During the final stage of the Battle of France, the RAF understandably looked to balance any further support it offered to the Allied armies with the need to preserve sufficient forces to ensure Britain's security were France to be defeated. As a result, the RAF was unable to influence the land battle during "Fall Rot", the second German offensive which commenced on 5 June.

After Dunkirk between 5-9 June Fighter Command maintained a daily average of 100 sorties over France, the limited range of both the Hurricane and Spitfire meant there was a consistent lack of air cover.

And between 8 and 12 June, 2 Group undertook 248 sorties and AASF Battles made 104 daylight sorties in support of the Allied forces in France and, as the German breakthrough worsened, to impede the advance to the Seine crossings at Rouen.

An important effort was also made to support French forces. Then as evacuations from Le Havre was conducted from 10 to 12 June the ground forces also received fighter cover by the Fighter Command and the roads to Le Havre were covered by armed bomber patrols. This was the peak of British fighter involvement in the air cover provided during the German offensive.

In total during the Battle of France, 1,526 RAF personnel were killed, wounded or reported missing and 959 RAF aircraft were destroyed, 508 of which were BAFF (British Air Forces in France) aircraft.

Flying in this Hurricane Sergeant Leonard Hilary Borlase Pearce of 32 Squadron RAF claimed to have shot down Bf109 over Le Treport 9:15 to 9:30 Hours. Checking the Jagdwaffe loss statistics a total of five Bf 109 was lost in air-combat over France this day. However only two was shot down by Hurricanes, both machines was from the III./JG 26.

Little is know about Sgt. Pearce other than he was an accomplished pilot claiming a total of three and one shared destroyed, and a further one damaged while flying with 32 Squadron in July-August 1940. He was first posted to 92 Squadron in October 1939 and then to 32 Squadron in early June 1940. He would fly his last combat mission on 9 April 1941 when he was killed in action.

Three days later, on 11 June 1940 this Hurricane was to be lost in combat, the day when Plt Off. Eric Jones took off from Manston, Kent for a wing patrol over Dieppe.

During this flight his fighter was damaged by return fire from a Hs 126 and he made a forced-landing near Montreuil at 14.00 hours. Jones was unfortunate to land in the middle of an advancing German spearhead but was lucky and managed to evade immediate capture.

After obtaining civilian clothes, he joined a party of refugees heading for Arras. After a series of narrow escapes he eventually reached Carteret where he commandeered a small boat and sailed to the Channel Island of Alderney only to find it in enemy hands. He was finally captured there on 7 July.

This Hurricane, taken intact with small combat damages by the Germans. Later it was put on display "Beuteausstellung" (Booty exhibition) in Leipzig in Germany from 25 August to 15 September 1940.

During this day the III./JG 26 experienced their largest losses during the French Campaign, with two Bf 109 Emil´s lost in air combat with another two machines damaged. According to the Germans the lost machines was both shot down by RAF Hurricanes.

The first that was lost was flown by Lt. Hermman Dörr who was shot down and killed by Hurricanes close to Neufchatel at 9.30 hours. The another Bf 109 was flown by the future Experten Lt. Klaus Mietusch that made a force landing at Offronville and was promptly taken prisoner.

This all for own claims of seven RAF fighters, of which later six was confirmed, including five Hurricanes and one Spitfire.

Miltusch that had scored his first, a Hurricane over Dunkirk on 31 May at 15.40 hours was during his whole career hampered by low self-confidence and asserted himself as a "bad shoot". In spite of this, Mietusch managed to claim 75 confirmed victories before being killed in combat on 17 September 1944.

His own explanations for his successes although a "bad shot" was that he closed in to his target, so close that he could simply don´t miss, and by sheer force of will fought his "demons". Other fellow pilots in his Gruppe and later under his command, noticed that Klaus Meitusch never turned down a mission and was always ready to take on the enemy.

Besides his accomplishments this also resulted that during five years of combat he being shot down, force landed, bailed out, and crashed after combat no less than ten times. The first time being downed was this day on 8 June, perhaps a victim of Sgt. Pearce