Download or read book Eyewitness at Dieppe written by Ross Reyburn and published by Pen and Sword History. This book was released on 2022-10-20 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In August 1942, Allied forces mounted an attack on the German-held port of Dieppe; titled Operation Jubilee, it represented a rehearsal for invasion. The amphibious attack saw over 6,000 infantrymen, predominantly Canadian, put ashore, tasked with destroying German structures and gathering intelligence. The doomed raid was an abject failure, and became Canada’s worst military disaster. Eyewitness at Dieppe is a long-overdue reissue of New Zealand-born writer Wallace Reyburn’s dramatic account of the raid. He was with the first soldiers clambering ashore, and aboard the last ship returning to England after six hours of carnage. Awarded an OBE as the only war correspondent to witness the street fighting first-hand, Reyburn was fortunate not be numbered among Dieppe’s dead, suffering just a minor wound inflicted by mortar shell fragments. His book, Rehearsal for Invasion was a wartime bestseller. Accompanied by freelance journalist Ross Reyburn’s new foreword on his father’s account, this new edition tells us more about Wallace’s intriguing life and details the shortcomings of his father’s book, dictated by wartime censorship corrected in the post-war years through a withering condemnation of raid’s mastermind Lord Mountbatten.
Download or read book Eyewitness RAF written by James Goulty and published by Pen and Sword Aviation. This book was released on 2020-12-14 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Much has been written about the Royal Air Force during the Second World Warmemoirs, biographies, histories of Fighter and Bomber commands, technical studies of the aircraft, accounts of individual operations and exploits but few books have attempted to take the reader on a journey through basic training and active service as air or ground crew and eventual demobilization at the end of the war. That is the aim of James Goultys Eyewitness RAF. Using a vivid selection of testimony from men and women, he offers a direct insight into every aspect of wartime life in the service. Throughout the book the emphasis is on the individuals experience of the RAF the preparations for flying, flying itself, the daily routines of an air base, time on leave, and the issues of discipline, morale and motivation. A particularly graphic section describes, in the words of the men themselves, what it felt like to go on operations and the impact of casualties airmen who were killed, injured or taken prisoner. A fascinating varied inside view of the RAF emerges which is perhaps less heroic and glamorous than the image created by some postwar accounts, but it gives readers today a much more realistic appreciation of the whole gamut of life in the RAF seventy years ago.
Download or read book The Decisive Campaigns of the Desert Air Force 1942 1945 written by Bryn Evans and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2014-04-30 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Absorbing . . . this is an excellent account of air operations and tactics of the air battles in North Africa, the Mediterranean, and Italy.”—Firetrench Compared to the RAF’s Fighter and Bomber Commands, the Desert Air Force (DAF) is far less well known, yet its achievements were spectacular. DAF led the way in North Africa and Italy in pioneering new tactics in close Army-Air Force cooperation on the battlefield; DAF and Allied air forces gave Allied armies in North Africa and Italy a decisive cutting edge. While the Axis forces used the many rivers and mountains of Tunisia and Italy to slow the Allies’ advance, DAF was there to provide that extra mobile firepower—the artillery from the sky. They were the first multinational air force, and the first to introduce air controllers in the front lines of the battlefield. With first-hand accounts by veteran airmen from Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the USA, this book “tells the previously untold story of how the DAF was the most decisive single factor in winning the three battles of El Alamein, and victory in the North Africa and Italy campaigns” (Yorkshire Evening Post). “A most welcome addition to the historiography of the air aspects of the war in North Africa and the wider Mediterranean . . . [it] will have considerable appeal to a wide ranging readership, but especially those interested in the tactical detail and personal experiences of the airmen involved in the various campaigns.”—British Journal for Military History
Download or read book A Forgotten Offensive written by Christina J.M. Goulter and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-01-14 with total page 406 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The "forgotten offensive" of the title is RAF Coastal Command's offensive against German sea-trade between 1940 and 1945. The fortunes of the campaign are followed throughout the war, and its success is then evaluated in terms of the shipping sunk, and the impact on the German economy.
Download or read book Bodies and Ruins written by David F. Crew and published by University of Michigan Press. This book was released on 2017-05-19 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores visual representations of the Allied bombing war on Germany to reveal how Germans remembered and commemorated WWII
Download or read book Bodenplatte written by John Manrho and published by Stackpole Books. This book was released on 2010 with total page 594 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "One of our goals was to describe, as accurately as possible, the events taking place in the morning of January 1st, 1945... We had to refrain from going into the nightfighter attacks of December 31st, 1944, and for reasons of brevity we also had to let go of any other bomber or escort missions of the Allied air forces on January 1st. The contents of the book have been divided into chapters dealing with the individual attacks of the Luftwaffe Geschwader. As a result, the subject matter is dealt with primarily from a Luftwaffe point of view. After all, it was a Luftwaffe operation. However, we have endeavoured to create a balanced view of each attack, showing in just as much detail the Allied perspective. At the end of each chapter, we have drawn our conclusions, carefully evaluating all available Luftwaffe and Allied points of view"--P. ix.
Download or read book Volcano Earthquake written by Susanna Van Rose and published by DK Eyewitness. This book was released on 2014 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From erupting volcanoes to shuddering earthquakes, this book lets your child learn all about these natural disasters, their destructive impact and how they form. Find out how long eruptions last, what tectonic plates are and why these natural phenomena occur.
Download or read book Eyewitness to Science written by John Carey and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 1997 with total page 564 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Plotting the development of modern science from Leonardo da Vinci to Chaos Theory, John Carey chooses accounts by scientists themselves that are both elegant and arrestingly written. The classic science-writers are here: Darwin, Huxley, Fabre. So, too, are the luminaries of the late 20th-century genre of popular science writing.
Download or read book The Good Fight written by G. Campion and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-01-08 with total page 399 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Propaganda during the Battle of Britain contributed to high national morale and optimism, with 'The 'Few's' prowess and valour projected through Air Ministry communiqués and daily claims 'scores'. The media was a willing partner in portraying their heroism, also later consolidated in wartime publications, films and historiography.
Download or read book Explorer written by Rupert Matthews and published by Knopf Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 1991 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Highlights various explorers and their discoveries.
Download or read book Swift to Battle No 72 Fighter Squadron RAF in Action 1937 1942 written by Tom Docherty and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2009-07-19 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This first of three volumes traces the history of 72 Fighter Squadron, one of the premier squadrons in the Royal Air Force. The aircraft flown, operational personnel and missions flown are fully described with firsthand accounts from pilots and both air and ground crew.Having been first established in 1917 the squadron was disbanded in February 1918. It was re-formed in February 1937 from B Flight of 1 Squadron and was equipped with Gloster Gladiators. In 1939 it was re-equipped with Spitfires which were used in air defense and convoy protection sorties following the start of the war. In 1940 the squadron moved to assist in the evacuation of Dunkirk. During The Battle of Britain, 72 spent the early days at RAF Acklington as part of 13 Group before moving south during September to assist the main defense force. The squadron then flew penetration Circus missions over occupied Europe with the intention of causing havoc to the German forces and also to lure German fighters into combat.
Download or read book The RAF s Youngest Bomber Pilot of WW2 written by Graham Waterton and published by Air World. This book was released on 2024-08-30 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Having left his grammar school just before his 16th birthday, Brian Slade falsified his age to pursue his dream of becoming a pilot. Within a few days of his 17th birthday, he was awarded his ‘wings’. It was the start of this teenager’s remarkable wartime career. Soon after being awarded his pilot’s brevet, Brian was posted to his first squadron. Flying the venerable Vickers Wellington, he found himself experimenting with early target marking techniques. It was also there that Brian gained the nickname ‘The Boy Slade’. Though Brian’s journey through the wartime RAF mirrored the experiences of tens of thousands of young men, what was different, if not unique, was the fact before he had turned 18, which was the minimum age to begin aircrew training, Brian had already completed thirty-four operations – more than was needed for a tour. This tally included the three 1,000 bomber raids against Cologne, Essen and Bremen. He was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross for nursing his badly damaged Wellington, which sustained flak and night-fighter damage, home after a raid on Bremen. Undaunted, Brian soon after volunteered for his second tour of operations. It was at this stage that he joined the Lancaster-equipped 83 Squadron in the newly formed 8 Group, becoming an experienced Pathfinder skipper. It was a role in which he marked targets in the Battle of the Ruhr, the bombing of Hamburg (Operation Gomorrah) and the Peenemünde raid. The RAF’s Youngest Bomber Pilot of WW2, told by his nephew, a former officer in the British Army, details all of Brian’s fifty-nine missions, and captures his compelling progress with Bomber Command, alongside the technological advances in aircraft, pathfinder strategy and tactics. Sadly, Brian’s Lancaster was shot down over Berlin in August 1943. The details of its loss remained shrouded in mystery until the puzzle of his aircraft’s demise was eventually solved by tracing the family of the only survivor. The relent-less dangers, not just in operations but also in training, and the continuous loss of life, are drawn into sharp focus. But, on account of his age, Brian’s story is unique. There may have never been, nor will ever be, an RAF pilot of 19 years old with his flying and operational experience. Complemented with a collection of previously unpublished photographs, The RAF’s Youngest Bomber Pilot of WW2 is one of the Second World War’s most amazing tales.
Download or read book The Royal Air Force written by Michael Napier and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2018-02-22 with total page 342 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fully illustrated history of the Royal Air Force while on operations, publishing to mark the centenary of its foundation in World War I. The world's first independent air force, the Royal Air Force celebrates its centenary in 2018. In the 100 years since the end of World War I, the service has been involved in almost continuous operations around the globe, giving the RAF the longest and most wide-ranging history of any air force in the world. But over the years this history has also become entangled with myths. The Royal Air Force: A Centenary of Operations sets the record straight, dispelling these as it uncovers – in both words and photographs – the true exploits and accomplishments of RAF personnel over the last 100 years. From its formation as an independent service in the dying days of World War I, its desperate fight against the Axis air forces in World War II, to its commitments during both the Cold War and modern times, this is the complete story of how the RAF has defended Britain for a century.
Download or read book The Nazi Titanic written by Robert Watson and published by Da Capo Press. This book was released on 2016-04-26 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The little-known story of the most intriguing ship ever to set sail
Download or read book Malta At Bay An Eye Witness Account written by R. Leslie Oliver and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2016-07-26 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this detailed eye-witness account the author describes the realities of the fighting over and around Malta during World War II, up to and including 21 March 1942, when Malta became the subject of more heavy attacks. Written under the incessant bombardments that the small island was subjected to, R. Leslie Oliver records the unfailing courage of the defenders of the George Cross Island.
Download or read book A Yankee Ace in the RAF written by Bogart Rogers and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Bogart Rogers's lively style is ideal for relating the adventures of a young man caught up in the world's first air war. This is a deft and vivid portrait of life in the cockpit". -- Lee Kennett, author of The First Air War, 1914-1918. "Rogers's letters chronicle his maturation in the terrible crucible of the air war". -- David F. Trask, author of The AEF and Coalition Warmaking, 1917-1918.
Download or read book Red Army Faction A Documentary History written by J. Smith and published by PM Press. This book was released on 2013-07-01 with total page 789 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The long-awaited Volume 2 of the first-ever English-language study of the Red Army Faction—West Germany’s most notorious urban guerillas—covers the period immediately following the organization’s near-total decimation in 1977. This work includes the details of the guerilla’s operations, and its communiqués and texts, from 1978 up until the 1984 offensive. This was a period of regrouping and reorientation for the RAF, with its previous focus on freeing its prisoners replaced by an anti-NATO orientation. This was in response to the emergence of a new radical youth movement in the Federal Republic, the Autonomen, and an attempt to renew its ties to the radical left. The possibilities and perils of an armed underground organization relating to the broader movement are examined, and the RAF’s approach is contrasted to the more fluid and flexible practice of the Revolutionary Cells. At the same time, the history of the 2nd of June Movement (2JM), an eclectic guerilla group with its roots in West Berlin, is also evaluated, especially in light of the split that led to some 2JM members officially disbanding the organization and rallying to the RAF. Finally, the RAF’s relationship to the East German Stasi is examined, as is the abortive attempt by West Germany’s liberal intelligentsia to defuse the armed struggle during Gerhard Baum’s tenure as Minister of the Interior. Dancing with Imperialism will be required reading for students of the First World guerilla, those with interest in the history of European protest movements, and all who wish to understand the challenges of revolutionary struggle.