Malta, April 20th, 1942. Operation Calendar

By April 1942, constant air raids by the Axis brought British military presence in the region of Mediterranean very close to the their last line.  The Island of Malta was in desperate need of supplies and offensive power to secure the seaways and aerial space, while Axis air domination, especially their fighters, meant that they were helpless. Being on the brink of losing Malta, Britain’s command had no carriers available to send combat planes to the island. And then, there came the Allies!

The United States gave a helping hand to the soldiers of the United Kingdom. The USS Wasp received 52 aircraft, with pilots, on her deck and began hasty preparations for a long flight. British Spitfires were equipped with additional fuel tanks, but a lack of time and experience led to a series of faults during preparations. As a result, only 48 Spitfires were ready to fight, many still having severe problems with fuel leakage, armaments and radios. On April 20th, 1942, covered by the Wasp’s Wildcats, British Spitfires flew off the deck of American carrier to reinforce the defense of Malta.

Unfortunately, operation Calendar can not be called successful for the Royal Air Forces. Immediately upon their arrival to the Maltese airfield, the Spitfires came under massive attack from German bombers. British fighters had burned up all the fuel they received on the USS Wasp, and were easy prey for the Junkers bombers - almost all of the Spitfires were destroyed. However, in early May, the USS Wasp again offered her broad deck for the British aircraft. During Operation Bowery, Great Britain were able to provide Malta with fighters to fight against Axis bombers. The powerful air defense reserves of the island became key to the final defeat of the enemy forces in the region.

War Thunder presents special event dedicated to the operation Calendar. From April 21st 06:00 GMT till April 22nd 06:00 GMT (April 20th 11 pm PDT — April 21st 11pm PDT):

• Single mission “Operation Calendar” is unlocked for all players
• 10% discount on the following planes and their modifications:

German planes: Bf 109 E-3, Fw 190 A-5, Me 410 A-1/U4, M.C.200 serie 7

Soviet planes: IL-2M, Yak-1B, Yak-3, La-5FN, LaGG-3 35

British planes: Spitfire Mk I, Spitfire Mk Vb, Beaufighter Mk X, Beaufighter Mk X, Hurricane Mk II

• 25% discount on Premium account purchased for a month or longer