used in battle Junkers Ju 87 Stuka Speed 375km/h Dive bomber suffered high losses Messerschmitt Bf 109 Speed 575km/h German fighter lacked range to escort bombers Junkers Ju 88 Speed 460km/h Best German bomber ------------------ KEY DATES Jul 10, 1940: Battle begins with Luftwaffe attacking south coast ports and shipping Jul 16: Hitler orders detailed plans for invasion of Britain, codenamed Operation Sealion. Germans begin assembling hundreds of invasion barges in Channel ports Aug 13: Adlertag (Eagle Day) – Germany launches campaign to destroy RAF, targeting airfields, aircraft factories and radar sites Aug 15: Luftwaffe mounts largest number of sorties – over 2,000 –destroying 34 RAF aircraft for loss of 75 Aug 18: “Hardest Day” –intense air-to-air combat results in greatest number of casualties on both sides Aug 20: Britain’s Prime Minister Winston Churchill makes speech to parliament, “Never in the field of human conflict has so much been owed by so many to so few” Aug 24: German aircraft accidentally bomb residential areas of London. In retaliation, RAF raids Berlin on following day Aug 30-31: RAF close to defeat, suffering heavy losses in aircraft and pilots Sep 5: After more RAF raids on Berlin, Hitler orders attacks on British cities – fatal error that takes pressure off RAF airfields Sep 7: The Blitz begins withmassive air raids on London Sep 15: Battle reaches climax – 60 German aircraft shot down for loss of 26 RAF planes Sep 17: Hitler cancels invasion plans. Battle fizzles out by end of October but Blitz on London continues until May 1941 ---------------------- Belfast IRELAND NORTHERN IRELAND Irish Sea 100km 60 miles Bombed cities Main RAF airfields German Luftflotte (air fleet) attacks Glasgow SCOTLAND Newcastle Sunderland Middlesbrough Hull Manchester Liverpool Sheffield WALES Nottingham Norwich Birmingham Coventry Ipswich ENGLAND Swansea Cardiff Bristol London Canterbury Southampton Portsmouth Exeter Plymouth English Channel High-level radar range North Sea From Norway, Denmark Low-level radar range Paris OCCUPIED EUROPE -------------------- STRENGTHS AT START OF BATTLE Royal Air Force (RAF)* 650 fighters German Air Force (Luftwaffe) 1,050 fighters 1,700 bombers *Bombers not shown AIRCRAFT LOSSES Jul 138 70 Aug 649 366 Sep 579 363 Oct 318 146 Chain Home Low radar could detect aircraft flying at 152m at range of up to 177km British physicist Robert Watson-Watt, “Father” of RADAR RADAR: Gave Britain advance warning of attack. RAF could deduce altitude, direction and size of enemy formations and send aircraft to intercept Sources: Royal Air Force, Imperial War Museum, Brooks Aviation Art, Encyclopedia of Air Warfare Pictures: AP, Imperial War Museum