Was the Battle of Britain fought in the air, on land, or on the sea?

Answer 1

The battle of Britain was an Air battle fought between the Luftwaffe and the RAF for control of the British skies.

Answer 2

The actual, literal battle of Britain was an air battle, though in general terms, the battle FOR Britain was fought in all spheres.

Towards the end of the battle, the RAF had been decimated by the Luftwaffe. There were many inexperienced pilots, and most remaining aircraft were in poor condition. I don't think there was a single squadron at full strength. Despite this, the RAF prepared every single aircraft that could fly to be prepared for battle. They knew it was the last day of fight, and that any significant strike by the Germans would wipe out their every aircraft.

On the last day of battle the RAF readied what few fighters it had left. Pilots were standing by with their aircraft, and it was a foregone conclusion they would all be killed, or at least shot down (the Luftwaffe, unlike many film images, had fine aircraft and pilots. They weren't at all like Col Klink).

They waited and waited. No call ever came. Unknown to them, they had virtually wiped out the German fighters the previous day. They won, but not by a very large margin. It was truly a heroic battle with many pilots displaying the highest form of courage.

Do not be misled by movies. There was nothing silly or feeble about the German forces. Sure, they made mistakes, but they didn't have the monopoly on that.

After that final day, American bombing raids continued in earnest, with day and night missions around the clock. Without air support, the Germans suffered horrific bombings. The elimination of the Luftwaffe as an effective defence spelt the final days of the war. It was one of many major turning points.

People today have forgotten just how important the battle of Britain was. The two sides were fairly evenly matched. The Spitfire was a great aircraft, as was the Hurricane. However in some areas the ME109 (and all its variants) excelled the main British aircraft. Even in retrospect it is hard to say which was the superior plane.

I agree with an earlier comment - I cannot think of another instance where so few men and women had such a huge impact on a war or other major historical event. The actual fighting force involved could be measured in dozens, yet materially affected billions.

This is one battle which should be remembered, as had the Germans won this, there is a real possibility the world would be a very different place today.

Answer 3

The Battle of Britain was fought in the air for the most part but the navy had an important role. Planes were replaceable, pilots were not. The navy had to go out and rescue downed flyers from the channel plus pick up German flyers before they could be rescued. No battleships, just a lot of small boats and brave men.

Answer 4

The Battle of Britain was an aerial battle between the British and Germans to prevent the Germans from getting air superiority over coastal England.

The Nazis needed air superiority to engage in their planned sea invasion of Britain called Operation Sealion.

The Royal Air Force held off the Luftwaffe so Sealion was shelved and Hitler then attacked the USSR.

Answer 5

Air

Brett2010 has a strange version of events. The Americans were not even in the war until the end of 1941. They were the last of the major powers to become involved.
Also the Luftwaffe was not destroyed. In January 1945 the Germans were producing record numbers of planes including several types of jet which were far superior in performance to anything the Allies had.

Answer 6

In the Air

Answer 7

it was mainly fought in the air, and in my opinion, never in the history of warfare has such a small number of men, changed the history of man. if the royal air force, had not hung on as long as they did, to give the us a chance to enter the fight, than the allies would have probably lost the war. if Britain had fallen, so would the free world. we owe a great debt to this handful of brave men.

Answer 8

The Battle of Brittan was fought in the air and at sea.

Answer 9

air