dᵻspˈaɪt ðɪs səksˈɛs, ðˌoʊ, nˈoʊ. twˈɛnti wˈʌn skwˈɑːdɹən sˈʌfɚd sᵻvˈɪɹ lˈɔsᵻz tə dʒˌæpənˈiːz fˈaɪɾɚz, ɔnðə ɡɹˈaʊnd ænd ɪnðɪ ˈɛɹ, dˈʊɹɹɪŋ ðə fˈɜːst wˈiːk ʌvðə kæmpˈeɪn; ɹᵻplˈeɪsmənts wɜːɹ ˈoʊnli lˈɪmɪɾᵻd, ɹɪzˈʌltɪŋ ɪnðə skwˈɑːdɹənz ˌɑːpɚɹˈeɪʃənəl mˈɜːdʒɚ wɪð fˈoːɹhˈʌndɹɪd fˈɪfti θɹˈiː skwˈɑːdɹən.
Despite this success, though, No. 21 Squadron suffered severe losses to Japanese fighters, on the ground and in the air, during the first week of the campaign; replacements were only limited, resulting in the squadron's operational merger with 453 Squadron.