When the Focke Wulf Fw 190 was first appearing and giving the Spit V what for... The British had the scheme of stealing a 190 from a German base.
Spitfire test pilot Jeffrey Quill was the man who was going to be the pilot. This was known as Operation Air Thief. The following is text from an article I had published in a local aviation magazine some years ago:
"A more plausible idea was proposed by Vickers Supermarine Chief Test Pilot Jeffrey Quill and a Commando pal of his, Capt Philip Pinkney. Inspired by the success of Operation Biting, the commando raid on the Bruneval German radar site in February 1942, where a British scientist dismantled Würzburg radar components and returned them to Britain by submarine, Operation Air Thief would have seen Quill steal an Fw 190 from a German airfield and fly it back, whilst Pinkney distracted the Germans. A letter to Pinkney's commanding officer of No.12 Commando dated 23 June 1942 detailed the proposal, which was to be carried out over five days and required; "One MGB (motor gunboat) equipped with DF [direction-finding radio] apparatus, to carry a folbot [collapsible canoe] to within 2 miles of the coast of France."
On the night of Day One; "...the MGB carrying the officers and folbot, will leave England after dark and proceed at best speed to within 2 miles of the French coast off a selected beach." After waiting for dusk on the second day; "the officers will move inland until they are within observation range of a fighter aerodrome." which on the third day they would; "...keep the aerodrome under observation and plan the attack for the start of nautical twilight on D4." That night however; "...the officers will penetrate the aerodrome defences by stealth and will conceal themselves as near as possible to a selected Focke Wulf aircraft."
On the fourth day; "...when the aircraft are warmed up by the ground mechanics, the two officers will take the first opportunity to shoot the ground mechanics of the selected plane as soon as it has been started up. The pilot officer will take off in the machine and return to England. The commando officer will first ensure the safe departure of the aircraft and will then withdraw to a previously reconnoitred hideup. Should no opportunity to seize the aircraft have presented itself, the officers will withdraw to a hideup and make another attempt the next morning." The following day would be when Pinkney made his escape.
A paragraph hinting at the dangers of flying a Luftwaffe fighter over British territory was included; "Arrangements must be made with Fighter Command to ensure that the pilot officer is not shot down by our fighters on returning with the captured aircraft. It is suggested that these arrangements should not be dependant upon wireless or on the officers taking distinctive markings or signalling apparatus with them. Possibly Fighter Command could be instructed not to shoot down any enemy Focke Wulf 190 appearing over the coast during specified times on selected days. In addition the undercarriage could be lowered for identification."
Regarding a possible airfield, Pinkney proposed that; "...Abbeville aerodrome might be suitable with a landing made on the Somme Estuary. The Cherbourg peninsula, entailing a cliff-climbing on landing, might give a good chance of making an undiscovered landing, providing a suitable aerodrome is nearby." By the time preparations for Air Thief had begun, the airfield at Cherbourg-Maupertus, home to I/JG 2 and its Fw 190A-2s was to be the most likely target aerodrome."
None of this was needed since the very day Pinkney drafted his proposal, Oblt Arnim Faber inadvertently landed his Fw 190 at RAF Pembry in Wales, gifting the British an intact flyable example of the fighter. Apparently, according to Quill, Pinkney was considerably disappointed the German pilot landed there, denying him the opportunity to do the job!