The Hurricane was the first monoplane fighter to see service in the Royal Air Force and the first aircraft to be equipped with eight guns. Designed in 1933-34 by Hawker's chief designer, Sydney Camm, it was eventually contracted by the Air Ministry in 1935 and was capable of flying in excess of 300 mph. The first RAF squadron to receive the Hurricane, No. 111, took delivery in January 1938 and by the beginning of the Second World War in September 1939 eighteen squadrons were flying this remarkable aircraft. After showing its mettle in intensive combat during the Battle of France in early 1940, the Hurricane played a leading role in the Battle of Britain later that year.