as all pilots were valuable, a compromise was reached whereby františek was allotted a "spare" aircraft so he could fly as a "guest" of the squadron as and when he wanted. thus františek fought his own private war – accompanying the squadron into the air, but peeling off to fly a lone patrol over kent, patrolling in the area through which he knew the german aircraft being intercepted would fly on their way back to base, possibly damaged and low on fuel and ammunition.