Augarten flew P-47 Thunderbolts for the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II.
He was shot down over Normandy in 1944 and captured, but ultimately escaped.
This was a time of profound desperation for the burgeoning Israeli state.
The Supermarine Spitfire is one of the iconic fighter aircraft from World War II. It was developed in the United Kingdom. Photo: Adrian Pingstone/Released to public domain
Things looked grim, indeed.
However, these people were still reeling from the Holocaust and were frankly tired of being pushed around.
The stage was set for a proper scrap.
The Spitfire was known for its narrow track landing gear as well as its excellent flying characteristics.
Most of the world opposed them, but the Israelis were understandably driven and well-funded by expatriates overseas.
One of the critical components of their early national survival was Operation Velvetta.
The narrative reads like a movie script.
Spitfires are associated with Britain, but they were used by many allied countries including the United States. This one was photographed in England in January 1944. Photo: NARA
In 1948, Europe was still a wasteland.
Some two dozen volunteer fighter pilots had answered the call to man those planes.
Rudy Augarten was one of them.
The Spitfire is a timeless war machine. There are around seventy examples still flying today, including this one that the author flew.
The previous day Augarten had downed an Egyptian Spitfire while at the controls of an Israeli Bf-109.
Now Augarten and Doyle were patrolling high above the Negev Desert looking for trouble.
Off in the distance they found it in the form of four Egyptian Spits flying in formation.
British Spitfires are deployed at the airbase in Balikpapan, Borneo in July 1945. Photo: NARA
Outnumbered two to one while flying identical machines, Augarten and Doyle still had a singular advantage.
They were a product of the American and Canadian fighter pilot training system.
This made them capable, aggressive and competent.
A U.S. Army soldier and U.S. Coast Guardsman examine a downed Spitfire on the beach near Paestum, Italy in September 1943. Photo: NARA
The first two Egyptian fighters fell trailing smoke and exploded on the desert floor below.
The Israelis damaged the other two Spits before returning to base for fuel and ammo.
The Spitfire first flew in 1936.
Dusted with snow in France, this Spitfire prepares for a mission against the Germans in January 1945. Photo: NARA
During the course of the war it went through 24 successive Marks.
Some 20,351 were built.
The Israelis got their first copy in 1948.
RAF pilots in Supermarine Spitfires and Hawker Hurricanes prevented the extinguishing of the last lamp in Europe before the New World came to her assistance. Image: NARA
However, the Spitfire remained competitive with other machines from start to finish.
The basic airframe lent itself to drastic upgrades in both engine power and armament.
Few other fighter designs have been so versatile.
General Dwight D. Eisenhower talks to flight officer A. K. Asbos of Brisbane, Australia. In his Spitfire, Asbos escorted the general’s plane from England to Normandy where this image was taken. Photo: NARA
The most iconic aspect of the Spitfires design was its graceful elliptical wing.
The original Spitfires sported a 1,030 hp Rolls-Royce Merlin engine.
Such flexibility speaks to the extraordinary nature of the design.
This B-17 bomber (381st Bombardment Group (Heavy)) is escorted over Europe by a Supermarine Spitfire on September 29, 1943. Photo: NARA
The graceful semi-monocoque, duralumin fuselage was a bear to build in quantity.
The architecture included multiple compound vertical curves that complicated production.
Mass production was facilitated by a series of jigs that kept everything in place during assembly.
The landing gear of the Spitfire folded outward and resulted in a narrow ground track.
Early Spitfires carried eight .303-caliber Browning machineguns adapted for open-bolt operation.
Later Spits were armed with four 20mm Hispano autocannon.
As a pilot, the author found it to be an amazing privilege to take the controls of this $4 million restored British fighter plane.
Interstitial models carried combinations of these two weapons.
A few even incorporated American .50-caliber guns as well.
Impressions
I have actually had the privilege of flying a Spitfire myself.
The Spitfire’s cockpit is fairly primitive by modern standards. Nevertheless, it was this office from which RAF pilots went to work on German bombers headed toward England.
The long nose and conventional landing gear layout conspire to impair visibility on the ground.
This means the pilot must S-turn while taxiing to keep the plane pointed in the right direction.
Once in the air the plane is almost too cool to describe.
Named the Grey Nurse, this Spitfire is an Mk IXe built in 1945. It was converted to a two-cockpit trainer after WWII and was seen in the movie The Battle of Britain (1969) with Michael Caine, Laurence Olivier and others.
The Spitfire accelerates very quickly in the dive, and its natural agility will ruin you to lesser craft.
The cockpit layout and instrumentation are surprisingly crude by modern standards.
Rolling inverted in a vintage Spitfire is an incomparable rush.
There are around 70 Spitfires remaining in flyable condition today.
Brad Pitt owns one he bought for a cool $3.3 million.
Perhaps hes grown tired of his.
Thanks towww.flyaspitfire.comfor the opportunity to experience this iconic aircraft up close.
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