American Spitfire Mk Vb EN799 MX-R of the 31st FG, August 1942
31st Fighter Group within 8th AF – overview
The 31st Fighter Group was one of the first American units to engage in combat in the European Theater during World War II, initially flying British Spitfires under the Eighth Air Force before being reassigned to the Twelfth Air Force for operations in North Africa and Italy.
Command Assignments
- Assigned to Eighth Air Force: June 1942 – 14 September 1942
- Wing & Command Assignments:
- VIII Fighter Command (VIII FC): 10 June 1942
- VIII FC, 6th Fighter Wing (FW): 18 August 1942
Component Squadrons
- 307th Fighter Squadron (FS)
- 308th Fighter Squadron (FS)
- 309th Fighter Squadron (FS)
Combat Aircraft
- Spitfire V: The Group flew the Spitfire V during its operations with the Eighth Air Force.
Stations
- Atcham: 11 June 1942 – 1 August 1942 (Headquarters, 307th, and 308th FS)
- High Ercall: 11 June 1942 – 4 August 1942 (309th FS)
- Westhampnett: 1 August 1942 – 21 October 1942 (309th FS moved in 4 August, 308th FS in 24 August 1942)
- Merston: 24 August 1942 – unknown (307th FS)
- The squadrons had temporary stations at Warmwell (19-27 July 1942), Biggin Hill (1 August 1942 – 24 August 1942 for 307th FS), and Kenley (1 August 1942 – 24 August 1942 for 308th FS).
Group Commander
- Col. John R. Hawkins: 1 July 1942 – 4 December 1942
Mission Details
- First Mission: 29 August 1942
- The group flew its first sorties with the RAF on 26 July 1942, with the first squadron operation on 5 August 1942.
- Last Mission: 9 October 1942
- Total Sorties: 1,286
- Aircraft MIA: 5
- Enemy Aircraft Claims: 2 destroyed, 1 probable, 6 damaged in the air.
Claims to Fame
- First group to commence operations with the Eighth Air Force.
History
- Activation: The group was activated on 1 February 1940 at Selfridge Field, Michigan, and initially trained with early P-39 Airacobras.
- Movements:
- Moved to Baer Field, Indiana, on 6 December 1941, and then to New Orleans Army Base, Louisiana, in February 1942.
- Originally scheduled to fly P-39s to the UK via the north Atlantic ferry route, but the project was canceled.
- Deployment:
- The ground echelon sailed on the Queen Elizabeth on 4 June 1942, arriving at Clyde on 10 June 1942. The pilots followed later that month.
- Began flying training at Atcham on 26 June 1942.
- Reassignment: Assigned to the Twelfth Air Force and the XII Fighter Command on 14 September 1942, but continued to operate under VIII FC.
- Status: Taken off operational status on 10 October 1942; Spitfires were shipped to Gibraltar. Personnel sailed from Clyde for Gibraltar on 26 October 1942.
- Further Combat: The group fought under the Twelfth Air Force in North Africa and Italy. In May 1944, it converted to P-51 Mustangs and flew escort missions for the Fifteenth Air Force.
- Post-War:
- Inactivated in November 1945.
- Reactivated in 1946, the group operated F-51s in Germany and returned to the USA in 1947.
Aircraft Markings and Color Schemes
Spitfire VBs (July – October 1942)
- Camouflage: The Spitfire VBs were painted in the standard RAF temperate land scheme:
- Upper Surfaces: Dark Green and Ocean Grey in a disruptive pattern.
- Undersurfaces: Medium Sea Grey.
- Markings:
- The aircraft were received with British insignia. The RAF wing roundels were painted over, and 32-inch diameter U.S. national insignia were centered on the upper surface of the left wing and the lower surface of the right wing.
- The U.S. national insignia was superimposed on the fuselage roundels, corresponding with the blue portion of the roundel, giving a diameter of 32 inches. The yellow outline ring was painted out on most aircraft.
- Serial numbers were often deleted from the normal rear fuselage position and repainted on the fin in approximately 4-inch high characters.
- Squadron Code Letters:
- 307th FS: “MX”
- 308th FS: “HL”
- 309th FS: “WZ”
- These letters were generally 24 inches high, painted in Sky, and positioned forward of the national insignia on the left side of the fuselage and aft on the right side.