RAF No 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron

RAF No 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron Spitfire photographs

Aircrew RAF 312Sqn pilot FSgt Antonin Ocelka (Czechoslovakian) 1944 01

Airworthy Spitfire warbird LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUA TE566 01

Airworthy Spitfire warbird LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUA TE566 02

Airworthy Spitfire warbird LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUA TE566 03

Spitfire HFIX RAF 312Sqn DUN Otto Smik ML296 England 1944 0A

Spitfire HFIX RAF 312Sqn DUN Otto Smik ML296 England 1944 0B

Spitfire LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUI at Appledram Sussex IWM CH18720

Spitfire LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUI at Appledram Sussex IWM CH18720

Supermarine Spitfire LF Mark IXBs of Nos. 312 and 313 (Czech) Squadrons RAF undergoing engine repair and maintenance at Appledram, Sussex, viewed through the entrance of a Butler combat hangar covered with camouflage netting.

Imperial War Museum IWM CH 18720 https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205212726

Spitfire LFIX RAF 312Sqn DU line up 1945 01

Spitfire LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUL Karel Posta MJ840 England 11th June 1944 01

Spitfire LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUL MJ840 11th June 1944 0A

Spitfire LFIX RAF 312Sqn DUL MJ840 11th June 1944 0B

Spitfire MkVb RAF 312Sqn DUR England July 1942 01

Spitfire MkVb RAF 312Sqn DUU background England 1942 01

Spitfire MkVb RAF 312Sqn DU  Z England July 1942 01

Notes: The above information was gathered mainly from 'Osprey Aircraft of the Aces - Spitfire Mark I/II Aces by A. Price' (all possible errors in translation to english are mine) Information of K9795 and R Leigh's R6800 from 'Jane's Supermarine Spitfire by David Oliver, Harpers Publisher 1999' P. Richey quote from the 'Fighter pilot's Summer by Wg Cdr Paul Richey and Norman Franks, 1999 edition published by Grub Street' P. Clostermann Quote from '"the Big Show" by Pierre Clostermann, Cassel Military Paperbacks 2004' J. Goodson quote from the'Tumult in the Clouds by James Goodson, Penguin Books 2003'

RAF 312Sqn Sgt M Liskutin shots down a Dornier Do 217 over the Channel Dieppe raid IWM C3193

Stills from camera gun footage taken from a Supermarine Spitfire Mark V flown by Sergeant M Liskutin of No. 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF, as he shot down a Dornier Do 217 over the English Channel, while on patrol over a convoy of returning vessels from the Dieppe raid.

IWM C 3193 https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205023123

Spitfire MkVb RAF 312Sqn DU  C FO František Peřina AD572 at RAF Harrowbeer Devon England Feb-Jun 1942
by Eduard 0A

Info Eduard: František Peřina was the first Czechoslovak fighter pilot to achieve ace status with five confirmed aerial victories. Born in 1911 in the village of Morkůvky near Břeclav, he escaped to Poland after the Munich Agreement and later travelled by ship to France, where he converted to the Curtiss Hawk 75 fighter. In December 1939, he became one of the first twenty Czechoslovak fighter pilots sent to the Western Front and was assigned to the famous Groupe de Chasse I/5, where he usually flew as wingman to Jean Accart, commander of the 1st Escadrille. During just three weeks of combat in the French campaign, Peřina achieved eleven confirmed victories and two probable victories.

After the fall of France, Peřina escaped by sea through Gibraltar to Great Britain, where he joined the Royal Air Force with the rank of Pilot Officer. In September 1940, he was posted to No. 312 Squadron RAF and participated first in the Battle of Britain before later taking part in offensive sweeps over occupied Europe. During these operations, he added a Focke-Wulf Fw 190 to his tally. By the end of the Second World War, he had been credited with twelve confirmed victories, two probable victories, and one damaged enemy aircraft.

Following the war, Peřina returned to Czechoslovakia, but after the Communist takeover in 1948 he was forced to emigrate again in 1949. He subsequently served for several years in the RAF before later flying in Canada and the United States. Peřina remained in the United States until 1993, when he permanently returned to the Czech Republic. He died on May 6, 2006, at the age of ninety-five. The Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb AD572 illustrated here was flown regularly by Peřina between February and June 1942, and in it he shot down an Fw 190 on June 6, 1942.

Spitfire Database: AD572 Vb CBAF M45 37MU 31-10-41 312Sqn DUC 7-12-41 FACB 23-6-42 303S 3-2-43 19S 26-6-43 501S 22-7-43 485S 14-11-43 FACB 9-1-44 LMS 61OTU hit high ground nr Loggerheads Staffs CE 16-1-45 SOC 20-3-45

Spitfire MkVb RAF 312Sqn DU  L PO Ladislav Světlík EP785 at RAF Churchstanton Somerset England Jan-Apr 1943
by Eduard 0A

Info Eduard: Ladislav Světlík was born in Plzeň on March 23, 1917. Taking advantage of a national program to train one thousand new pilots, he learned to fly before completing military training at Prostějov between 1936 and 1937 and subsequently serving as a fighter pilot in the Czechoslovak Air Force. Following the German occupation, Světlík escaped through Poland to France, where he joined the French Foreign Legion. After transferring to the French Air Force, he retrained on the Curtiss Hawk 75 at Chartres and achieved four confirmed and three probable victories against the Luftwaffe.

After the fall of France, Světlík moved to Great Britain and joined No. 312 Squadron RAF. Despite flying numerous combat missions, he scored only one additional confirmed victory when, on May 23, 1944, flying a Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXc, he shot down a Focke-Wulf Fw 190 piloted by German ace Georg Kiefner. After completing his second operational tour in July 1944, he ferried Vickers Wellington aircraft and, toward the end of the war, served as a transport pilot with No. 147 Squadron RAF.

Světlík returned to Czechoslovakia in August 1945 and served with the Army Transport Group until 1946 before joining Czechoslovak Airlines. Following the Communist takeover in February 1948, he became one of the pilots involved in a coordinated escape operation using three transport aircraft, after which he returned to Great Britain and rejoined the Royal Air Force. He later settled in New Zealand, where he died on July 27, 2008. In 1991, he was promoted to the rank of colonel.

The Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb EP785, which Světlík regularly flew during the spring of 1943, featured a distinctive depiction of the emblem of No. 312 Squadron RAF on the fuel tank cover. This marking is not known to have appeared on any other Spitfire Mk.Vb operated by the squadron.

Spitfire Database: EP785 Vb CBAF M46 39MU 26-7-42 313S 2-8-42 312S 2-12-42 234S 4-7-43 504S 30-8-43 341S 18-1-44 FLS 11-2-44 FAAC 2-8-44 Scottish Aviation M45M install 132OTU 3-2-45 Reid Sigrist 2-12-46 refurb Portugal 16-9-47