Editing RAF Fighter Command (section)

=== 1941 air offensive ===

{{main|Circus offensive}}
By May 1941, the squadrons based at all the main fighter airfields operated in wings, under the tactical control of the new post of [[wing leader]], a survivor of 1940 with the rank of [[Wing Commander (rank)|wing commander]]. Fighter Command began a campaign to gain air superiority over northwestern France. Short-penetration fighter operations were used to draw the {{lang|de|Luftwaffe}} into a war of attrition and keep as many German fighters in the west, particularly after the [[Operation Barbarossa]], the German attack on the Soviet Union, began in June 1941. Large Spitfire formations were sent out with a few medium bombers to lure the German fighters into combat. The {{lang|de|Luftwaffe}} left [[Glossary of German military terms#J|''Jagdgeschwader'' 2]] (JG 2) and [[Jagdgeschwader 26]] (JG 26) in western Europe, comprising 180 fighters at most.{{Sfn|Murray|1983|p=134}}

The advantages enjoyed by Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain were reversed, the short range of the Spitfire becoming a tactical disadvantage and British pilots became [[prisoners of war]] if shot down. Fighter Command claimed 711 {{lang|de|Luftwaffe}} fighters shot down but only 236 were lost from all causes, 103 in combat, for a loss of 400 RAF fighters.<ref>'The JG 26 War Diary' (Volume 1), Caldwell (1996) page 199.</ref> As 1941 ended, the appearance of the new [[Focke-Wulf Fw 190]], considerably superior to the [[Supermarine Spitfire (early Merlin powered variants)#Mk V (Types 331, 349 & 352)|Spitfire Mk V]], put the British fighters at a worse disadvantage.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.historyhit.com/the-spitfire-v-or-the-fw190-which-ruled-the-skies/|title=The Spitfire V or the Fw190: Which Ruled the Skies?|date=5 April 2019|publisher=History Hit|access-date=21 November 2024}}</ref>

The [[The Blitz|Blitz]] of 1940 continued against civilian and industrial targets. Fighter Command night defences improved considerably in the new year; the [[Bristol Beaufighter]] supplanted the [[Bristol Blenheim]] as the principal [[night fighter]], equipped with improved [[aircraft interception radar]], and became increasingly effective in [[ground-controlled interception]] (GCI).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.raf.mod.uk/our-organisation/stations/raf-boulmer/news/80th-anniversary-of-the-first-ground-control-intercept-radar-site/|title=80th Anniversary of the First Ground Control Intercept Radar Site|date=1 January 2021|publisher=RAF|access-date=21 November 2024}}</ref>