No. 312 Squadron RAF
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No. 312 Squadron RAF was a Czechoslovakian-manned fighter squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.
It was first formed at Duxford in July 1940, equipped with Hurricane I fighters and crewed mostly by escaped Czechslovakian pilots. Its first victory became a shot down of Junkers Ju 88 above Liverpool, reached by Alois Vašátko, Denys Gillam and Josef Stehlík on 8 October 1941. [1]. It transitioned to Hurricane IIs in May 1941, and to Spitfires in October. The squadron continued flying various marks of Spitfire from UK bases until it was transferred to the Czechoslovakian air force in September 1945.
Among other major operations, it flew in cover of the Operation Jubilee raids on Dieppe in 1943, losing one aircraft.
312 Squadron operated the following types of aircraft:
- Hawker Hurricane Mk. I- August 1940 to May 1941
- Hawker Hurricane Mk. II- May 1941 to December 1941
- Supermarine Spitfire Mk. IIA- October 1941 to December 1941
- Supermarine Spitfire Mk. IIB- November 1941 to June 1942
- Supermarine Spitfire Mk. VB- December 1941 to February 1944
- Supermarine Spitfire Mk. VC- August 1942 to June 1943
- Supermarine Spitfire Mk. LF. IXC- January 1944 to June 1944
- Supermarine Spitfire Mk. HF. IXC- June 1944 to February 1946
Aircraft of this squadron used a unit code letters DU.