During the Second World War, RAF Biggin Hill was one of Fighter Commands premier stations. Throughout the Battle of Britain and beyond, it became a hotbed of talent and expertise, home to many of the Commands most notable and successful squadrons. Both on the ground and in the air, Biggin Hill had a formidable reputation and its prowess was very much built on a partnership between air and ground personnel, including squadron members, specialist engineers, armorers and other ground-crew. Th...

This book addresses the prejudices that emerged out of the collision of two pandemics: COVID-19 and racism.Offering a snapshot of experiences through counter storytelling and micro narratives, this collection assesses the racialised responses to the pandemic and investigates acts of discrimination that have occurred within social, political and historical contexts.Capturing the divisive discourses which have dominated this contemporary moment, this is a unique and creative ...

"This is the book that puts the flesh on the bones of its reputation as one of the best aircraft of the Second World War." — Pennant MagazineThe flak started about four or five minutes before the target and immediately it was apparent that it was intense and extremely accurate. Oboe entailed the pilot flying dead straight and level for ten minutes on the attack run. Suddenly a tremendous flash lit up the sky about 50 yards ahea...

Hank Adlam began his naval flying career in 1941, his first operational posting was to the newly formed No. 890 Squadron. When 890 was disbanded he joined 1839 Squadron flying the new Grumman Hellcat.

After the fall of France in May 1940, the British Expeditionary Force was miraculously evacuated from Dunkirk. Britain now stood alone to face Hitler’s inevitable invasion attempt. For the German army to land across the channel, Hitler needed mastery of the skies-the Royal Air Force would have to be broken. So every day throughout the summer, German bombers pounded the RAF air bases in the southern counties. Greatly outnumbered by the Luftwaffe, the pilots of RAF Fighter Command scrambled ...

The heroic life of the pilot who became an ace with one of the most successful fighter squadrons in the RAF and a captive in a notorious Nazi POW camp.Following training, Lee received his commission and was posted to 501 Squadron which was sent to support the Expeditionary Force in France, arriving on 10 May, only hours after the Blitzkrieg had been launched. Lee quickly opened his score, claiming several bombers during the first week of operations. Having been woun...

In the summer of 1940, the future of Britain and the free world depended on the morale and skill of the young men of Fighter Command. This is their story.The Battle of Britain is one of the most crucial battles ever fought, and the victory of Fighter Command over the Luftwaffe has always been celebrated as a classic feat of arms. But, as Patrick Bishop shows in this superb history, it was also a triumph of the spirit in which the attitudes of the pilots themselves played a crucial ...

The only book written by the legendary "legless" ace, the double amputee World War II fighter pilot immortalized by the film Reach for the Sky.In Fight for the Sky, Douglas Bader tells the inspiring story of the Battle of Britain from the viewpoint of "The Few." Using superb illustrations he traces the development of the Spitfire and Hurricane and describes the nail-biting actions of those who flew them against far superior numbers of enemy aircraf...

The first Royal Navy pilot to fly transatlantic non-stop (in a Buccaneer) describes his thirty-five-year career in the Fleet Air Arm and as an Empire Test Pilot.The spectacle of Alan Cobham's Flying Circus and the Fleet at anchor in Weymouth inspired the author's lifelong passion for aeroplanes, flying and the Royal Navy. World War Two provided the opportunity to fulfil his ambition and at eighteen he volunteered for the Fleet Air Arm as a pilot. Training in Canada ...

This WWII history recounts how RAF pilots, outgunned by superior Japanese aircraft, nevertheless flew and fought their way to victory.In 1940, the Royal Air Force Purchasing Commission acquired more than 100 Brewster B-339 Buffalo fighter planes from the US. But when the aircraft were deemed below par for service in the UK, the vast majority were diverted for use in the Far East, where it was believed they would be superior to any Japanese aircraft encountered shoul...

A brutally honest account of Australian armour crewmen in action in Vietnam.What was it like to sit in the drivers' and gunners' seats of the Australian tanks and armoured personnel carriers that fought in the Vietnam War? Jungle Tracks takes us into the thick of the battles, the ambushes and the horrendous mine incidents that claimed the lives of so many Australian soldiers.Veterans of the Armoured Corps share their experiences of fighting in the ...

Twenty true stories of bravery, survival, and good and bad luck involving Bomber Command during World War II from the author of Flying into Hell.In their own words, the heroes of Bomber Command tell their harrowing stories . . ."It is believed that when Dacey realized the aircraft was on fire he grabbed an extinguisher, hurried aft and tried, in vain, to put out the flames. Somehow he became trapped behind the spreading inferno and was unable to re...