Supermarine Seafire

The Supermarine Seafire was the naval version of the Supermarine Spitfire fighter, adapted for operation from aircraft carriers. Its name comes from a contraction of Sea Spitfire, and it paralleled the Hawker Sea Hurricane. The Admiralty proposed a carrier version of the Spitfire in May 1938, but some, including Winston Churchill, opposed it because land-based Spitfires had priority. In 1941 and early 1942 the Admiralty asked again, and an initial batch of Seafire Mk.Ib fighters in late 1941 was used mainly to gain experience, with concerns over undercarriages not strengthened to naval standards. From 1942 further models were ordered, including the first operationally viable Seafire F Mk.III, and the Fleet Air Arm used the type widely. The first combat came in November 1942 during Operation Torch, followed by air cover for the Sicily and Italy invasions in 1943, the Normandy and southern France landings in 1944 and service with the British Pacific Fleet.