Interesting third question. A 'manufacturers self protection squadron' that comes to mind would be Heinkel's unit of He 100s. (And, I see the earlier 112s)
Quote:
The remaining 12 He 100 D-1 fighters were used to form Heinkel's Marienehe factory defense unit, flown by factory test pilots. They replaced the earlier He 112s that were used for the same purpose, and the 112s were later sold off. At this early stage in the war, there were no bombers venturing that far into Germany, and it appears that the unit never saw action. The eventual fate of the D-1s remains unknown.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinkel_He ... al_historyIn the case of the He 112 and 100s, these were aircraft the RLM didn't want. In the case of the Corsairs, the Navy (and allies) wanted all they could get, so keeping any back wasn't on the cards. Defending the area was an Air Corps / Army Air Force job, too, as has been said. Finally, as well as the reasons above, most factories didn't deliver the aircraft fully equipped; stuff like guns ammunition, radios and IFF was often not fitted or active - or available to civilians.
AFAIK, there were no factory self defence aircraft units in the UK, and they
were attacked, unlike the lower 48's factories.
Anyone know any other 'factory fighter flights'?
Regards,