1- Thunder Warriors of Eindhoven
Skies of Albion
A graphically assisted timeline of what might have been had the British aerospace industry not been sabotaged by it's own government.
A graphically assisted timeline of what might have been had the British aerospace industry not been sabotaged by it's own government.
-Part 1- Thunder Warriors of Eindhoven
During the closing days of the Second World War the Royal Air Force, in conjunction with British industry, had been at the forefront of aeronautical development in a highly dynamic and symbiotic relationship that saw ever more capable aircraft being rapidly designed, put into service, and improved upon.
It was this system that saw the introduction of Britian's first jet aircraft, the Gloster Meteor in 1944, an incredible achievement in itself even though Nazi Germany had put the rival Me-262 jet fighter into service a few months earlier. The Meteor was initially kept away from the frontlines, and spent the first six months of it's service life defending the southern UK by intercepting German V-1 rocket bombs, a task in which they excelled, and acting as an opposing force in training exercises that taught allied fighter escort how to deal with German jet fighter attacks.
This was to change in late 1944, after the Western Allied offensives in France and Belgium had over-run the V-1 launch sites. 616 Squadron equipped with the new Meteor F.3 model was deployed to the continent as part of the Second Tactical Airforce on December 19th 1944.* The idea was that during the lull in combat operations over the winter that the Meteors would attempt to draw out and fight the Axis jet fighters that had been frequently harassing allied airfields, and were generating large amounts of concern for the potential effect they could have when attacking the the USAAF's daytime bomber raids.
616 Squadron was placed at Gilze-Rijen, a smaller RAF base in the southern Netherlands near Eindhoven, which was chosen as a better location for maintaining operational security and for it's proximity to the Luftwaffe fighter bases which were protecting the Ruhr from the constant allied bombing campaign. It had been judged that operating them from the main RAF base at Melbroek would be too risky in case of a (unlikely) German break out north toward the channel, and that Eindhoven itself was heavily crowded with the presence of several RCAF wings. The Meteors spent a week acclimatising to their new environment, and flew a couple of uneventful sorties in aid of American bomber groups as they were moving towards their targets in Germany, in the hopes of ambushing German jet fighters that might try to attack the bomber streams, though none of the elusive Me-262s made an appearance. This all changed on New Years day when the Luftwaffe's Operation Bodenplatte, a massive attack on allied airpower was launched against many front-line bases. News of a heavy raid against Eindhoven airbase lead to to 616 Squadron being scrambled to assist. A fortunate event which meant that when the Focke-wulfs of Jagdgeschwader 3 arrived to strafe the flight line, the Meteors were already in the air.
Unaware that their home base was under attack. 616 squadron arrived over Eindhoven to find a large number of Luftwaffe aircraft wrecking havoc on the grounded aircraft of the Royal Canadian Air Force that were based there. Enthusiastic to finally get to grips with the enemy, and desperate to assist their beleaguered comrades, the Meteors dove in to try and drive off the attackers, and in doing so came face to face with their dark mirror image. Me-262s of Kampfgeschwader 51 rose from their attack runs to meet them. As the skies filled with the thunder and screech of wailing turbines, what followed would become known as the first jet versus jet air battle in history.
Starting with superior positioning the Meteors scored first blood, with New Zealander Squadron Leader Warren Schrader gaining the honour of claiming the first jet on jet kill. However outnumbered nearly two to one it became quickly apparent that 616 were at a significant disadvantage against the German jets. The 262s held a significant speed advantage over the British planes as well, and before long three of 616 squadron's aircraft were downed. The well trained RAF pilots recovered quickly, and relying on extensive experience intercepting V-1s, and their aircraft's superior climb rate they were able to even the odds somewhat and claim two Messerschmitts in return.
As Canadian Typhoons and Spitfires battled with the butcher birds of JG3 and JG6, the Meteors fought a dogged battle with their own opponents, and eventually managed to force the Luftwaffe to break off their attack. This effort was costly however, and in total seven of 616 Squadrons aircraft were lost to enemy fire, or were too damaged to land, two others required extensive repairs before they were airworthy gain. For these heavy losses they could only claim five of the Me-262s in their own kill tally. Three of the British pilots were killed during the engagement.
Rendered combat ineffective due to losses, 616 Squadron was rotated back to Britain to be rebuilt. It would return a month later with replacement aircraft and was joined in the jet interceptor mission by the hurriedly converted 504 Squadron in late February. Despite pleading for the opportunity to get a rematch against their German foes the Meteor force was instead used in in armed reconnaissance missions and ground attack raids on German airbases. They encountered no further enemy jets for the rest of the war.
By any account analysis of the engagement over Eindhoven did not reflect favourably on the Meteor, and though the Bodenplatte operation was overall a strategic loss for the Luftwaffe and Germany, as it lost many irreplaceable pilots. It raised serious concerns about the performance of the RAF's jet fighters. An improved and faster F.4 model was already in development, and was given priority above other aircraft projects, but came too late to enter service in Europe before German surrender.
With the end of the war, and the mad dash to grab as much of Nazi regimes technical documentation and engineering personnel as possible, further concerns about the capability of future opponents began to be raised in the Air Ministry. Technology was clearly advancing at a breakneck pace, and being left behind the curve could have serious consequences in the event of a future conflict. Though Germany had been hampered by it's poor logistics and damaged industries, the same could not be said for the Russians, and news that the Soviets had managed to acquire vast amounts of material from the German jet program was certainly worrying.
Despite pressure from the new Atlee government to cut back on aircraft development spending, there could obviously be no question of the RAF and British aviation sitting on their laurels, newer and better types would have to be developed and put into service if Britain was to be adequately defended against aerial threats.
A Gloster Meteor F.3 of 616 Squadron in the livery it would have sported during Operation Bodenplatte. Meteors deployed to Europe later in the year would be painted all white to aid air defence gunners in visually differentiating them from German Me-262s.
*This is the first point of divergence- in OTL this deployment occurred a month later. Too late for the Meteors to face the Luftwaffe jets during Bodenplatte.
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