British Air Forces France
Encyclopedia
British Air Forces in France was an RAF
Command set up on 15 January 1940 under the command of Air Marshal
Arthur Barratt
to provide unified control of all RAF units based in France. It had two immediately subordinate formations, with differing tasks .
As well as the forces under its command, BAFF could also request RAF Bomber Command
to provide support from UK-based medium bombers. The headquarters of BAFF were at Chauny
alongside those of the French air commander , to maximise co-operation between the BAFF and the Armée de l'Air
and there was a commitment to reinforce BAFF with a further 4 Hurricane squadrons when the expected German offensive started.
fighters and highly effective light anti-aircraft units protecting the offensive. By the end of May 12, the number of serviceable bombers with the AASF had been reduced to 72 (from 135 when the German offensive opened). The War Cabinet
meeting that evening were warned by the Chief of Air Staff Cyril Newall that the bomber losses had been disproportionate to the results achieved..On May 14 the AASF made a maximum effort attack on the pontoon bridges thrown across the Meuse
at Sedan
by the Germans; it lost 40 out of 71 attacking aircraft.
The heavy German air superiority led to repeated reinforcement with additional Hurricane squadrons. At the request of BAFF and the BEF the equivalent of another 2 squadrons joined the Air Component on 13 May., but this was only after much discussion by the Chiefs of Staff Committee
and the War Cabinet
. The Chiefs of Staff Committee, meeting in the morning had advised that no further air support could be given on the Continent without unduly weakening the defence of the UK . Churchill, chairing the meeting, asked them to consider further what could be done, and raised the matter again at the War Cabinet that evening . The Secretary of State for Air
Sir Archibald Sinclair warned that whereas the Air Staff had estimated that 60 fighter squadrons were needed to adequately defend Britain, there were currently only 39 . Churchill then accepted that it was not possible to send large numbers of fighters to France.
On 14 May, the French Government requested another 10 squadrons . This request was discussed first at the Chief of Staffs Committee, and then at War Cabinet; both decided against taking any immediate action. The Chief of Staffs Committee of 15 May discussed the matter again; accepted Air Chief Marshal
Dowding's advice that sending more fighters would not achieve decisive results in France, but would leave Fighter Command too weak to defend the UK and decided against any further reinforcement . That of 16 May had in front of it a message from General
Gamelin
, asking for 10 fighter squadrons at once - if they did not come the battle would be lost. It therefore reconsidered the matter and advised sending 8 'flights' (half-squadrons). This was discussed and agreed at War Cabinet; Churchill wanted to send more squadrons, but Sinclair advised that 4 squadrons was a maximum, and even this was a very serious risk, taken contrary to the advice of Dowding.
Churchill then flew to Paris for discussions with the French Government and High Command. The discussion was acrimonious, with the French pressing for the full 10 squadrons. Churchill urged the need to retain fighters to defend the UK, and doubted if 6 more fighter squadrons would make the difference. The French disagreed, Daladier asserting that air cover would give French infantry the confidence needed to fight tanks. Reynaud said the Allies had to choose between two risks - leaving English factories without fighter protection - just like the French ones - or seeing the Germans continue to advance on Paris. In the light of this discussion and the generally unsatisfactory state of affairs Churchill had found Churchill telegraphed the War Cabinet to explain that the situation was "grave in the last degree". In the light of this
The War Cabinet, faced with this, agreed to the French demand. However, Newall warned that there were only 6 complete Hurricane squadrons left in the UK and/or advised that Air Component bases could only accommodate another 3 squadrons. It was therefore agreed that these squadrons were to fly to forward bases in the N of France on a daily basis; 3 in the morning, 3 in the afternoon. This brought the number of fighter squadrons in the Air Component up to 13.
The AASF's bases and the BAFF headquarters were to the south (but not very far south) of the German line of advance from Sedan to the Channel coast; the Air Component bases mostly north of it. By 17 May the landline connections between BAFF and the Air Component had been lost, and thereafter the Air Component operated as directed by Gort
and the Air Ministry. The German advance up the Channel coast progressively overran Air Component bases, and the Air Component therefore rebased in Southern England over the period 19–21 May. Of the 261 fighters that had operated with the component, only 66 returned to England ; 120 of the lost planes had suffered damage which under normal circumstances would have been repairable, but prevented them being flown off. .
area (16 May), then to the Orleans
- Le Mans
area (3 June)..
The provision of further reinforcements was discussed at the highest political levels, referred to by Churchill in his This was their finest hour
speech of 18 June
The War Cabinet discussed (3 June) what the policy should be on sending further fighter squadrons to support the French. They accepted the advice of the Chiefs of Staff Committee that no more than 6 bomber squadrons and 3 fighter squadrons should be based in France. Dowding supported this by noting the current serviceable fighter strength in the UK to be 224 Hurricanes, 280 Spitfires , and warning that this meant that if the Germans were to mount a heavy attack on the UK, he could not guarantee air superiority for more than 48 hours. Sinclair added that the RAF was running short of fighter pilots, and this was now the limiting factor. Churchill reopened the discussion on 4 June, noting that the Air Defence of Great Britain
now had 45 fighter squadrons, and that according to Lord Beaverbrook (the Minister of Aircraft Production
) there were more aircraft in Britain than before the start of the German offensive. Beaverbrook then gave more detailed figures for the period May 19-June 1,
Sinclair countered that Fighter Command needed to recover its efficiency as well as its numerical strength; the squadrons were currently greatly disorganised and many of their finest leaders had been lost; Churchill did not press the matter further.
On June 5 the Germans attacked the French line on the Somme; the French repeated their request for British fighter squadrons, asking for 10 squadrons immediately, to be followed by another 10 as soon as possible In response, 2 Hurricane squadrons were sent to join the AASF (7 May); four UK-based squadrons operated each day from aerodromes near Rouen
, returning to Britain every night. .
At the Defence Committee of 8 June Churchill argued that whereas the battle for France was important it would not be decisive one way or the other for Great Britain; maintaining adequate fighter defences for Britain would be decisive for Britain, and hence through Britain's eventual victory for France. The Committee unanimously agreed with Churchill's conclusion that it would be fatal to yield to the French demands and jeopardise the safety of the UK . No further squadrons were sent. The AASF moved one further time to bases around the mouth of the Loire
, eventually returning to the UK over the period 15–18 June .. Large numbers of RAF personnel were evacuated by sea from various French ports, part of Operation Ariel
. An unknown number of them were lost off St Nazaire on 17 June, when the troopship
HMT Lancastria
was bombed and sunk by the Luftwaffe. An estimated 800 RAF men had been sent down into the ship's holds, which were penetrated by three German bombs.
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Command set up on 15 January 1940 under the command of Air Marshal
Air Marshal
Air marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Arthur Barratt
Arthur Barratt
Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Sheridan Barratt KCB CMG MC was an officer in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I and a senior commander in the Royal Air Force during World War II.-RAF career:...
to provide unified control of all RAF units based in France. It had two immediately subordinate formations, with differing tasks .
- the "Air Component" (Royal Air Force Component of the British Expeditionary Force) underAir Vice-MarshalAir Vice-MarshalAir vice-marshal is a two-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in...
C H B BlountCharles Hubert Boulby BlountAir Vice-Marshal Charles Hubert Boulby Blount CB OBE MC was an English soldier, airman and first-class cricketer. His great-great nephew is singer James Blunt .-Family:...
to provide reconnaissance and fighter cover for the BEFBritish Expeditionary Force (World War II)The British Expeditionary Force was the British force in Europe from 1939–1940 during the Second World War. Commanded by General Lord Gort, the BEF constituted one-tenth of the defending Allied force....
. - the AASFRAF Advanced Air Striking ForceBefore the Second World War it had been agreed between the United Kingdom and France that in case of war, the light bomber force of the Royal Air Force would move to bases within France from which it could operate against targets in Nazi Germany. To achieve this, the RAF Advanced Air Striking Force...
(Advanced Air Striking Force)) under Air Vice-MarshalAir Vice-MarshalAir vice-marshal is a two-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in...
P H L PlayfairPatrick PlayfairAir Marshal Sir Patrick Henry Lyon Playfair KBE CB CVO MC RAF was a commander in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I and a senior commander in the Royal Air Force until his retirement during World War II....
.. The AASF consisted of RAF light bomber squadrons based within France (around Rheims) to allow them to bomb GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
should the political decision to do so be taken. No such decision had been taken before the German offensive in the West began on 10 May 1940, and thereafter the AASF bomber force was used against the advancing German Army and its lines of communications.
As well as the forces under its command, BAFF could also request RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s stood at the peak of its postwar military power with the V bombers and a supplemental...
to provide support from UK-based medium bombers. The headquarters of BAFF were at Chauny
Chauny
Chauny is a commune in the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.-Geography:Built on the banks of the Oise and the Saint-Quentin canal, the town still retains its port to this day...
alongside those of the French air commander , to maximise co-operation between the BAFF and the Armée de l'Air
Order of battle
As of 10 May the strength of BAFF was| Number of Squadrons | Aircraft type | Intended use |
|---|---|---|
| Air Component | ||
| 5 | Westland Lysander Westland Lysander The Westland Lysander was a British army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft used immediately before and during the Second World War... |
Tactical reconnaissance and photographic survey |
| 4 | Bristol Blenheim Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter... |
Strategic reconnaissance |
| 4 | Hawker Hurricane Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force... |
Fighter |
| AASF | ||
| 8 | Fairey Battle Fairey Battle The Fairey Battle was a British single-engine light bomber built by the Fairey Aviation Company in the late 1930s for the Royal Air Force. The Battle was powered by the same Rolls-Royce Merlin piston engine that gave contemporary British fighters high performance; however, the Battle was weighed... |
Light bomber |
| 2 | Bristol Blenheim Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter... |
medium bomber |
| 2 | Hawker Hurricane Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force... |
Fighter |
and there was a commitment to reinforce BAFF with a further 4 Hurricane squadrons when the expected German offensive started.
Operations and Reinforcement until withdrawal of the Air Component
As promised, BAFF was reinforced by 4 Hurricane squadrons in response to the German offensive. The operational instructions issued by BAFF had stated thatBomber aircraft have proved extremely useful in support of an advancing army, especially against weak anti-aircraft resistance, but it is not clear that a bomber force used against an advancing army well supported by all forms of anti-aircraft defence and a large force of fighter aircraft, will be economically effectiveand the AASF when used against German troops and key bridges rapidly suffered heavy losses in the face of the large numbers of Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
fighters and highly effective light anti-aircraft units protecting the offensive. By the end of May 12, the number of serviceable bombers with the AASF had been reduced to 72 (from 135 when the German offensive opened). The War Cabinet
War Cabinet
A War Cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war. It is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers. It is also quite common for a War Cabinet to have senior military officers and opposition politicians as members....
meeting that evening were warned by the Chief of Air Staff Cyril Newall that the bomber losses had been disproportionate to the results achieved..On May 14 the AASF made a maximum effort attack on the pontoon bridges thrown across the Meuse
Meuse
Meuse is a department in northeast France, named after the River Meuse.-History:Meuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
at Sedan
Battle of Sedan (1940)
The Battle of Sedan or Second Battle of Sedan was a Second World War battle fought during the French Campaign. The battle was part of the German Wehrmacht's operational plan codenamed Fall Gelb , to encircle the Allied armies in Belgium and north-eastern France...
by the Germans; it lost 40 out of 71 attacking aircraft.
The heavy German air superiority led to repeated reinforcement with additional Hurricane squadrons. At the request of BAFF and the BEF the equivalent of another 2 squadrons joined the Air Component on 13 May., but this was only after much discussion by the Chiefs of Staff Committee
Chiefs of Staff Committee
The Chiefs of Staff Committee is composed of the most senior military personnel in the British Armed Forces.-History:The Chiefs of Staff Committee was initially established as a sub-committee of the Committee of Imperial Defence in 1923. It remained as such until the abolition of the CID upon the...
and the War Cabinet
War Cabinet
A War Cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war. It is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers. It is also quite common for a War Cabinet to have senior military officers and opposition politicians as members....
. The Chiefs of Staff Committee, meeting in the morning had advised that no further air support could be given on the Continent without unduly weakening the defence of the UK . Churchill, chairing the meeting, asked them to consider further what could be done, and raised the matter again at the War Cabinet that evening . The Secretary of State for Air
Secretary of State for Air
The Secretary of State for Air was a cabinet level British position. The person holding this position was in charge of the Air Ministry. It was created on 10 January 1919 to manage the Royal Air Force...
Sir Archibald Sinclair warned that whereas the Air Staff had estimated that 60 fighter squadrons were needed to adequately defend Britain, there were currently only 39 . Churchill then accepted that it was not possible to send large numbers of fighters to France.
On 14 May, the French Government requested another 10 squadrons . This request was discussed first at the Chief of Staffs Committee, and then at War Cabinet; both decided against taking any immediate action. The Chief of Staffs Committee of 15 May discussed the matter again; accepted Air Chief Marshal
Air Chief Marshal
Air chief marshal is a senior 4-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Dowding's advice that sending more fighters would not achieve decisive results in France, but would leave Fighter Command too weak to defend the UK and decided against any further reinforcement . That of 16 May had in front of it a message from General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Gamelin
Gamelin
Gamelin can mean:* A Bishop of St Andrews, Gamelin * A French general during World War II, Maurice Gustave Gamelin.* A French artist, Jacques Gamelin* An electoral district in Canada, Gamelin ....
, asking for 10 fighter squadrons at once - if they did not come the battle would be lost. It therefore reconsidered the matter and advised sending 8 'flights' (half-squadrons). This was discussed and agreed at War Cabinet; Churchill wanted to send more squadrons, but Sinclair advised that 4 squadrons was a maximum, and even this was a very serious risk, taken contrary to the advice of Dowding.
Churchill then flew to Paris for discussions with the French Government and High Command. The discussion was acrimonious, with the French pressing for the full 10 squadrons. Churchill urged the need to retain fighters to defend the UK, and doubted if 6 more fighter squadrons would make the difference. The French disagreed, Daladier asserting that air cover would give French infantry the confidence needed to fight tanks. Reynaud said the Allies had to choose between two risks - leaving English factories without fighter protection - just like the French ones - or seeing the Germans continue to advance on Paris. In the light of this discussion and the generally unsatisfactory state of affairs Churchill had found Churchill telegraphed the War Cabinet to explain that the situation was "grave in the last degree". In the light of this
I personally feel that we should send squadrons of fighters demanded .. and..dominate the air above the Bulge for the next two or three days, not for any local purpose, but to give the last chance to the French Army to rally its bravery and strength
It would not be good historically if their requests were denied, and their ruin resulted. ...
The War Cabinet, faced with this, agreed to the French demand. However, Newall warned that there were only 6 complete Hurricane squadrons left in the UK and/or advised that Air Component bases could only accommodate another 3 squadrons. It was therefore agreed that these squadrons were to fly to forward bases in the N of France on a daily basis; 3 in the morning, 3 in the afternoon. This brought the number of fighter squadrons in the Air Component up to 13.
The AASF's bases and the BAFF headquarters were to the south (but not very far south) of the German line of advance from Sedan to the Channel coast; the Air Component bases mostly north of it. By 17 May the landline connections between BAFF and the Air Component had been lost, and thereafter the Air Component operated as directed by Gort
Gort
Gort is a town in south County Galway in the west of Ireland. An Gort is the official Irish name for the town, as defined by the Placenames Commission. In spoken Irish, however, the town is known by its traditional name Gort Inse Guaire. It lies just north of the border with County Clare on the...
and the Air Ministry. The German advance up the Channel coast progressively overran Air Component bases, and the Air Component therefore rebased in Southern England over the period 19–21 May. Of the 261 fighters that had operated with the component, only 66 returned to England ; 120 of the lost planes had suffered damage which under normal circumstances would have been repairable, but prevented them being flown off. .
From withdrawal of the Air Component to the Fall of France
The Air Component , renamed the Back Component, no longer controlled any combat aircraft, but its headquarters was used to coordinate RAF operations from English bases in support of the BEF and the Dunkirk evacuation. The AASF and Barratt remained in France, retreating first to the TroyesTroyes
Troyes is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town...
area (16 May), then to the Orleans
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
- Le Mans
Le Mans
Le Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.Its inhabitants are called Manceaux...
area (3 June)..
The provision of further reinforcements was discussed at the highest political levels, referred to by Churchill in his This was their finest hour
This was their finest hour
The This was their finest hour speech was delivered by Winston Churchill to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 18 June 1940...
speech of 18 June
During the great battle in France, we gave very powerful and continuous aid to the French Army both by fighters and bombers, but in spite of every kind of pressure we never would allow the entire Metropolitan strength of the Air Force, in fighters, to be consumed. This decision was painful, but it was also right, because the fortunes of the battle in France could not have been decisively affected, even if we had thrown in our entire fighter force. The battle was lost by the unfortunate strategical opening, by the extraordinary and unforeseen power of the armoured columns, and by the great preponderance of the German Army in numbers. Our fighter Air Force might easily have been exhausted as a mere accident in that great struggle, and we should have found ourselves at the present time in a very serious plight. But, as it is, I am happy to inform the House that our fighter air strength is stronger at the present time, relatively to the Germans, who have suffered terrible losses, than it has ever been, and consequently we believe ourselves to possess the capacity to continue the war in the air under better conditions than we have ever experienced before. I look forward confidently to the exploits of our fighter pilots, who will have the glory of saving their native land, their island home, and all they love, from the most deadly of all attacks.
The War Cabinet discussed (3 June) what the policy should be on sending further fighter squadrons to support the French. They accepted the advice of the Chiefs of Staff Committee that no more than 6 bomber squadrons and 3 fighter squadrons should be based in France. Dowding supported this by noting the current serviceable fighter strength in the UK to be 224 Hurricanes, 280 Spitfires , and warning that this meant that if the Germans were to mount a heavy attack on the UK, he could not guarantee air superiority for more than 48 hours. Sinclair added that the RAF was running short of fighter pilots, and this was now the limiting factor. Churchill reopened the discussion on 4 June, noting that the Air Defence of Great Britain
Air Defence of Great Britain
The Air Defence of Great Britain was a RAF command comprising substantial Army and RAF elements responsible for the air defence of the British Isles...
now had 45 fighter squadrons, and that according to Lord Beaverbrook (the Minister of Aircraft Production
Minister of Aircraft Production
The Minister of Aircraft Production was the British government position in charge of the Ministry of Aircraft Production, one of the specialised supply ministries set up by the British Government during World War II...
) there were more aircraft in Britain than before the start of the German offensive. Beaverbrook then gave more detailed figures for the period May 19-June 1,
| Aircraft type/model | Produced May 19 -June 1 | Lost May 19-June 1 |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane | 151 | 119 |
| Spitfire | 39 | 75 |
| All types | 453 | 436 |
Sinclair countered that Fighter Command needed to recover its efficiency as well as its numerical strength; the squadrons were currently greatly disorganised and many of their finest leaders had been lost; Churchill did not press the matter further.
On June 5 the Germans attacked the French line on the Somme; the French repeated their request for British fighter squadrons, asking for 10 squadrons immediately, to be followed by another 10 as soon as possible In response, 2 Hurricane squadrons were sent to join the AASF (7 May); four UK-based squadrons operated each day from aerodromes near Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
, returning to Britain every night. .
At the Defence Committee of 8 June Churchill argued that whereas the battle for France was important it would not be decisive one way or the other for Great Britain; maintaining adequate fighter defences for Britain would be decisive for Britain, and hence through Britain's eventual victory for France. The Committee unanimously agreed with Churchill's conclusion that it would be fatal to yield to the French demands and jeopardise the safety of the UK . No further squadrons were sent. The AASF moved one further time to bases around the mouth of the Loire
Loire
Loire is an administrative department in the east-central part of France occupying the River Loire's upper reaches.-History:Loire was created in 1793 when after just 3½ years the young Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two. This was a response to counter-Revolutionary activities in Lyon...
, eventually returning to the UK over the period 15–18 June .. Large numbers of RAF personnel were evacuated by sea from various French ports, part of Operation Ariel
Operation Ariel
Operation Ariel was the name given to the World War II evacuation of Allied forces from ports in western France, from 15–25 June 1940, due to the military collapse in the Battle of France against Nazi Germany...
. An unknown number of them were lost off St Nazaire on 17 June, when the troopship
Troopship
A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...
HMT Lancastria
RMS Lancastria
The RMS Lancastria was a British Cunard liner sunk on 17 June 1940 during World War II with the loss of an estimated 4,000 plus lives. It is the worst single loss of life in British maritime history and the bloodiest single engagement for UK forces , in the whole conflict and claimed more lives...
was bombed and sunk by the Luftwaffe. An estimated 800 RAF men had been sent down into the ship's holds, which were penetrated by three German bombs.
External links
- http://france1940.free.fr/uk/raf_may.html
- Richards, Denis. Royal Air Force 1939–1945: Volume I The Fight At Odds. London: HMSO, 1953