Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part two. Czechoslovakia, part one.

 

Many of the Czechoslovak squadrons in exile employed the Supermarine Spitfire in any of its variants. The following Czechoslovak-manned unit were:

• No.310 (Czechoslovak) Squadron: In October 1941 this squadron was re-equipped with the Spitfire Mk.II and operated in Wales from December 1941 until April 1942. In May it was moved to Exeter and, during the months of July to September 1943 the squadron operated the Spitfire Mk.VI, before switching back to the Spitfire Mk.V which had adopted back in November 1941. 
  During January 1944 the squadron got the Spitfire Mk.IX in charge, changing from a pure fighter unit to a fighter-bomber one and took part in the north-western European campaign during 1944. 
  Shortly after the end of the war in Europe, on 31st August 1945, the squadron was rebased to Prague-Ruzyne, where it was transferred to the newly reformed Czechoslovak Air Force on 15th February 1946.
• No.312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron: This unit transitioned from the Hawker Hurricane to the Spitfire Mk.II in October 1941 and to the Mk.V in December 1941. After taking part in various aerial campaigns defending the aerial space of England during 1942, when it provided aerial support for the raid on Dieppe, and 1943, the squadron switched to the Spitfire Mk.IX in January 1944 to take part in the preparations for Operation Overlord. The squadron was part of the 2nd Tactical Air Force and, as such, operated from British Air Bases located in England until the end of the war. 
  On 24th August 1945 they were rebased to Prague-Ruzyne and, on 15th February 1946 they were transferred to the Czechoslovak Air Force.
• No.313 (Czechoslovak) Squadron: This formation was equipped with the Spitfire Mk.I from the its inception in May 1941. They were assigned to the defence of south-western England and, in October 1941 they switched to the better Spitfire Mk.V. 
  They flew the Spitfire Mk.VI for a brief period of time, from June to July 1943, operating from south-eastern England. 
  Just like the other Czechoslovak squadrons, they were re-equipped with the Mk.IX in February 1944, type which operated until July, when they flew the Mk.VII, before switching back to the Mk.IX in October 1944. During this time they operated from British airfields in south-east England.
  On 24th August 1945 they flew to Prague-Ruzyne, where they were transferred to the Czechoslovak Air Force on 15th February 1946.

The Spitfire was also operated at wing level by the No.134 (Czechoslovak) Fighter Wing, which was the parent unit comprising all the above mentioned fighter squadrons.

Sources:

1st https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._310_(Czechoslovak)_Squadron_RAF

2nd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._312_(Czechoslovak)_Squadron_RAF

3rd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._313_(Czechoslovak)_Squadron_RAF

4th https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._134_Wing_RAF

Lavochkin La-5, Czechoslovak users

 

The Lavochkin La-5 was also employed by Czechoslovakia. The first Czech unit to be equipped with the La-5 was the 1st Czechoslovak Fighter Regiment (1st CS.IAP) of the Soviet Air Force (VVS) which was formed in late May 1944 in Moscow, by former RAF Czechoslovak pilots. 
The 1st CS.IAP was formed at Ivanovo and Kubinka air bases, and, after taking some formation with the La-5UTI (the two-seater trainer variant of the La-5) by June 1944 it was declared as combat ready. 
During the Slovak National Uprising, Jan Golian (leader of the Slovak rebels) asked the USSR for help, so the VVS sent the 1st CS.IAP which was stationed at Proskurov airfield, near Lviv, in the Ukrainian SSR. On 17th September 1944 they were rebased to Zolna airfield and, by 18th September they were already in action as they attacked the Luftwaffe base in Piest'any (Bratislava) destroying various enemy fighters. Shortly later, on the 20th they also attacked the Malacky-Novy-Dvor air base destroying more Luftwaffe aircraft to prevent them from intercepting American bombers of the 15th Air Force. Those attacks took the Germans by surprise, so they had to move both Schlachtgeschwader 77 and Jagdgeschwader 52 from southern Poland and Hungary respectively to fight against 1st CS.IAP.  During the Slovak National Uprising they provided aerial support by attacking German artillery positions and strafing ground troops, having to overcome the unsuitability of the La-5FN for the ground support as it lacked armour. 
When the uprising failed and the Germans retook the Slovak land, the 1st CS.IAP escaped back to Soviet lines. It was during this period that the unit flew a total of 573 sorties and destroyed 13 enemy aircraft with ten casualties. 
The unit was transferred to the newly created 1st Czechoslovak Independent Combined Air Division on 25th January 1945 and it served during the Soviet advances in southern Poland and Czechoslovakia providing aerial support to the 4th Ukrainian Front. 
After spending some time at Przemysl airfield the 1st CS.IAP was transferred to Poremba airfield from where they took off in their last mission escorting a formation of eight Il-2 Shturmovik attack planes bombing the village of Olza, in southern Poland. 
There was a second Czechoslovak Fighter Regiment undergoing training, but the war in Europe ended before their training could be completed. 

After the war, the Czechoslovak Air Force (CAF) was re-founded with, among many others, 31 La-5FN and La-5UTI fighters and trainers respectively, making Czechoslovakia, the only foreign user of the La-5.
The La-5FN was designated as 'S-95' in CAF service and the type had to be constantly overhauled as they were phased out in the USSR back in 1945. In July 1946 a group of Soviet specialists declared all but two La-5 non-airworthy and directed the fighters to be scrapped, discarding the order for an additional force of 60 La-7 (the successor of the La-5) to be delivered. 
After a further inspection by the CAF and the Czechoslovak Scientific Aviation Institute,  the La-5 were declared mostly flyable, except for aerobatics purposes. However, on static tests carried out on both La-5FN and  La-5UTIs, the wooden parts showed signs of exhaustion and so, every La plane was grounded on 13th December 1946.
Anyway, after further inspection, it turned out that the wooden airframe and other parts, were already counted in their calculations, so, during 1947 the La-5 was admitted again into the CAF. By 1st July 1948 the CAF had 23 La-5FN and LA-5UTI in strength but, by late 1948 the type was already being withdrawn from service. 
The last official unit to employ the La-5FN and La-5UTI was the Bezpecnostní letectvo, the aerial branch of the SNB (Czechoslovak National Police which existed from 1945 to 1991). 

Sources:

1st Signal Squadron - Aircraft In Action 169 - La5-7 Fighters in Action
2nd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Czechoslovak_Fighter_Air_Regiment

3rd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sbor_národní_bezpečnosti 

4th https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bezpečnostní_letectvo (translated)

Avia B-71

 

In May 1935 the First Czechoslovak Republic signed a non-aggression pact with the USSR, which included a mutual economic aid clause. That treaty also included that Czechoslovakia (one of the world's leading arms exporters at the time) granted license production rights for their 75mm Skoda C-5 mountain gun and 75mm Skoda R-3 anti-aircraft gun to the Soviets. In exchange, Czechoslovakia received a license to build the Tupolev SB.

In virtue of that agreement, a contract was signed between Technoexport (Soviet Union's external trade organization) and the Czechoslovak Ministry of National Defence on 15th April 1937. A total of 61 Tupolev SBs would be delivered straight from the USSR and Avia (subsidiary of Skoda) would build another 161 SBs at their Cakovice plant. The SB received the denomination of B-71 given by the Czechoslovenske Letectvo (CL - Czechoslovak Air Force) and was planned to serve both in the bomber and long-range reconnaissance roles.

The Soviet-supplied SBs were equipped with Czechoslovak-built engines, armament, radios and instruments. Those instruments were sent to Fili, Moscow, to be fitted to various airframes at GAZ 22 factory. It was estimated that the unit price for each of those SBs was set at $ 118.460 of the time, that's $ 2.519.362,55 adjusted for 2023 inflation. 

The Avia B-71 was powered by two Hispano-Suiza H.S.12 Ydrs engines, yielding 860 hp of power each and built under license by CKD-Praha. The original four 7,62mm ShKAS machine guns were replaced by three Czechoslovak 7,92mm ZB vz30 machine guns.

When compared to the SB 2M-100-A, it differed in various details. As we've just written, one vz30 machine gun was placed in the nose, instead of the origina two ShKAS. Two balance weights were added in the lower-right wing and the B-71s were equipped with radios, while the SB 2M-100As lacked any radio equipment. The B-71 had a retractable antenna fitted in the right rear fuselage. Those features were copied by the Soviets in the late-built SB 2M-100As. 

The first three Soviet-delivered machines were sent in March 1937. The first machine was assigned to the Vyzkummy a Skusební Letecky Ústav (VZLU - Research and Experimental Aviation Institute) at Prague-Letnany airport for trials on 17th April 1937. This first aircraft retained the cartridge case ejection tunnel present on every SB, but not in every subsequent B-71. The right nose step on these three initial aircraft, was mounted higher in production B-71s. The first three B-71 had front and back sights on the vz30 machine guns, however, those sights were not fitted in production aircraft.

The Soviet-built 61 B-71s were flown from Fili, Moscow to Kiev (Ukrainian SSR), where they were delivered to Czechoslovak pilots who flew the type from Kiev to Kocice (Czechoslovakia) via Romania. Once in Czechoslovak territory, the CL assigned the B-71 to their units. The first three were assigned to an operational squadron on 13th March 1938. Those B-71 intended for the bombardment role were assigned to the 5. Letecky Pluk (5.LP - Aviation Regiment) based at Brno-Turany airport and the 6.LP based at Prague. The B-71s intended for long-range reconnaissance were assigned to the 1.LP, at Prague and the 2.LP at Olomouc, Northern Moravia. 

The Germans invaded Czechoslovakia on 15th March 1939, so the B-71 was active with the CL for one year and two days, forming the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. Avia had not begun license production of the B-71 yet, so every B-71 that fell into German hands was of Soviet production.

Sources:

1st Signal Squadron - Aircraft In action 194 - Tupolev SB in Action

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

3rd https://massimotessitori.altervista.org/sovietwarplanes/pages/sb/tapani/b-71/czech%2Bslovak/czech%2Bslovak.htm

Miles M.14 Magister. Part five. British users

 

The Miles M.14 Magister is a British two-seat basic trainer which was developed during the 1930s to the specification T.40/36.

After the success of the M.2 Hawk elementary trainer, Miles decided to produce a variant of the M.2 to satisfy the Air Ministry's specification T.40/36. 

The type submitted was very similar to the M.2. The main difference between the M.2 and the M.14 being the cockpit, which was enlarged in the M.14 and had various new features to meet military training requirements. The prototype flew for the first time on 20th March 1937 at the hands of Frederick G. Miles, and, during the following month, it received the nickname of Magister. During early flights the aircraft showed a tendency to spin. This was, however, fixed with many alterations, among them, elevating the tailplane by 6 in (15 cm), the fitting of anti-spin strakes and the adoption of a taller rudder. These changes worked so well that the Magister became the first aircraft to receive permission from the Air Ministry to perform aerobatics. 

The Magister is mainly made out of wood, the fuselage consisting of a spruce structure covered in plywood. Both wings and tail section were made out of similar materials. It is equipped with split flaps, and was the first Royal Air Force's (RAF) trainer to be equipped with them. It has also a fixed undercarriage covered in aerodynamical spats and equipped with Bendix drum brakes, in order to reduce landing distance. It is powered by a single De Havilland Gipsy Major I engine which yields 130 hp of power. 

After having won the contest of the Air Ministry, it was ordered into mass production, which began in October 1937 and continued until 1941, with 1.023 machines being manufactured by Miles. 

Initial production orders were supplied to flying clubs through the Straight Corporation, as well as many overseas private customers. At the outbreak of World War 2 more than 700 Magisters were in service with the RAF Elementary Flying Training Schools, among them the Central Flying School. 

During June 1940 as part of the British anti-invasion preparations around 15 Magisters were fitted with small bomb racks to be used as very light bombers. However, they were never used in this role. 

The Magister was also used as an experiment carried out in 1941 to include an auxiliary towed rear wing, which could carry either additional ammo or fuel. This was done to increase the range of British medium bombers at the time. The experiment was, however, a failure.

After the war, many were sold to private owners, and were known as the Hawk Trainer III. In these private hands the Magister enjoyed a reputation of being a fast racer. 

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miles_Magister

2. Scale Aircraft Modelling - October 1997 - Miles Military Trainers

3. Putnam & Co. - Miles aircraft since 1925 

Arado Ar.296 and Ar.396

 

As the Arado Ar.96 was becoming obsolete, the Reich's Aviation Ministry started to look for a replacement. That's where both Arado Ar.296 and the Ar.396 came in. 

The Arado Ar.296 was a project for a development of the original Arado Ar.96 trainer aircraft powered by a more powerful Argus As.411 engine. However, as the war progressed on, the project was abandoned in favour of the Ar.396 which employed less strategic material which were so much needed in times of war. As there are just indications of how the project would look like if completed, the drawing should be considered as hypothetical.

The Ar.396 was a trainer aircraft developed from the Ar.96B, but employing as little metal as possible in its construction. In spite of its name it was developed both in France and Czechoslovakia and, apparently, it never entered operational use with the Luftwaffe, though the prototypes were painted in Luftwaffe's colours and markings. 

Considering that, by 1944, Germany was running short on strategic materials like light alloys this new design was intended to use as little metal and wood as possible. The Ar.396 was designed  by the French Société Industrielle pour l’Aéronautique (SIPA) during the occupation. As France was liberated, work on this new aircraft was continued at Avia and Letov, in Czechoslovakia. The Ar.396V3 made its maiden flight on 29th December 1944 in the liberated Paris, with Free France's colours and was, in fact, the prototype for the SIPA S.10 (another aircraft which we'll post about later). 

As a simplified version of the Ar.96, the Ar.396 featured hand operated flaps, and a semi-retractable undercarriage. It had two seats, one for the pilot and another one for the student both of which sat in tandem in enclosed glazed cockpit and there were plans for it to be produced in two versions, the Ar.396 A-1 which was a fighter trainer with a single machine-gun, bomb racks and a gun-sight and the Ar.396 A-2 which was designed for blind flying training. 

Although it never reached operational status, the fourth prototype was tested at Rechlin in late 1944, where it suffered carbon-monoxide problems in the crew compartment. The Ar.396 present at Letov's facilities in Prague, became famous as it was captured by the Czech resistance and used during Prague in early May 1945.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arado_Ar_96

2. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_arado_ar_396.html

3. https://www.valka.cz/Arado-Ar-396-A-t6485

Arado Ar.96/Avia C.2 Czechoslovak users

 

The Arado Ar.96 was a German single-engined low-wing monoplane made entirely out of metal which was produced not only by Arado Flugzeugwerke, but also by other companies under license. 

One of those was the Czechoslovak Avia which, from 1940 until April 1945 manufactured the type at their factories in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (the German-occupied Czech country) together with another Czech airplane manufacturer like Letov. 

As the war ended, many were put into service with the newly re-established Czechoslovak Air Force and, as the type was kept under manufacture after the war with the name of Avia C-2 (numbers show that between August 1945 - when the production line was set up again- and 1950 -when production of the Avia C-2 came to an end- four hundred and twenty six exemplars were manufactured at Avia's factories only. The C-2 was produced in two sub-variants, an unarmed one (C-2) and an armed one (C-2B). The armed variant was equipped with an MG 17 placed at the right side of the engine, had underwing bomb racks for a total of 70 kg (155 lb) of  bombs. Both variants were powered by the Argus 410A engine which powered the original German ones and they were also produced in Czechoslovakia after the war. 

As many of the original Ar.96 were put into use with the Czechoslovak Air Force after the war, and the type was also manufactured massively there after the war, it comes no surprise that it was the main trainer of the Czechoslovak Air Force during the post-war period. They were found to be fully suitable for the basic and advanced trainer roles but also for bomb and night-flying training. 

Thanks to their good flying characteristics, they were also used by the Czechoslovak National Security Corps which employed them more than once during the early 1950s to shot down ballons containing propaganda leaflets. They were also exported to Hungary and Bulgaria.

The C-2 were used by the Czechoslovak Air Force's academy until 12th December 1955 when, they were gradually withdrawn from service and replaced by the Soviet-made Yakovlev Yak-11. The last C-2 was used at Letnany air base in 1958 as a tow airplane.

Sources: 

1. https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arado_Ar_96 (translated)

2. https://www.valka.cz/Arado-Ar-96-t54856 (translated)

Airspeed AS.10 Oxford, part three, Belgian & Czechoslovak users

The Airspeed AS.10 Oxford was a British twin-engined multi-purpose aircraft that was designed and developed by Airspeed Ltd.. It was conceived as a trainer variant of Airspeed's previous design, the Airspeed Envoy, but it quickly grew as an aircraft of its own. It was exported to many countries, among them, Belgium and Czechoslovakia:

• Belgium: In July 1939 a single Oxford owned by Airspeed Ltd. was flown to Evere Airport, in Brussels. It was piloted by Georges B.S. Errington and the aircraft was to be displayed at the IIe Salon Aéronautique de Bruxelles (Brussels' Aeronautical Show). Shortly later, in August, the Belgian Aéronautique Militaire (Belgian Army's Aeronautical branch) announced the purchase of that particular machine. It was intended to be used for advanced training and communications role. In fact, back in March 1939 the Oxford had been selected as the winner competing against the French Potez 561, the Germans Focke-Wulf Fw.58 Weihe and Siebel Si.204 Halle and the Italian Caproni Ca.310.
  After successful further trials, apparently the Belgian Oxford was registered as D-1. However, some sources claim it wasn't registered at all. Anyway, an order for further 5 machine was placed. Those additional Oxfords were to be assembled by both Renard and SABCA. However, that process was halted when Germany invaded Belgium in May 1940 and the Germans captured the aircraft (its fate is unknown). This single Oxford was used by the Ecole d'Aeronautique (Aeronautical School) based at Evere Airport, in Brussels and then it was transferred to No.3 Squadron of the Ecole de Pilotage (Pilots School) in Deurne, in Antwerp.
  After the war, for the newly founded Belgian Air Force, 30 Oxfords were ordered on 16th January 1947. Most of the Oxfords served with the Ecole Pilotage Avancé (Advanced Piloting School) and the 15th Transport Wing. Many of them were also used as base hacks in different wings through the Royal Belgian Air Force. In July 1955, the Belgian Air Force decided that every Oxford should be flown to their next main overhaul after which they were scrapped at Evere because their wooden structure didn't allow them to extend their useful live. Nowadays a single Oxford is preserved at the Royal Army Museum in Brussels.
• Czechoslovakia: A single Oxford T.1 (the trainer variant) which belonged to No.311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron of the Royal Air Force (RAF) flew, in September 1945 from RAF Manston, in Kent, to Prague with a crew of three. The machine was pushed into service with the back then, newly founded Czechoslovak Air Force. The Oxford then received various different codes and served with various units until 1950 when, due to a lack of spare parts the machine was abandoned and scrapped.

Sources:

1. http://www.belgian-wings.be/Webpages/Navigator/Photos/MilltaryPics/post_ww2/Airspeed%20Oxford/airspeed_oxford%20frontpage.htm

2. http://www.belgian-wings.be/Webpages/Navigator/Photos/MilltaryPics/interbellum/Airspeed%20Oxford%20I/Airspeed%20Oxford%20I%20Frontpage.html

3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airspeed_Oxford#Other_users

4. https://www.super-hobby.com/products/Airspeed-Oxford-Mk.I-II-Foreign-Service.html