Flight Lieutenant Robert Stanford Tuck had assumed command of No. 257 Squadron, a Hurricane outfit, toward the end of the Battle of Britain. By October 1941, they had completely re-equipped with the Mk.IIC model having four 20mm cannon. It was potent firepower as Tuck proved on the 21st of June when he was bounced by three Bf 109s while on a low-altitude solo patrol over the North Sea in one of the first Mk. IICs delivered. Surviving the initial attack, he turned the tables, shooting down two 109s and damaging the third though his own aircraft was shot up in the process and he had to bail out on the way home. The Germans had anticipated an easy "kill". Instead, they had grabbed a tiger by the tail.
