VIII Fighter Command
12 August 1942Official Description
31st Fighter Group at Westhampnett is declared fully operational and ready for combat operations under RAF control until it gains enough experience to be able to fight as a group. This is first US fighter unit in UK to reach this operational status.
Description
13 Spitfire Mk V from 31st Fighter Group are despateched on a feint Rodeo, a fighter sweep over enemy territory, in a wide loop over Clacton/Dunkirk/Calaise and Dover.
Mission Details
CLACTON / DOVER / DUNKIRK / CALAIS
Description: FEINT RODEO
Aircraft Type: Spitfire
Notes: A feint "Rodeo" over French coast. No losses, claims or casualties. The 31st Fighter Group is declared fully operational and ready for combat operations under RAF control until it gains enough experience to fight effectively as a group.
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
Mission Statistics
- Aircraft sent: 13
Revisions
Lee Cunningham, 8th Air Force missions research database / Stan Bishop's 'Losses of the US 8th and 9th Air Forces', the Combat Chronology of the US Army Air Forces and the work of Roger Freeman including the 'Mighty Eighth War Diary'.