Let's Put this Battle of Britain thing in Historical Context..

[David Hayward]

Originally Posted by csThor

I think you're oversimplifying the issue. The RAF would not have been able to ignore the Luftwaffe (that's a political question as well) nor would it have been able to fly adequate air cover for fleet ops over the Channel (which is where the first line of defense of the RN would be stationed, mostly destroyers and light forces) when its own airfields were north of London. Always remember that getting to a point where an aircraft is useful takes time ... even more when distances grow.

I'm not making it simple. It was simple. The only thing that could reliably stop a German invasion was the Royal Navy. The Brits would have saved enough fighters to protect the Navy long enough to destroy the invasion. They had no other choice, and they knew it. In fact, it is my understanding that they came very close to evacuating several of 11 Group's airfields during the battle.

Once the German invasion started the Royal Navy would have attacked with the remaining RAF fighters flying cover (from bases outside of Germain fighter range). They probably would have taken heavy losses, but there is no doubt that they would have wiped out any attempted German invasion.