Special: End of Battle of Britain

Pilots,

The time has come once more to remember the valiant defence of the British RAF against the invading Germans during the ‘Battle of Britain’. The 15 week conflict came to its end right around this time of the year in 1940, after having cost both sides thousands of aircraft and many more lives both in the air and on the ground. This weekend’s special is therefore accordingly extensive, offering you exceptional rewards and healthy discounts on British and German warplanes. For those of you who want to delve deeper into the history of this crucial WWII event, there is a History Flashback waiting at the end of the article. Enjoy!

In-Game Offers

Double Crew XP

Experience is what helped the British pilots fend off the German invaders. Don’t underestimate its value in your battles!

50% discount on consumables

Prepare your warbirds as best you can by grabbing  maximum consumables at a reduced rate!

50% discount on the following planes:

				Messerschmitt Bf 109 E
				Supermarine Spitfire I
				Messerschmitt Bf 110 E
				Bristol Beaufighter

The most-famous air battle between Germany and Great Britain deserves a massive discount worthy of the occasion.

30% discount on the following planes:

				Messerschmitt Bf 109 F
				Supermarine Spitfire V
				Messerschmitt Me 410
				De Havilland 98 Mosquito

Take your battles to the next level by jumping into the cockpit of any of these superb aircraft!

Special Missions

Try your luck at the following missions to make your recreation of the heroic defence of Britain complete!

History Flashback

Never was so much owed by so many to so few.” When British Prime Minister Winston Churchill spoke those words on 20th August 1940, the worst was unfortunately still to come for his war-torn home country. The Battle of Britain, to which he was alluding, was still in progress and would take another two months before it could finally be considered a victory.

The Battle of Britain is notable for a number of reasons – it was the first major defeat for the German forces in the war and set the scene for their on-going downfall. It was a major battle in which a heavily outnumbered force successfully held out against all the odds. Most importantly, though, it was the first battle in history to be decided purely in the air.

World War II officially began when Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, using a powerful combination of infantry, tank and plane attacks known as Blitzkrieg to smash through traditional defences. After success in Poland, Germany stormed through Denmark and Norway, then on to Belgium, Holland, Luxembourg and France. The Allied defenders fought very bravely, but were pushed back to Dunkirk in France, where an ambitious operation resulted in 800 small boats, mostly owned by civilians, evacuating many of the troops back to the UK.

By 18th June, there were no British forces left in France and the Germans turned their attention to the invasion of Britain. Of course, being an island, Britain presented a new challenge for the Germans, in the form of the English Channel. German Command realised that controlling the Channel would be vital to success in Britain, and began Operation Sea-Lion – a sustained air attack on British freighter ships and the coastal defences of southern Britain. At this time, the odds were very much in favour of Germany, who had 2,600 bombers and fighters while the British Royal Air Force (RAF) had just 640 operational fighters.

 
The British record the battle dates as 10th July until 31st October 1940. It was during this period that the most intense daylight bombings took place. On August 13th, the Germans began Operation Eagle Attack, which consisted of an early assault against coastal RAF airfields. After the initial strike proved unsuccessful, the Luftwaffe upped the stakes on August 24th and started sending bombers in even larger numbers. Covered by deadly Messerschmitt fighters, these attacks were meant to disrupt RAF control and inflict a massive amount of damage to their fleet. However, when this strategy also failed to bring the expected results, the Germans decided to change their tactics once more. This time, they targeted cities and towns directly.

This last phase began on 7^th September and would last until the end of October, when it slowly faded out and smoothly transitioned into the Blitz – the continuous bombing of civilian targets in London and other major cities. This resulted in another huge civilian-focused operation of the war – the mass evacuation of children to the countryside.

By the end of October, the Germans had realised that the RAF could not be easily defeated, and with Russia becoming more of a priority target, Operation Sea-Lion was called off indefinitely. However, intermittent bombing attacks on Britain continued for much of the war.

In addition to their amazing bravery, two main things helped the British to come out victorious at the end of this battle – the superiority of the British planes, especially the Spitfire, and the fact that German Luftwaffe commanders failed to find a consistent strategy. Although the German aircraft outnumbered the British by three to one, they never made use of their numerical superiority. They kept changing the focus of their attacks – first hitting military targets, then industrial ones, and ultimately civilian targets, without concentrating long enough on one region to inflict irreparable damage.

It should also be noted that winning the battle would not have been possible without the help of hundreds of international pilots, who all followed the call for help to unselfishly defend Britain against the enemy. Around 20% of the RAF pilots were non-British internationals, and included a large number of Poles, New Zealanders, Canadians, Czechoslovakians, Irish, Australians, Belgians, South Africans, French, and Americans, as well as one pilot from each of Jamaica, the British Mandate of Palestine and Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). Hundreds of Allied fighter pilots lost their lives during the 15 weeks of battle, of which around a third came from an international background.

Repelling the Germans allowed Great Britain to rebuild its military force and serve as an Allied stronghold throughout the war. Because of the victory in the Battle of Britain, the Allies could rally their troops on British soil and begin the famous Operation Overlord, which ultimately led to the liberation of all of Europe.

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Fight your own Battle of Britain on ‘Lighthouse’ this weekend, pilots!