Boeing Stearman Model 75, part one, European Users

 

The Boeing-Stearman Model 75 was one of the most widely produced American trainer biplanes of the 1930s and 1940s, with almost 11,000 machines being built and the type being exported to various countries around the globe, among them, the following ones:

• Greece: In 1945 the Royal Hellenic Air Force (RHAF) acquired 30 Stearman Kaydet PT-13/PT-17 trainer biplanes (the main difference between them was the engine). They were employed in anti-malaria dusting campaigns all over Greece, equipped with removable DDT gear. 
  The unit, aptly called 'Anti-Malaria Squadron' was based at Eleysis Air Base, in central Greece, being dependent of the RHAF, but also of the Agricultural and Health ministries. 
  Since the aircraft were a donation of the American Mission for Aid to Greece (AMAG), they had not Greek roundels painted. 
  The Stearmans were part of the RHAF until 1969 (although they were sent to supply depot units -IE, withdrawn from active service- years earlier) when they were sold to private aeroclubs. 
  It is known that at least one was employed during the Greek Civil War (1946-1949) in reconnaissance duties.
• Yugoslavia: Jat Airways, the national airline of Yugoslavia, acquired six Stearman PT-17 machines in 1946/1947 for crop dusting duties. They received the following registrations: YU-AER, YU-AES, YU-AET, YU-AEU, YU-AEV and YU-AEW. 
  They were used for crop dusting duties, operated by Jat's pilots until the late 1950s. At least one (YU-AET) was reconverted into a two-seater trainer for civilian pilot training in the winter of 1970-1971. 
  During their career with Jat, they suffered numerous accidents and mishaps affecting to five out of six machines.
  One machine, YU-AEW is known to have been stored for the Belgrade Air Museum in 1984, however, it was destroyed during the Yugoslav Wars (1991-2001) and the ones showed nowadays there are two ex American machines registered as YU-BAD and YU-BAI.

Sources:

1st https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing-Stearman_Model_75

2ns https://www.haf.gr/en/history/historical-aircraft/stearman-kaydet-pt-13-17/

3rd https://air-britain.com/pdfs/archive/Archive_2010.pdf

Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part nineteen. Yugoslav Spitfires.

 

The No. 352 (Jugoslav) Squadron of the Royal Air Force (RAF), was designated in internal Yugoslav documents as '1 Lovacka Eskadrila Vazduhoplovstva NOVJ' (1st Fighter Squadron of NOVJ Aviation). It was formed at Benina (Libya) on 22nd April 1944 and was initially equipped with the Hawker Hurricane, however the unit quickly transitioned to the Spitfire and by June-July they were already fully equipped with the Mk. V/Trop. 
After their training was complete, they became part of No. 281 Wing RAF, which was subordinated to the Balkan Air Force (an Allied formation operating over the Balkans during World War 2). In that formation, they were joined in September by a second Yugoslav squadron, No. 351, equipped with Hurricanes. 

The Yugoslav No. 352 squadron operated from south-eastern Italy performing a wide variety of missions, such as fighter escort, fighter sweeps or ground attack. In October 1944 a detachment was sent to Vis airfield, a small Croatian island on the Adriatic Sea, which served as an advanced operating base, and since January 1945 the entire squadron was based there. 
In mid-April the entire squadron was rebased at the liberated airfield of Prkos, on the Yugoslav coast. In spite of Yugoslav efforts, the squadron was not re-equipped with the Spitfire Mk. IX or Mk. VIII, although it seems that they managed to acquire three Mk. IXs.

On 18th May 1945 (although some sources claim it was later, on 15th June), at Zemunik airfield, the squadron was officially deactivated from RAF's command, together with No. 351 Squadron (AKA 2 LEV NOVJ, the Hurricane-equipped Yugoslav squadron) and it was reformed into 1. Lovacki Puk (1st Fighter Regiment). 

The first squadron of this regiment took over all operational Spitfires they could find, a total of 17 Mk. V Trop and 3 Mk. IX.

Soon after, linked to the formation of a new bomber regiment equipped with the Soviet Petlyakov Pe-2 aircraft, all experienced personnel of the 1st Regiment was transferred to this new bomber unit, so 1. Lovacki Puk was disbanded and the Spitfires were sent to warehouses in Mostar. 

In early 1946 the Spitfires were re-registered according to the Yugoslav Air Force's system. The Mk. Vs received consecutive numbers, ranging from 9476 to 9493, and the few Mk. IX, from 9501 to 9503. 
During autumn/winter of 1946, the six Spitfire Mk. Vs which were in the best flying conditions, were assigned to the 3rd Fighter Division, receiving each of the two regiments that division was equipped with, (flying the Yakovlev Yak-3) three Spitfire Mk. V each.
The goal was to develop appropriate tactics to fight the Spitfires, as the Yugoslav aerial space was violated various times by Greek Spitfires. Those incidents took place regularly in the context of the Greek Civil War, as the Yugoslav authorities supported the local Greek communist rebels and even were allowed to take shelter and set up camps in the Yugoslav region of Macedonia. 
Oddly enough, the conclusions from those comparisons showed that the Yakovlev Yak-3 had no special advantage over the Spitfire Mk. V Trop in combat, apart from its greater maximum speed.

In May 1947 a regiment (named just as 'Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment') equipped entirely with Spitfires was formed again. This time this unit acted as a reconnaissance unit, and the planes were modified with Soviet photo-cameras installed in them.

In autumn 1948 some Spitfires Mk. IX bearing Yugoslav roundels appeared in Yugoslavia, but actually they were Czechoslovak Spitfires which were sold to Israel, as part of Operation Veletta. Those Mk. IXs were ferried from Czechoslovakia to Israel via Yugoslavia, and refuelling at Niksic (southern Yugoslavia) where they refuelled to continue the flight to Israel. They were temporarily painted in Yugoslav markings to avoid raising alerts among observers.

After Soviet-Yugoslav split, when Yugoslavia broke off 'brotherly relations' with the USSR in early 1949, the Yugoslav forces were reorganized. As part of this reorganization, the previous 'Reconnaissance Regiment' was given the number 103 and was rebased to Pancevo, in Serbia, due to the change in the expected direction of the aggression. 

Either way, by August 1952, the Spitfires were written off and replaced by more modern types.

Sources:

1st AJ-Press - Monografie Lotnicze 40 - Supermarine Spitfire Part 3 (translated)

2nd http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/352_wwII.html

3rd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Supermarine_Spitfire_operators#Yugoslavia

Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part eighteen. Soviet Spitfires.

 

Since June 1941, when Germany invaded the USSR and the Soviets joined the Allies, the USSR showed interest in acquiring the Spitfire. In fact, as early as August 1941, a Soviet test pilot was sent to Great Britain to test the type.

The first Spitfires to fly with the Soviets were of the reconnaissance variant. As early as 1942 three Spitfires PR.IV (a recon variant of the Mk. V) from Royal Air Force's No. 1 Photo Reconnaissance Unit, were left in Vayenga airfield, in Murmansk. In 1943 and 1944, using the same delivery method, the Soviet Northern Fleet acquired five more operational Spitfires PR. IV plus two seriously damaged ones. They were then employed by the 118 ORAP (118th Independent Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment) until 1946.

During early 1943, one hundred and forty-three Spitfire Mk. Vb were delivered to the USSR by road via the Iranian port of Abadan. These aircraft were first assigned to 25 ZAP (25th Reserve Air Regiment), from where they were transferred to at least two fighter regiments on the frontlines.

The first of those Air Regiments was 36 IAP (Fighter Aviation Regiment), which was awarded the title of 'Guards' and was renamed to 57 GIAP (Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment). After several months, however, the Spitfires were withdrawn from front-line regiments, onyl after three months of service, in the Kuban sector, as they were considered unsuitable for use in the front. 
Some Mk. Vs were sent to Moscow's anti-aircraft defence units, where they were employed against Luftwaffe's Junkers Ju.86R, the high-altitude bomber variant of the Junkers Ju.86.

From February 1944 the USSR began to receive the Spitfire Mk. IX. A total of 1.183 LF.IX and two HF.IX were delivered by the end of the war. Some Russian studies point that nine additional Mk. XVI were also delivered in the spring of 1945. 
As we said, after the first experiences in the battlefield with the Mk. V, the Soviet Air Command considered the Spitfire to be unsuitable for frontline use, so almost all those Mk. IXs were assigned to PVO (anti-aircraft defence) units. At the end of the war, twenty-six of eighty-one PVO's regiments were equipped with Spitfires. 
In 1944 out of 5.318 aircraft in PVO's inventory, there were 297 Spitfire Mk. IXs and in 1945 the number rose to 825, out of a total of 5.047 aircraft.

Not very much is known about the combat usage of the Spitfires in the USSR. The only known episode, is the shooting down of a late variant of a Junkers Ju.88 (probably either a Ju. 88S or a Ju. 88T) near Leningrad on 8th March 1945, achieved by two Spitfire Mk. IX pilots: V.  Rybin (from 11 GIAP) and A. Fedotov (from 102 GIAP).

Towards the end of the war, some Spitfires were employed to test a television-guidance system. This worked in such a way that the image of the situation from the ground radar was presented on a screen placed inside the cockpit. Two Mk. IXs from 26 GIAP, flown by Lt. Col. W. Macjewicz and Capt. N. Szczerbina were modified.

In the operational history of the Spitfire in the USSR, the official magazine of the PVO stated the following: "... Although the Spitfire did not leave a significant mark on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, at its end and during the first post-war years, it became irreplaceable in the role of a high-altitude interceptor of the PVO".

After the end of the war, Spitfires remained in PVO's fighter pool until 1947/1948, with the last being withdrawn in 1951. Towards the end of their career in the USSR, they served as a transition aircraft for retraining pilots for jet fighters. This was due to the excellent high-altitude characteristics of the Spitfire, incomparably better than any Soviet piston aircraft. 
An unknown number of Spitfire Mk. IXs were converted to two-seaters, following Soviet doctrine of retraining pilots in two-seater versions of front-line fighters. This conversion has been commonly known as Spitfire Mk. IXUTI.

After the war, several of those Mk. IXUTIs were used to break parachute jump altitude records. On 25th September 1945 V. Romaniuk set a new world altitude record by jumping from a Mk. IXUTI piloted by A. Proshakov, at an altitude of 13.105,5 m.

In addition to unit service, all versions of the Spitfire delivered to the USSR underwent testing in research facilities. 

Also, according to unconfirmed reports, a number of Soviet Spitfires were transferred to Communist China in the early 1950s. This however, is most likely false.

Sources:

1st AJ-Press - Monografie Lotnicze 40 - Supermarine Spitfire Part 3 (translated)

2nd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Supermarine_Spitfire_operators#USSR

Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part seventeen. The Spitfire in Portugal.

 

During late 1942 eighteen Spitfires, which were ordered before the beginning of the war, were delivered to Portugal, to form the bulk of their Aeronáutica Militar (Military Aeronautics - Portuguese Army's aerial branch). Those Spitfires were given the registration numbers of 370 to 387 and were assigned to equip Squadron XZ. Portuguese squadrons were marked with a set of letters that also served as a code painted on the aircraft. 
By virtue of the treaty that granted the Allies the right to use the bases in the Azores islands, Portugal was going to receive, for free, 36 Spitfire Mk. Vb, among many other aircraft. 
Those 36 Mk. Vb were shipped between October 1943 and January 1944.
Eventually thirty-three aircraft were delivered, were given the registration numbers of 1 to 33 and were assigned to aerial base of Ota (located in a civil parish close to Lisbon and officially called as 'Base Aérea Nr. 2'), where they were employed to form two new squadrons (Squadrons RL and MR) that were part of the Fighter Group stationed there.
In 1947 sixty more Spitfire Mk. Vb (mostly of the LF sub-variant) were bought from Royal Air Force's surplus. This new batch received the numbers of 34 to 92. 
Some were assigned to form a new squadron, Squadron ZE, while the rest were sent to supplement the numbers of the already existing ones. 

On 1st July 1952 the Portuguese Air Force (Força Aérea Portuguesa) was created and, as a result, the Aeronáutica Militar ceased to exist, resulting in a deep reorganization of every Portuguese aerial unit. 
Three Spitfire squadrons were merged into two (Squadrons 20 and 21), this time designated with numbers and still based at Ota. At the same time, the aircraft designation system was changed, with the Spitfires receiving a four digit code, in which the first digit indicated the category of the aircraft (in the case of the Spitfire it was the number 4 - 'fighter'), the second the type within the category (Spitfire - 3), while the other remaining two were the aircraft's own number. Example given, the previous Spitfire number 26, was now 4326. 
Anyway one year later, in 1953, the Spitfires were written off service.

Sources:

1st AJ-Press - Monografie Lotnicze 40 - Supermarine Spitfire Part 3 (translated)

2nd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Supermarine_Spitfire_operators#Portugal

Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part sixteen. Polish Spitfire users, part four.

 

As we have written in earlier posts, eight Polish Fighter squadrons served with the Royal Air Force (RAF), composed of seven fighter squadrons operating on Great Britain and north-western European Theatre of operations, plus one reconnaissance squadron operating in Italy and one short-lived squadron operating in Tunisia, were equipped at some points of their careers with Spitfires. 

After the end of the war, due to political decisions made by the Allies, the Polish Air Forces in France and Great Britain did not return to Polish soil and were disbanded in the United Kingdom. 

In late 1945 just three Spitfires were sent to Poland, from Polish Air Force in Exile's stocks, as a gift from the RAF. One of them, whose pilot got lost on his way to Warsaw, was sent back to the British Occupation Zone in Germany. The other remaining two were taken to the Polish Army Museum, from where they were taken and destroyed in 1947 during the Stalinist period. 

It is worth mentioning the last Polish ace to fly the Spitfire, Miroslaw Wojciechowski, who joined the RAF post war and, after undergoing a refresher course on Spitfires Mk. XVIs, he was assigned to No. 2 Squadron in Germany to fly the PR. XIX. From December 1949 to February 1951 he flew his PR. XIX (PM627 OI-X) more than 30 times until the PR. XIXs were replaced by the jet-powered Gloster Meteor FR.9.

Sources:

1st AJ Press - Monografie Lotnicze 40 - Supermarine Spitfire 3 (translated)

2nd Osprey Publishing - Aircraft of the Aces 127 - Polish Spitfire Aces

Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part fifteen. Polish Spitfire users, part three.

 

Some more Royal Air Force's (RAF) Polish squadrons and units were the following:

• No. 302 'City of Poznan' Polish Fighter Squadron: This unit transitioned from the Hawker Hurricane to the Spitfire Mk. V in late 1941 while stationed in south-west England. Their mission was changed from providing aerial cover to convoys in the Irish Sea to fighter sweeps over France, which is the role they played for the most part of 1942. 
  In February 1943 the squadron was rebased north to provide aerial defence to Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. In June 1943 the squadron was assigned to the 2nd Tactical Air Force (2nd TAF) and the fighter sweeps over mainland Europe were resumed. In April 1944 the squadron was converted to the fighter-bomber role and in August 1944 they were moved to France, where they took part in the Battle of Normandy, providing close air support. In October they were rebased to Belgium, from where they performed offensive sweeps over Germany. 
  Just as it happened to other Polish squadrons, their base was attacked by the Luftwaffe on Operation Bodenplatte and, in April 1945 they were operating from Germany until the end of the war. They operated the Spitfires Mk. V, Mk. IX and Mk. XVI.
• Polish Fighting Team: This unit, nicknamed as 'Skalki's Circus', was formed at RAF Northolt in February 1943 and they were embarked for Tunisia later that month. 
  The team was initially attached to No. 145 Squadron and, equipped with the Spitfires Mk. Vc/Trop and Mk. IX operated from various airfields in western Libya and Tunisia providing very effective aerial cover and ground support throughout the whole Tunisian campaign and making themselves a name. 
  The Polish Fighting Team (PFT) had just one casualty, one pilot who was shot down and taken POW. 
  After the end of the Tunisian campaign, the PFT was disbanded and their pilots moved on to another units of the RAF, mostly Nos. 601 (where Skalki -founder of the PFT- became its CO), 43 and 152 which operated through the Italian campaign. 

Sources:

1st http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/302_wwII.html

2nd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_Fighting_Team

3rd https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Polish_Fighting_Team

Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part fourteen. Polish Spitfire users, part two.

 

Some more Polish squadrons equipped with the Supermarine Spitfire were:

• No. 306 'City of Torun' Polish Fighter Squadron: This squadron transitioned from the Hawker Hurricane to the Spitfire Mk. II in July 1941, while present at Northolt, where they were conducting offensive sweeps over France. In October 1941 they were moved to Merseyside, to stay on the defensive and, in December they were moved again to south west England, this time equipped with the Mk. V. Based at south-west England, they kept on sweeps over France until March 1943, with a small rest in May-June 1942. As written, in March 1943 they were moved north to Yorkshire. This squadron was equipped with both the Mk. V and the Mk. IX until they were all replaced by the North American Mustang III (P-51 B/C) in March 1944. 
• No. 316 'City of Warsaw' Polish Fighter Squadron: This unit transitioned from the Hurricane to the Spitfire during a period that lasted from October 1941 until July 1942 when they were fully equipped with the Mk. V. That same month, they were moved to Yorkshire, where it remained until March 1943 when the unit returned to southern England to resume the fighter patrols over France. This period lasted until September, when the squadron was pulled back to defensive duties and then, in April 1944 the Spitfires were replaced with the Mustang Mk. III. 
• No. 317 'City of Wilno' Polish Fighter Squadron: This squadron, formed in late February 1941 and initially equipped with the Hawker Hurricane, was re-equipped with the Spitfire Mk. V in October 1941. Operating from the south-west of England, they conducted many offensive sweeps over France and, in April 1942 they joined other Polish squadrons at Northolt, where it remained until September when they were re-based to North Yorkshire to stand there during the winter of 1942-1943. In April 1943 the squadron was moved to Suffolk to resume the offensive sweeps over France. It was there where the unit became part of the 2nd TAF and operated over Normandy in June 1944. In August 1944 the squadron was re-based to Normandy, following the Allies' advance east. In October they were moved to Belgium, where they kept conducting offensive sweeps over Germany and, on 1st January 1945 its base was attacked in Operation Bodenplatte (the last great offensive of the Luftwaffe).
  In April 1945 they were operating from bases in Germany, where they stayed until the end of the war. They were part of the occupation forces in Germany until disbanded on 18th December 1946.

It is also interesting to point out that  the first test pilots of the Spitfire F.XII (the first of the Griffon-powered variant) were Henryk Pietrzak and Wladislaw Potocki, both Polish aces. They were assigned to test the very much improved version of the Spitfire from November 1942 to February 1943. 

Sources:

1st http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/306_wwII.html

2nd http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/316_wwII.html

3rd http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/317_wwII.html