The majority of Irish who fought on the side of the UK in WW2, weren't fighting for Britain. They were fighting against Nazism. Many Irish who fought on the side of the British were pilloried in the Republic for enroling in the British armed forces. I suppose it depends on your viewpoint.
But a really brave man, nonetheless. He deserves the praise and thanks.
As squad said earlier, the Hurricane shot down many more German planes than the Spitfire. The Spitfire was only armed with rifle calibre bullets and any German plane that was hit by a Spitfire had a chance of making it back. However, if they were hit by a Hurricane, they had no chance as the Hurricane had cannon fire. Much more powerful and deadly than the Spitfire. And the Germans knew that.