The importance of factors such as determination, fighting spirit, and even organization cannot be underestimated as important factors in Britain's victory. If there is one thing that the British have been renowned for, it has to be organization. On the eve of the Battle of Britain as well as throughout it, they faced two major problems though: a lack of qualified pilots and a lack of planes. A lot of the RAF's strength had been used up in France. So in stepped Lord Beaver brook, the newly appointed minister for air production. He began to turn things around by reorganizing airplane production and repair units. Productivity soared, and according to Peter North, the repair units provided almost 60% of the planes used by the British in the battle (1990:50-51). This allowed the RAF to equip all its operational fighter squadrons and at least keep in touch with meeting the mounting losses it would face. The organisation was in place to keep the RAF in the air and fighting, and that was vital if Britain was going to win. Planes were useless without pilots; however, they still had few of those. North also notes that around 445 pilots had been lost in the battle to save France, and even before the Battle of Britain began, they were still 360 pilots short of being fully operational (North: 1990,52). Training new pilots at that time took almost a year, and the RAF was still regarded as something of an old boys club. Things did begin to change following what happened in France, but with the Battle of Britain looming, there simply was not time to train pilots properly. Training was shortened even further as the battle intensified until new pilots began to arrive for operations having had only hours of training (North, 1990:53). Such inexperience would show in the air and would also reflect in the numbers of RAF losses. This makes the British achievement in the battle even more amazing and raises the question as to whether the battle was won because of the pilots or in spite of them. But what they did took amazing bravery and underlines the fighting spirit and determination of those involved, to still take to the air knowing they faced almost certain death, but knowing the alternative would be even worse. Despite the problems the pilots faced, it is amazing just what can be achieved when there really is nothing left to lose. It has to be remembered, though, that the British did not fight alone, survivors from European air forces such as the French, Dutch, , and Czech all arrived in Britain to fight for the RAF. Likewise, other pilots came from Commonwealth countries including Canada, Australia, and New Zealand as well as a few from the United States. All played important roles, and despite the obvious language problems, provided vital experience that helped give the British the fighting chance they needed.
Britain did have one advantage though, and that was . Although unreliable, it allowed the British to track the German raids and send the fighters to where they were needed. The British fighters could stay on the ground until the last minute, so constant patrols were not needed and the Germans lost the element of surprise, which in many ways made up for the lack of numbers on the British side. The Germans were never able to successfully take out Britain's radar chain, and this plays a big part in why they were never able to get the better of fighter command. Another major factor on Britain's side was that they were fighting over friendly territory. Shot down pilots who survived could return to the battle, but German pilots shot down were lost, so although numerically stronger, they were bound to lose more men than the British.
From 10th July, the Germans launched daily strikes on the British, but by August, the British were , with the Germans losing 248 fighters to the RAF's 148. It was the loss of trained pilots that was crippling the RAF, and the real battle had yet to begin. The German's had set "Eagle Day" for 10th August, as soon as the radar network had been taken out. By now, the weather intervened and the attack on the radar stations could not take place until . The Germans did manage to severely damage the radar network - but not break it - and it cost them dearly in terms of aircraft. The British were able to repair the radar, meet the Eagle onslaught, and shoot down 46 planes for a loss of only 13. Further attacks on the 14th and 15th August cost the Germans 75 aircraft for the loss of 35 British planes. The Germans had shot their bolt and it had failed. Yet despite this, the Germans were gaining the advantage simply because they could afford to lose planes and pilots and the British could not. The RAF were pushed to almost breaking point, but the Germans could not break them no matter how hard they tried.
One event would transpire to alter the whole direction of the conflict, if not the war. On , one off-course German bomber dumped his bombs so he could have a better chance of getting home and accidentally bombed London, which the Germans were under orders not to do. The British didn't know this, and ordered a counter strike on Berlin which understandably upset the Germans. Göring and Hitler believed such raids could never happen. Hitler, unable to let such a slight go unpunished, ordered a sustained bombing campaign on London from . Although horrific, this could not have been better for the RAF, as it took the pressure off them just when they were about to collapse. This move also made the British more defiant and determined to hold out. Once they regrouped, the RAF could continue to hit the Luftwaffe without sustaining anything like the damage they had been suffering. They could keep hitting the Germans until they could no longer afford to take any more damage. It soon became clear to the Germans that they were not going to destroy the RAF, and the Germans had suffered far more damage than they ever thought they would. As a result, Operation Sea Lion was indefinitely postponed on the , and despite further minor raids by the Germans, the Battle of Britain was effectively over. The war was far from over, but the Germans had certainly got a bloody nose and suffered their first defeat. In four months, while Britain had lost 915 aircraft, the Germans had lost 1733 (North, 1990:113). There was still a long way to go, but it proved to the world that the Germans were not invincible. The Germans subsequently turned their attentions to the East and the invasion of Russia where they would suffer even greater problems. An uneasy stand off between Britain and Germany ensued.
In the end, Britain had a lot to be thankful for. The skill and determination of her pilots could not be underestimated, but luck played an even more important role. The weather, so often derided in England, caused more problems than the Luftwaffe could cope with. Yet, it was the unfortunate action of one German pilot that altered the whole pattern of the war, but saved the RAF. Hitler's ego got in the way and changed Germany's tactics just when they had the British were they wanted them. Ultimately, it could be argued that the Germans lost the Battle of Britain rather than the British winning it. However, while the Germans made tactical errors, it still took the bravery and ability of the RAF to exploit these mistakes and defeat the Germans for the first time in the war.
By Kay Bradley 10k
