Download or read book Kiwi Spitfire Ace written by Jack Rae and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Forced to crash land his Spitfire in France, Jack Rae was captured and spent 20 months in prisoner of war camps. This is the tale of his attempted escapes, his forced march across Germany and his eventual release by advancing British troops.

Download or read book Polish Spitfire Aces written by Wojtek Matusiak and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2015-07-20 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A unique history of the talented and aggressive Polish Spitfire aces, who were the first to gain combat experience against the Luftwaffe during the fall of Poland, and whose contribution to fighting them was vital. Of all Allied airmen, Polish pilots had had the most experience of fighting the Luftwaffe by the time the war came to Britain. As the Battle of Britain raged, they quickly proved themselves as highly aggressive and skilful interceptors, especially when flying the famous Spitfire. The Polish Air Force eventually became the largest non-Commonwealth Spitfire operator, using some 1,500 Mks I, II, V, IX and XVI to devastating effect. Top scoring USAAF ace of the ETO, Francis "Gabby" Gabreski and a whole host of other Allied and Commonwealth aces flew with Polish squadrons, adding even more to their fighting quality. Conversely, several Polish pilots were attached to other Allied squadrons throughout the war, demonstrating their prowess alongside airmen from a whole host of nations. From an expert on Polish fighter aviation, this is a peerless account of the fiery, talented Polish "Spit" pilots, whose country had been overrun and whose aggression and determination to shoot down Axis aircraft was unmatched.

Download or read book Spitfire Aces of Northwest Europe 1944 45 written by Andrew Thomas and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2014-09-20 with total page 96 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the bitter air fighting over Western Europe during the last year of the war, no fewer than 37 pilots became aces flying Merlin-engined Spitfires, whilst 72 other aces increased their scores flying them. This book traces the achievements of the pilots flying the iconic Spitfire in Northwest Europe, and examines how the steady technological improvements that were made throughout the Spitfire's service life improved its capabilities in the air. Based at airfields throughout southern England, Merlin engine Spitfires provided the bulk of the air cover for the D-Day landings and it was an RCAF Spitfire which claimed the first ever ME 262 jet kill. 36 colour profiles covering a broad spectrum of nationalities, units, pilots, theatres and markings complement thorough research throughout this comprehensive account of these crucial fighter aircraft.

Download or read book Griffon Spitfire Aces written by Andrew Thomas and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2013-02-20 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A unique account of the fastest British fighter plane of World War 2. Modified for low-level operations to counter Luftwaffe attacks on the south coast, the Griffon-powered Spitfire XIV became the best low-level fighter of World War II. Squadrons moved to south-eastern England to counter the V1 flying bomb offensive, where daring pilots pioneered the technique of tipping the V1 over with the aircraft's wingtip to disorientate the bomb. Andrew Thomas also investigates the role played by the modified Spitfire squadrons after the V1 offensive, both in the attack on Germany and after the war in Malaya and Palestine. First-hand stories, photographs and colour profiles complete this account of the aces who flew the most powerful Spitfire variant ever built.

Download or read book Spitfire Aces of North Africa and Italy written by Andrew Thomas and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2013-02-20 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Essential coverage of the key part played by the iconic Spitfire in the desert campaign during 1942-43, and in the destruction of the Luftwaffe in Sicily, Italy and the Balkans from mid-1943 through to VE Day. Although most famous for their role in the Battle of Britain, many Spitfire squadrons also served in the Mediterranean theatre, aiding the Allied victories in North Africa and later in the invasion of Italy. Numerous pilots, both Royal Air Force and South African Spitfire squadrons, made ace during these engagements. This book tells their story.

Download or read book Spitfire Mark I II Aces 1939 41 written by Alfred Price and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2012-11-20 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spitfire Mk Is and IIs served only briefly in the frontline with the RAF, but their pilots were responsible for achieving impressive scores against the Luftwaffe during 1940/41. This volume details the RAF's first aces of World War 2 who helped stem the German tide during Britain's struggle for survival in the bitter years between 1939 and 1941. Early-mark Spitfires were notorious for their light armament, overheating engines and short range, but during the dogfights over Dunkirk and south-east England, then the first tentative sweeps across France, many pilots achieved scores of note.

Download or read book Air Force Magazine written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 636 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Spitfire Aces of the Channel Front 1941 43 written by Andrew Thomas and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2016-06-16 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 80 years after the Spitfire was first developed it remains an icon of military aviation. Though many associate its victory during the Battle of Britain as the high point in the history of the Spitfire, the years following were of equal importance. Having weathered the initial storm, at the start of 1941 Fighter Command took the fight to the Germans with offensive missions over the Channel. This book reveals how first using the Spitfire I and II, and then following the introduction of the Bf 109 the cannon-armed Spitfire V, RAF squadrons embarked on a range of missions which included one of the most important air battles of the war, over Dieppe on 19 August 1942. Alongside British pilots were squadrons manned by exiled Europeans and pilots from the RAAF, RCAF and RNZAF. In just three years over 100 of these pilots were to rack up ace status in the Spitfire.

Download or read book Spitfire The Autobiography written by Jon E. Lewis and published by Robinson. This book was released on 2013-02-07 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A celebration of the machine and the men who took to the skies in defence of Britain. It is also the dramatic illustration of a little understood truth: the Spitfire did more than win the Battle of Britain - it won the war. It was not Stalingrad which turned the corner of the war against Hitler, it was the Spitfire in the summer of 1940 when RAF Fighter Command destroyed the myth of Nazi invincibility. Praise for his previous books: London: The Autobiography: 'Fascinating ... brings the story of London to life' Good Book guide The English Soldier: The Autobiography: 'A triumph' Saul David, author of Victoria's Army 'Harrowing, funny and often unbelievable book.' Daily Express '[A] compelling tommy's eye view of war from Agincourt to Iraq' Daily Telegraph

Download or read book I Wish I Had Your Wings written by Angus Mansfield and published by The History Press. This book was released on 2016-01-07 with total page 199 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In August 1942, British launched Operation Pedestal in an attempt to deliver supplies to the stricken island of Malta, an Allied base which had been under Axis blockade for months. From 9–15 August a convoy of some 50 ships ran the gauntlet of Axis bombers, submarines, E-boats and minefields. Of the original fourteen merchant vessels, only five reached Malta Grand Harbour. In The Spitfire Pilot and the Sea Captain, Angus Mansfield relates the experiences of two men involved in Pedestal, Captain David Macfarlane of MV Melbourne Star and his nephew David Mejor, one of the Spitfire pilots who fought to protect the convoy. Told using their log books, letters and papers, this is the story of one family's contribution to a relief operation that cost over 400 Allied lives, but which has gone down in history as one of the most important British strategic victories of the Second World War.

Download or read book No Ordinary Pilot written by Suzanne Campbell-Jones and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2018-03-09 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The compelling, previously unknown story of the wartime adventures of Bob Allen: pilot, aerial photographer and prisoner of war. After a lifetime in the RAF, Group Captain Bob Allen, finally allowed his children and grandchildren to see his official flying log. It contained the line: 'KILLED WHILST ON OPERATIONS'. He refused to answer any further questions, leaving instead a memoir of his life during World War II. Joining up aged 19, within six months he was in No.1 Squadron flying a Hurricane in a dog fight over the Channel. For almost two years he lived in West Africa, fighting Germany's Vichy French allies, as well as protecting the Southern Atlantic supply routes. Returning home at Christmas 1942, he retrained as a fighter-bomber pilot flying Typhoons and was one of the first over the Normandy beaches on D-Day. On 25 July 1944 Bob was shot down, spending the rest of the war in a POW camp where he was held in solitary confinement, interrogated by the Gestapo and imprisoned in the infamous Stalag Luft 3 and suffered the winter march of 1945 before being liberated by the Russians. Fleshing out Bob's careful third-person memoir with detailed research, his daughter Suzanne Campbell Jones tells the gripping story of a more or less ordinary man, who came home with extraordinary memories which he kept to himself for more than 50 years.

Download or read book Air Battle of Malta written by Anthony Rogers and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2017-04-30 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the Second World War, Malta was besieged for nearly two and a half years, during which time a decisive air war was waged between Britain, Italy and Germany.This is part of that story, from the early days in June 1940, when only a few Gladiator biplanes were available to combat Italian bombers and fighters, to the intervention of the Luftwaffe and the tenuous defense by outclassed Hurricanes, culminating in the desperate months of fighting following the arrival on Malta of the Spitfire in March 1942.What became of the many aircraft destroyed over the Maltese Islands, and what was the fate of their pilots and crews?More than a thousand aircraft were lost. Many crashed into the Mediterranean; others came down on Malta and the neighboring island of Gozo. This book focuses on the latter some 200 British, Italian and German machines, and the fate of their pilots and crews. It reveals where those airplanes fell, thus providing a record that will continue to be valued by future generations.This comprehensive volume documents all known aircraft crash sites in and around the Maltese Islands and provides the circumstances of each loss are related in detail with accounts from both sides.In Germany especially there are many still unaware of the fate of family members who never returned after the Second World War. This book reveals what happened to some who even today are still officially listed as missing.

Download or read book Barney Barnfather written by Angus Mansfield and published by The History Press. This book was released on 2011-09-30 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Riversdale Robert 'Barney' Barnfather was an RAF fighter pilot who flew Spitfires in action almost continuously from November 1941 until the end of the war in Europe. Barney was often in the thick of the fighting and saw action in the offensive sweeps over France, in the desperate air battle for Malta, the fighting in North Africa, the invasions of Sicily and Italy, and finally on the fringes of the Third Reich over Austria in 1945. This type of experienced and brave pilot formed the backbone of Fighter Command and after many operational flying hours, clashes with enemy aircraft and even a mid-air collision, he survived it all relatively unscathed. Thanks to the fascinating personal log book that Barney kept of his experiences, the contributions from his former colleagues and extensive historical research, Angus Mansfield has produced a detailed and enthralling history of a Spitfire pilot's escapades thousands of feet above the battlefields of the Second World War.

Download or read book Fighter Commands Air War 1941 written by Norman Franks and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2016-10-14 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An extensive history of the Royal Air Force’s Circus offensive against Nazi Germany in World War II, by the author of Jasta Boelcke. Following the Battle of Britain, the RAF started taking the air war to the Germans. A small number of bombers, escorted by large numbers of fighters, tried to force the Luftwaffe into battle. Much air combat ensued, but it was not until Germany invaded Russia in June, 1941, that operations were stepped up in an effort to take pressure off Stalin’s Russian Front. Two major German fighter groups, JG26 and JG2, were, however, more than able to contain the RAF’s operations, generally only intercepting when conditions were in their favor. As author Norman Franks describes, over-claiming combat victories by pilots of both sides is amazing, and several of the top aces had inflated scores. Fighter Command, however, lost massively even though they believed they were inflicting equal, if not better, losses on the Luftwaffe. This battle of attrition was virtually a reverse of the 1940 battles over England, and pilots who had to bail out over France, were lost completely. The book covers the 100+ Circus operations and their accompanying fighter sweeps in detail, while also mentioning lesser operations where the RAF were concerned. The tactics employed by both sides are examined and show how each fighter force quickly adapted to changing conditions tempered by experiences gained in air combat.

Download or read book Nine Lives written by Alan C Deere and published by Crecy Publishing Ltd. This book was released on 2022-01-04 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nine Lives is the renowned autobiography of New Zealand's most famous RAF pilot from the Munich crisis until the invasion of France in 1944. Al Deere experienced the drama of the early days of the Battle of Britain while operating with Spitfire squadrons based at Hornchurch and Manston, and his compelling story tells of the successes and frustrations during those critical weeks.

Download or read book I Know Who You Are written by Barbara Rae-Venter and published by Ballantine Books. This book was released on 2024-02-06 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A true-crime masterpiece written by a cold-case-cracking master. Barbara Rae-Venter’s investigative DNA work has revolutionized the way law enforcement hunts serial killers.”—John Douglas, New York Times bestselling co-author of Mindhunter “Barbara Rae-Venter isn’t just the genealogy expert who helped capture the Golden State Killer—she’s an unsung hero who has given murdered women and children their faces and names back, recognizing that their lives mattered.”—Maureen Callahan, New York Times bestselling author of American Predator For twelve years the Golden State Killer terrorized California, stalking victims and killing without remorse. Then he simply disappeared, for the next forty-four years, until an amateur DNA sleuth opened her laptop. In I Know Who You Are, Barbara Rae-Venter reveals how she went from researching her family history as a retiree to hunting for a notorious serial killer—and how she became the nation’s leading authority on investigative genetic genealogy, the most dazzling new crime-fighting weapon to appear in decades. Rae-Venter leads readers on a vivid journey through the many cases she tackled, often starting with little more than a DNA sample. From the first criminal case she ever solved—uncovering the long-lost identity of a child abductee—to the heartbreaking story of the Billboard Boy, whose skeletal remains were discovered along a highway, to the search for the Golden State Killer, Rae-Venter shares haunting, often thrilling accounts of how she helped solve some of America’s most chilling cold cases in the span of just three years. For each investigation, Rae-Venter brings readers inside her unique “grasshopper mind” as she analyzes DNA data and pores through obituaries, marriage records, and old newspaper articles. Readers join in on urgent calls with sheriffs, FBI agents, and district attorneys as she details the struggle to obtain usable crime scene DNA samples, until, finally, a critical piece of the puzzle tumbles into place. I Know Who You Are captures both the exhilaration of the moment of discovery and the sheer depth of emotion that lingers around cold cases, informing Rae-Venter’s careful approach to her work. It is a story of relentless curiosity, of constant invention and reinvention, and of human beings striving to answer the most elemental questions about themselves: What defines identity? Where do we belong? And are we truly who we think we are?

Download or read book Never Been Hit written by Peter R. Fitton and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2012-07-06 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ‘The story and description of life on an operational base ‘bang on’ . . . . . . attack sequences gut wrenching . . . . . . the gamut of death, destruction and loss of close friends made good and descriptive reading . . . . . . a lot more descriptive of action than many others I have read . . . . . . . . . . . . brings back memories both good and not so good’ Peter Henderson, former Bomber Command air crew member The Story of a young Australian, a country boy from New South Wales. He was one of the many thousands who journeyed to Canada to train as a fighter pilot. He was good, very good, finally joining 66 Squadron RAF in Belgium at the end of November 1944. The German High Command was desperate. They needed fuel and more time, believing their Vengeance Weapons could still turn the tide for them. From numerous bases they were firing thousands of V1 flying bombs and V2 rockets against targets in Britain and Holland. In the bitterly cold winter of 1944 came the Battle of the Bulge, a massive surprise attack against the Western Allies. Their lines crumpled but did not break. They fell back, held the line, then slowly moved forward. Winter gave way to Spring. The snows began to thaw and the skies to clear. With the weather improving, came the reckoning. The Russian Armies were advancing relentlessly from the East. In the West, the Allies had amassed a mighty invasion force. It crossed the Rhine and surged forward. The war ravaged and depleted Germany could not stand in the face of this onslaught. It was a country facing total chaos and defeat. Our young Australian was caught up in this frantic drive to victory. Front cover image of Flight Sergeant Les Streete, flying a MkXVI Spitfire in hot pursuit of a V1 flying bomb over the bleak and grey winter landscape of Holland.