Engine trouble left 17 Squadron and 609 Squadron with reduced aircraft strength before their joint patrol. Hurricanes attacking a Ju 88 failed to stop it, and the bomber's rear gunner damaged two British aircraft. A separated Spitfire section was then surprised from behind by a Bf 110 while looking for a missing member. One pilot fought the German aircraft head-on and saw it descend steeply toward the sea. Squadron history treated the aircraft as destroyed, but the RAF recorded only a probable victory because another pilot had not witnessed the crash.
Notable Point · 14:21-15:44
Combat damage and the standard for a probable victory
The next patrol account moves from losses of formation strength and bomber defensive fire to a Bf 110 combat credited only as a probable victory.