The Spitfire Mk.II was an improvement over the late production Mk.I’s because it had the new
Merlin XII engine. The new engine provided an extra 120 hp and could be equipped with either
the Rotol or de Havilland propellers. Out of the 920 Mk.II’s built 750 were Mk.IIa’s armed with
eight .303 Browning machine guns. The Mk.II was phased out in 1941 by the Mk.V.

After escaping from Czechoslovakia Tomas (A.K.A. Adolphe) Vybiral joined the French Air
Force. Here he is credited with 7 victories while flying a Curtiss Hawk 75 during the Battle of
France. He left France for England and joined No. 312 Squadron known as the “Czech”
Squadron. At first he flew Hurricanes and then his aircraft became a Spitfire Mk.IIa P8081
named “Garfield Weston IV”. Garfield Weston was a Canadian philanthropist who became the
head of the Weston Food Group as well as a member of the British Parliament. Among his
many financial gifts he donated £100,000 to the Spitfire Fund. Vybiral later commanded 312
Squadron. The 312 Squadron was disbanded in 1946.

Vybiral's actual first name is Tomas, not Adolphe. According to a Czech
historian the problem began when the Czech pilots first flew with the French Air
Force in WWII. Apparently the name was altered when it was being translated
into French and after the war English speaking writers started using the name
the way it was translated in French. Unfortunately this has led to years of using
the wrong name for Tomas Vybiral. The name Tomas and not Adolphe has
always been used correctly within his home country and the rest of the world
didn't pick up on it, myself included. Hopefully after all these years Tomas will
start to get the recognition he deserves. The historian also mentioned that
Tomas was not alone, this happened to numerous Czech pilots that flew in the
French Air Force in early WWII.
Thanks to Mr. Roman Scherks from www.modelyletadel.cz and Radim
Kočandrle who took the time to bring this to my attention and for their efforts
by consulting with Czech historians for the correct facts.

Specifications for the Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IIa

Entered Service – August 1940 with 611 Squadron

Performance
Power Plant – 1 x Rolls-Royce Merlin XII, 1,175 hp (Mk.IIb - 1,300 hp)
Maximum Speed – 370 mph   (595 km/h)
Maximum Range – 395 miles   (636 km)
Service Ceiling – 32,800 ft   (9,997 m)
Time 20,000 ft – 7 minutes

Dimensions
Length – 29.8 ft   (9.1 m)
Height – 11.48 ft   (3.5 m)
Wingspan – 36.75 ft   (11.2 m)

Armament
Mk.IIa – 8 x Browning .303 machine guns
Mk.IIb – 4 x machine guns + 2 x 20mm cannons

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