No. 313 Squadron — Czechoslovak

No. 313 (Czechoslovak) Squadron was formed at RAF Catterick on 10 May 1941, the last RAF squadron to be constituted mainly from pilots who had escaped the German occupation of Czechoslovakia. Under its initial British commanding officer, Squadron Leader Gordon Sinclair, it flew Supermarine Spitfires from the outset and would operate successive marks — Mk I, IIA, VB, VC, VI, VII, and IX — throughout its entire service career. The squadron conducted offensive sweeps over occupied France from bases including RAF Hornchurch and RAF Portreath before moving through a succession of stations as operational priorities shifted, ranging from high-altitude interception duties in Scotland to close escort and ground-attack work in the build-up to and aftermath of the Normandy landings. By June 1944 it formed part of No. 84 Group within the Allied Expeditionary Air Force, providing fighter cover during the D-Day operation and subsequently supporting the Allied advance across north-west Europe. Its motto — “Jeden jestřáb mnoho vran rozhání” (One hawk scatters many crows) — and its hawk badge reflected the aggressive spirit of airmen who had fought their way to Britain after the fall of France. In August 1945 the squadron transferred to Ruzyně Airport outside Prague, rejoining the reconstituted Czechoslovak Air Force before its formal disbandment as a Royal Air Force unit on 15 February 1946.