Download or read book 1940 the Story of No 11 Group Fighter Command written by Peter G. Cooksley and published by Robert Hale. This book was released on 1983 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: En skildring af perioden fra juni til september 1940 af det afgørende slag om England, bl.a. som det blev oplevet af både piloter og jordpersonel.
Download or read book Spitfire Leader written by Dennis Newton and published by Amberley Publishing Limited. This book was released on 2019-02-15 with total page 616 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The brilliant career and moving personal story of Battle of Britain Spitfire ace and squadron leader Bob Bungey.
Download or read book Air Force Combat Units of World War II written by Maurer Maurer and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 1961 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Hurricane Squadron Ace written by Nick Thomas and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2014-11-30 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “The story of one of the most heroic fighter aces of the Second World War . . . has been brought to life in this gripping new book.” —Lancashire Living Magazine Air Commodore Peter Malam “Pete” Brothers CBE, DSO, DFC, and Bar (1917-2008) was one of the most highly praised pilots of the Second World War. Decorated extensively, he secured a total of 16 “kills” over the course of the conflict, with 10 of these occurring during the Battle of Britain. Pivotal moments in his career include the time, in August 1940, when his flight encountered around a hundred enemy aircraft, including Messerschmitt 110s; he led the flight in attack against them, and soon found himself in a stalled position, out of which he spun, only to be confronted by a Dornier 215, which he shot down, before later destroying a Messerschmitt 109. Scores of these kind of risky maneuvers and winning victories punctuated a career defined by great courage, leadership and initiative in the face of fierce opposition. This new and engaging biography profiles a pilot who, until now, hasn’t been the subject of such a thorough book-length study. The story of his career is incredibly entertaining, featuring a number of hair-raising episodes, and is sure to appeal to fans of aviation history as well as the more general reader seeking out an action-packed biography offering fresh insights into one of the most pivotal conflicts of the twentieth century. “An engaging story of one of The Few . . . This is a book that entertains, inspires, moves, amuses, surprises—what more could any reader ask for.” —FIRE Project
Download or read book Dowding Churchill written by Jack Dixon and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2009-04-21 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh later Lord Dowding was one of the greatest Englishmen of the 20th century. He created Fighter Command with its unique early warning system (radar) from nothing in 1936 to the efficient defensive force it became in 1940. In consequence Fighter Command was the only arm that was properly prepared for battle when war was declared against Germany. Hugh Dowding led Fighter Command in the Battle of Britain, and was victorious. The campaign, although a series of defensive engagements, was one of the decisive battles of Western Civilization.The strategic importance of the Battle of Britain was recognized at the time, yet, the moment it was won Dowding was summarily relieved of his command and shuffled into retirement without recognition, reward or promotion. This book reveals that this was the result of a shabby conspiracy by fellow officers. The Air Ministry published a brief account of the Battle in March 1941 and in it there was no mention of Dowding.Churchill was furiously indignant. But in November 1940 he had acquiesced in Dowdings removal. Why? And what are the factors that led to Dowdings dismissal in the first place? In this thought-provoking and authoritative book Jack Dixon answers these questions and explains Dowdings true greatness.
Download or read book The Secret Life of Fighter Command written by Sinclair McKay and published by Quarto Publishing Group USA. This book was released on 2015-07-02 with total page 361 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Bring[s] alive the all-engulfing drama of 1940, as Hitler’s Luftwaffe attempted to establish air superiority over England. . . . Poetry and sharp politics.” —The Times During the dark days of 1940, when Britain faced the might of Hitler’s armed forces alone, the RAF played an integral role in winning the Battle of Britain against the Luftwaffe, thus ensuring the country’s safety from invasion. The men and women of Fighter Command worked tirelessly in air bases scattered throughout the length and breadth of Britain to thwart the Nazi attacks; The Secret Life of Fighter Command tells their story. From setting up the ground-breaking radar systems along the coast of the Southeast of England, to the distribution of spotters of bombing waves coming along the Thames Estuary, the boffins who designed and built the guidance and detection structures to organize a winning defense umbrella, to the Wrens who plotted enemy movements and then conveyed this to the various RAF squadrons stationed in the UK’s zonal defense system—all of them played a part in maintaining the security over Britain. Through exclusive interviews with various members of this unique and world famous organization, bestselling author Sinclair McKay tells the human story of how Britain survived the Nazi onslaught and enabled our Hurricanes and Spitfires to triumph over the German air force.
Download or read book Growth of Fighter Command 1936 1940 written by T.C.G. James and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-06-03 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first of two volumes of the classified Air Historical Branch study of Fighter Command and the Air Defence of the United Kingdom. It covers pre-war expansion of the Command, the creation of the first integrated air defence system, and an account of Dunkirk and the Battle of Britain.
Download or read book Fighter Command 1936 1968 written by Ken Delve and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2007-08-16 with total page 507 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a comprehensive reference to the structure, operation, aircraft and men of Fighter Command from its formation in 1936 to 1968 when it became part of Strike Command. It includes descriptions of many notable defensive and offensive campaigns, the many types of aircraft used, weapons and airfields. The main sections of the book include a general historical introduction and overview, operations, operational groups, aircrew training and technical details of each aircraft type. Lengthy Annexes cover personnel, the squadrons in World War II, orders of battle for each wartime year, maps of airfield locations and numbers of enemy aircraft downed.
Download or read book To Defeat the Few written by Douglas C. Dildy and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-07-09 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the past 80 years, histories of the Battle of Britain have consistently portrayed the feats of 'The Few' (as they were immortalized in Churchill's famous speech) as being responsible for the RAF's victory in the epic battle. However, this is only part of the story. The results of an air campaign cannot be measured in terms of territory captured, cities occupied or armies defeated, routed or annihilated. Successful air campaigns are those that achieve their intended aims or stated objectives. Victory in the Battle of Britain was determined by whether the Luftwaffe achieved its objectives. The Luftwaffe, of course, did not, and this detailed and rigorous study explains why. Analysing the battle in its entirety in the context of what it was – history's first independent offensive counter-air campaign against the world's first integrated air defence system – Douglas C. Dildy and Paul F. Crickmore set out to re-examine this remarkable conflict. Presenting the events of the Battle of Britain in the context of the Luftwaffe's campaign and RAF Fighter Command's battles against it, this title is a new and innovative history of the battle that kept alive the Allies' chances of defeating Nazi Germany.
Download or read book A Spitfire Pilot s Story written by Dennis Newton and published by Amberley Publishing Limited. This book was released on 2016-06-15 with total page 501 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A family-authorised biography of Pat Hughes, one of the top-scoring aces of the Battle of Britain.
Download or read book Air Pictorial written by and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 762 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Enemy Sighted written by Dilip Amin and published by Air World. This book was released on 2023-11-30 with total page 349 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Enemy Sighted is the story of the world’s first integrated air defense system and how the coalition of Hurricanes and Spitfires, Fighter Command’s Operations Rooms and Sector Stations, Radar Stations, Observer Corps posts, anti-aircraft gun and searchlight batteries, and balloon barrages, stood resolutely in the way of Operation Seelöwe, Hitler’s plan for invading Britain in the Summer of 1940. Dilip Amin provides a fascinating insight into their development and eventual operationalization. The system provided a recognized air picture, giving everyone the same information at the same time, much like computers linked through the internet do today, except, in 1939 there was no computer and there was no internet! Fundamental to its telling is the 11 Group Operations Room, today referred to as the Battle of Britain Bunker, and the people who worked there, deep below RAF Uxbridge. It was after visiting the Bunker that Churchill first uttered the immortal words, ‘Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few’. Hidden underground, with its large map table and squadron display boards, and balloon and weather states, it is preserved as it was on 15 September 1940, the date celebrated as Battle of Britain Day. Dilip Amin describes how the Bunker operated, transporting the reader back to the time of the Battle of France and the final evacuation from Dunkirk. He guides the reader through the Battle of Britain, examining in detail, the events of 15 September, as seen by those in the Bunker and the combat reports of those flying the Hurricanes and Spitfires on that tumultuous day. Finally, the book provides an insight into how the Bunker operated to protect Britain during the Blitz; support the exploratory raid on Dieppe; shield the troops landing in Normandy; and defend against Hitler’s V1 and V2 Vengeance Weapons. Enemy Sighted provides a compelling insight into the remarkable history of a secret Operations Room, that was pivotal within a world leading air defense system, and without which, an Allied victory in the Second World War would have been far from certain.
Download or read book Bader s Big Wing Controversy written by Dilip Sarkar and published by Air World. This book was released on 2022-01-12 with total page 406 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Group Captain Sir Douglas Bader remains one of the most famous RAF fighter pilots to date, perhaps even the most famous of all, thanks to Paul Brickhill’s best-selling 1950s yarn Reach for the Sky and Dany Angel’s box office hit of the same name, starring Kenneth Moore. Bader, a graduate of the RAF College Cranwell and a professional, career officer, was a gifted sportsman and aerobatic pilot – but headstrong. After a crash that led to the amputation of both of his legs, the Second World War was this man of action’s salvation: passing a flying test, he returned to the RAF, first flying Spitfires with 19 Squadron at Duxford. In due course he was posted to 222 Squadron as a flight commander, seeing action over Dunkirk. Already newsworthy, the swashbuckling, legless, fighter pilot was also a favorite of his Station Commander, Wing Commander A.B. ‘Woody’ Woodhall, and, more importantly, his 12 Group Air Officer Commanding, Air Vice-Marshal Leigh-Mallory. In short order, therefore, Bader was soon elevated to Acting Squadron Leader and given command of 242 Squadron, a Canadian Hurricane squadron which he led throughout the Battle of Britain. On 30 August 1940, 12 Group was requested to reinforce 11 Group and intercept a raid on an aircraft factory at Hatfield. This was Bader and 242 Squadron’s first experience of a mass German raid, and many combat claims were subsequently filed. The events that day led Bader to submit a report arguing that the more fighters he had at his disposal, the greater would be the execution of the enemy that could be achieved. It was a concept that received support from Leigh-Mallory, who recognised an opportunity for 12 Group to play a greater part in what was clearly an historic battle. Leigh-Mallory authorised Bader to lead three, then five, squadrons – a controversial formation that came to be known as the ‘Duxford Wing’ or ‘Big Wing’. In Bader’s Big Wing Controversy, Dilip Sarkar not only explores the full story of the people and events that led to the creation of the ‘Big Wing’ at Duxford, he also fully investigates the part that its men and machines played in the Battle of Britain story. Whilst Bader was not personally intending disloyalty, as such, to his Air Officer Commander-in-Chief, Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding, he was, as the latter once commented, ‘the cause of a lot of the trouble’. In his burning desire to propel 242 Squadron and himself, its leader, into the forefront of the action, the newsworthy acting squadron leader found himself used by darker forces, men with axes to grind and personal ambitions to further.
Download or read book The Battle of Britain July September 1940 written by Marcel Jullian and published by . This book was released on 1967 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Combat Squadrons of the Air Force World War II written by Maurer Maurer and published by . This book was released on 1969 with total page 856 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of squadron histories has been prepared by the USAF Historical Division to complement the Division's book, Air Force Combat Units of World War II. The 1,226 units covered by this volume are the combat (tactical) squadrons that were active between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945. Each squadron is traced from its beginning through 5 March 1963, the fiftieth anniversary of the organization of the 1st Aero (later Bombardment) Squadron, the first Army unit to be equipped with aircraft for tactical operations. For each squadron there is a statement of the official lineage and data on the unit's assignments, stations, aircraft and missiles, operations, service streamers, campaign participation, decorations, and emblem.
Download or read book A History of Croydon Airport Croydon Airport and the battle for Britain 1939 1940 written by Bob Learmonth and published by . This book was released on 1977 with total page 182 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book When Britain Saved the West written by Robin Prior and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2015-01-01 with total page 373 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How Britain, standing alone, persevered in the face of near-certain defeat at the hands of Nazi Germany From the comfortable distance of seven decades, it is quite easy to view the victory of the Allies over Hitler's Germany as inevitable. But in 1940 Great Britain's defeat loomed perilously close, and no other nation stepped up to confront the Nazi threat. In this cogently argued book, Robin Prior delves into the documents of the time--war diaries, combat reports, Home Security's daily files, and much more--to uncover how Britain endured a year of menacing crises. The book reassesses key events of 1940--crises that were recognized as such at the time and others not fully appreciated. Prior examines Neville Chamberlain's government, Churchill's opponents, the collapse of France, the Battle of Britain, and the Blitz. He looks critically at the position of the United States before Pearl Harbor, and at Roosevelt's response to the crisis. Prior concludes that the nation was saved through a combination of political leadership, British Expeditionary Force determination and skill, Royal Air Force and Navy efforts to return soldiers to the homeland, and the determination of the people to fight on "in spite of all terror." As eloquent as it is controversial, this book exposes the full import of events in 1940, when Britain fought alone and Western civilization hung in the balance.
