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The mountainous interior of Wales, and the many airstrips crowded onto the coast, made it a perilous region for Second World War pilots. This third volume of a series tells the stories of crashes at high altitude in the area south of Brecon, including the Beacons and the Black Mountains, accompanied by maps, photos and personal accounts.

Jim Auton trained as a pilot, was posted to Italy as a bomb-aimer, undertaking dangerous missions in B-24s, and was injured attempting to relieve besieged Warsaw. This memoir recounts these experiences and his later business career, in which his trade links with Communist countries provoked attempts by British secret services to recruit him as a spy, and harassment when he refused.

Since the Second World War, the RAF’s 14 Squadron has been based in Cold War Germany, and flown in the 1991 Gulf War, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. The author, a Tornado pilot with the squadron in the 1980s and 1990s, has drawn on logbooks, diaries, maps and oral testimonies to produce as complete a history as is presently possible.

The first German bombing raids took place on British cities in 1917, and the following spring Britain amalgamated its Army and Navy aircraft into a separate and independent British air force. Richard Overy's succinct account of this turning point in modern warfare describes the political and personal rivalries that shaped the RAF's foundation and its significance in the development of air power in Britain, Germany and the United States.

This bestselling account of the Battle of Britain weaves together the personal experiences of the young pilots of Fighter Command, from the Phoney War of 1939 to the massed German raids of Autumn 1940. The stories reveal fear and bravery as well as lighter moments, including the pilot who was shot down over Dartford and went dancing in London before returning to his squadron, and give an insight into the spirit and character of the celebrated 'few'.

This history of the RAF in wartime explores the experiences of men and women at every level of the organization, and covers leisure time, discipline and sickness as well as combat. With extensive maps and photos, and drawing on first-hand accounts, sound archives and official documents, the author also acknowledges the complexity of Bomber Command’s strategy in the final stages of the war, and the pilots’ moral qualms.

In its four years of existence the Royal Navy Air Service pioneered the techniques and tactics of naval air warfare. Extensively illustrated with historic photographs, maps and plans, this book explains how it developed the first aircraft carriers and torpedo bombers. It also details its operations, the technology that enabled them and the people who carried them out, before its absorption into the RAF in 1918.

While jet engines were developed in wartime, the technology was only perfected afterwards. This collection of examples from the USA, Europe, Soviet Union and China details the period’s key fighters.

From the first attacks in early 1915 to the last, three years later, German Zeppelin airships posed a novel and troubling threat to the British war effort. This history looks into the complex dangers that these ‘weapons of darkness’ imposed, and the innovations and ultimately successful methods employed to counter them.

The distinctive glazed cockpit of the He 111 is much in evidence in this selection of photographs of the bomber in action, from the British raids of 1941 to the Russian and Mediterranean theatres through to the end of the war. Among the images of crews, airfields, in-flight views and wrecks are some rare contemporary colour photographs of aircraft at a French airbase during the Blitz.

Nominally developed as a cargo plane while restrictions on German military development were in place, the He 111 flew its first bombing missions during the Spanish Civil War. Extensively used in the Polish, Norwegian and French campaigns, it can be seen in action, on Luftwaffe airfields and as downed wrecks in this portfolio of images covering the early part of the war.

First flown in 1936, the Spitfire became a symbol of Britain’s defiance of Nazi Germany in the summer of 1940. This book celebrates the grace and power of this great British aircraft, and the people who developed and flew it.

After an introduction comparing the performance of these three classic planes, facsimiles of the original Pilot’s Notes for the Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane describe their fuel, oil and coolant systems, controls, operation and handling. The results of Air Ministry tests provide similar data for captured Messerschmitt Bf 109s. The material is illustrated by historic photographs of the aircraft and their crews, diagrams and cutaway views.

Max Hastings pays tribute to the heroism of the airmen and the inventiveness of Barnes Wallis in this new analysis of the Dambusters raid (Operation Chastise), but he also reveals failures in the mission that severely restricted its ultimate effectiveness. He describes the development of the bouncing bomb and the bombing raid itself as well as discussing the impact of the attack, both in the immediate aftermath and in the months following, as the Germans swiftly repaired the damage.

From June 1948 to May 1949 supplies were flown in to the isolated West Berlin, which the Soviets had cut off access to by road. This photographic document of the operation considers the different aspects of the crisis, including the building of runways, the plight of the beleaguered Berliners, the airlift pilots and their aircraft.

Using original combat reports and first-person accounts, this book tells the stories of the young pilots who flew Spitfires and Hurricanes against the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain, and against the Italian air force flying out of Malta. Illustrated with vintage photographs, it includes the exploits of Douglas Bader, Peter Townsend, ‘Johnnie’ Johnson and ‘Sandy’ Lane, alongside those of their adversaries such as Oberleutnant Ulrich Steinhilper.

This collection of original documents records First World War air missions involving the Royal Naval Air Service (which would be merged with the RFC to form the RAF in 1918). Accompanied by numerous illustrations and reproductions of official paperwork, charts and flying maps, it provides insight into seaplane recovery and experiments with hydrovanes and flotation gear.

This concise history explores how the idea of chivalric aces was established in the First World War; following the development of the Spitfire and Hurricane, pilots continued to be feted – now as ‘the Few’ who would save Britain from invasion. With profiles of leading figures and key planes, this narrative also covers later conflicts including the Arab-Israeli wars and the Falklands War, giving an overview of the changing role of fighter pilots.

During the Second World War, RAF personnel made more than 1,200 radio broadcasts describing first-hand their operational and combat experiences above Europe and the Atlantic. Originally published in two wartime books, this volume brings together over 50 transcripts of their revealing recordings.

Wing Commander Paddy Finucane was at the height of his powers when, in July 1942, his Spitfire was hit by German fire and ditched in the English Channel. Drawing on family archives, this book tells how the Dublin-born accountant joined the RAF in 1938 and rose swiftly through the ranks, destroying 32 enemy aircraft before his own disappearance.

Drawing on letters, diaries and interviews, Kevin Wilson recreates the experiences of the men of the US 8th Air Force, and the Women’s Army who served alongside them, from their arrival in Britain in February 1944 to victory in May 1945. Their own words offer vivid glimpses of the camaraderie, relations with their British hosts, and the terror of daytime raids over Berlin.

On 31 January 1916, nine German Zeppelins bombed several major towns in the Midlands, killing 70 people in the worst air raid of the First World War. Using local newspapers, coroner’s reports and GCHQ documents, this history records the routes taken by each airship and where its bombs fell, and names the officers, crew members and those who died.

Hugh White flew reconnaissance patrols aged just 18, in 1916, and within two years was Flight Commander of 29 Squadron, flying the SE5a biplane. This account of his aviation career begins with his own recollections of the First World War and continues with his son’s evaluation of his later posts: commanding fighter squadrons in India and Britain and then training technical staff before retiring as Air Vice Marshal.

Erich Sommer flew for the Luftwaffe as both navigator and pilot during the Second World War, from an early posting in Morocco to missions over Britain, the Russian front and Italy. His career culminated in the first reconnaissance sortie in a jet (the Arado AR234). His memoir also reflects on his childhood and early career in the brewing industry in the 1930s and includes insights into life and attitudes in pre-war Germany.

Tom Cooper details the Russian involvement in the Syria conflict, outlining its military forces’ intentions and capabilities and explaining the complex geopolitical situation. The book includes action photos of the most significant aircraft that were deployed.

Since the MiG-23 was introduced by the Soviets in the 1970s, it has been exported to five major Arab countries. Illustrated with rare images, this history shows the pivotal role it has played in subsequent conflicts in the region.

This overview of the Red Army’s air forces in the opening days of the German invasion of 1941 presents a survey of the technical specifications, personnel, key locations and strategic plans of the commanders. A detailed introduction also describes the preparations and the territorial infringements that preceded Operation Barbarossa. Drawing on German and Soviet archives, the book includes maps and over 300 photographs, many of them previously unseen.

The fighter aces took the glory but reconnaissance flyers had perhaps the more significant role during the First World War, sighting for the artillery, following troop movements, patrolling British coastal waters for U-boats and gathering data for constantly updated maps. Drawing on the experiences of British, American and German airmen, Streckfuss examines the work of balloonists, reconnaissance pilots and aerial photographers over the Western Front and UK seas.

To help Greece respond to Italian attacks from October 1940, the RAF sent three squadrons of Bristol Blenheims (30, 84 and 211 Squadron) to reinforce the Greek Air Force’s own complement of 12 Mark IV Blenheims. Drawing on first-hand accounts, this study describes the efforts of British and Greek airmen against superior forces (particularly after Germany invaded) up to the fall of Crete in May 1941.

For the bombers of the RAF and USAF, supporting the invasion on D-Day was the culmination of a planned series of strategic raids in preparation for the landings. Focusing on the service of eight crews, and drawing on first-hand accounts, this analysis of the campaign explains the wider strategy and describes the personal experiences of the airmen, from raids on German infrastructure in spring 1944 to supporting land forces several months after D-Day.

From the design and construction of the first SE5s in 1916 to the maintenance of surviving examples today, this Owners’ Workshop Manual tells the story of the First World War ‘mount of aces’ designed by Henry Follard and built at the Royal Aircraft Factory at Farnborough. The manual is illustrated with nearly 300 design drawings and archive and new photographs.

Squadron Leader Reginald Peacock was the only Blenheim light bomber pilot of the war to become a fighter ace, forming a team with his navigator to overcome superior German aircraft in combat. This collection of stories from six Battle of Britain pilots, whose contributions to the RAF’s effort were previously little known, draws on personal accounts as well as squadron Operational Record Books and combat reports.

The most numerous and successful Luftwaffe fighter of the Second World War, the Messerschmitt Bf 109 was a formidable opponent for the RAF’s Spitfires and Hurricanes during the Battle of Britain. This photographic collection assembles over 150 archive images of the plane in active service in 1939 and 1940, from pilots and crew with their machines at base to the wreckage of downed aircraft.

Had the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 escalated to nuclear strikes, American missiles would have been launched from sites in England and those locations were therefore targets themselves. Drawing on interviews with the RAF personnel responsible for holding the Thor ballistic missiles in a state of constant readiness, this analysis explores the most dangerous period of the Cold War from the perspective of Britain as the front line.

Beginning with the end of the Vietnam War this volume illustrates how fighter-bombers and tactics have developed up to the present day, examining conflicts including the Falklands War, the Gulf Wars and the recent campaigns against Islamic State.

The husband of Daphne du Maurier, Frederick ‘Boy’ Browning was the founding commander of the British Airborne forces in the Second World War. This biography charts a colourful life in which he also achieved distinction in the First World War and competed in the Olympics .

Geoffrey De Havilland not only designed the aerodynamics of his first biplane in 1909 but also the engine that propelled it. Later models, such as the Gipsy Moth, were among the most successful of the interwar period, and his Comet jet airliner of 1952 showed the way ahead for civil aviation. This directory profiles every one of his company's products, including unrealized design concepts and aircraft produced by the Canadian and Australian subsidiaries.

Although successful in its primary objectives, the ingenious ‘Dambusters’ bombing raid of May 1943 failed to halt production in the Ruhr factories but it did devastate infrastructure and inundate towns and villages over a wide area. Using eyewitness accounts and archive photographs, this analysis examines the Allied operation itself, looks at the resulting destruction and aftermath from the German perspective, and describes the rapid rebuilding programme.

The primary role of American B-52 bombers in the earlier years covered by this study was to carry the US nuclear threat. Other jet operations of the 1950s and 1960s saw MiGs, Mirages and F-4 Phantoms in action in conflicts including the Six Day War and Vietnam.

Trained as a jet pilot in the late 1950s when Britain was still a leading air power, Richard Johns achieved the top rank in the RAF in 1997, by which time Britain's military capacity had been much reduced. His autobiography examines his key operations as commander, including the First Gulf War and Balkan conflict in the 1990s, as well as reflecting on the evolution of the RAF and the other services during his career.

This is the biography of one of the leading Spitfire aces of the war. Australian by birth, Pat Hughes joined the RAF in 1937 and led 234 Squadron during the Battle of Britain until he was killed in action in September 1940.

Aviation technology advanced rapidly as Germany prepared for war and research continued throughout the conflict despite the chronic lack of fuel and raw materials by 1945. This analysis of the myriad projects undertaken by manufacturers such as Junkers, Messerschmitt, Dornier and Heinkel lists over 200 experimental aircraft from the period, including jet fighters, supersonic planes and helicopters, and includes over 300 contemporary photographs from the test sites of Nazi Germany.

By the last months of the war, the Allies had achieved air superiority, with American squadrons now operational and significantly greater numbers of aircraft available. Nevertheless, the effective German fighters inflicted the highest casualties of the air war during the fighting of September 1918.

A training accident in a Fleet Air Arm Tiger Moth in 1939 resulted in Colin Hodgkinson losing both his legs but, with Douglas Bader as a role model, he was determined to resume his duties as a pilot. This memoir, first published in 1957, recounts his wartime experiences, including rehabilitation under the surgeon Archibald McIndoe, active service in Spitfires and time spent in a PoW camp after crash-landing in France.

RAF Sutton Bridge was the site of an important training centre in the Second World War, turning out nearly 500 Hurricane fighter pilots, many of whom flew in the Battle of Britain. This review of the station's activities reveals the genesis and development of the highly effective training programme and examines the Central Gunnery School, which was established in 1942 to instruct air gunners from Bomber Command, as well as fighter pilots.

Over 700 Jet Provost and Strikemaster aircraft were produced in Britain between 1954 and 1983, the former responsible for training generations of RAF jet pilots, the latter an armed version of the Provost which saw action during the Dhofar War in Oman. This well-illustrated history of both aircraft charts their evolution, from initial production in 1954 to the final sales of three aircraft to Ecuador in 1988. A comprehensive appendix lists the complete production and technical histories of both jets.

This volume shows Britain getting ready for battle and illustrates some of women’s wartime roles, including aircraft assembly, WAAF radio technicians and pilots of the Air Transport Auxiliary.

By 1918, the Red Baron was a national hero and his death in April of that year was a significant loss for the German Air Force and the nation; the event has been the subject of conflicting accounts and theories ever since. This biography is led by a collection of archive photographs of Richthofen during the war years, as well as significant people, places and aircraft.

The Battle of Britain (1940) was the first military campaign to be fought entirely in the air and was a turning point in the Second World War. This book lists all 544 British and Commonwealth pilots who gave their lives over the skies of southern England. The entries are listed in chronological order and each includes a short biography, the type of plane, name of squadron, previous missions and the manner of death.

To defend the home counties from the terrifying V2 rocket attacks, formations of Mark XVI Spitfires carrying 250 lb and 500 lb bombs divebombed launch sites in Holland between 1944 and 1945. Drawing on records declassified in 2004, this updated account of Whitehall’s covert operation not only covers the daring raids of five different Spitfire squadrons, but also the intelligence-gathering activities in Europe of special commando units, including Ian Fleming’s 30 Assault Unit.

With its formation rooted in the development of German 'X-system' radio navigation, KG 100 was an elite Luftwaffe pathfinding and special operations bomber unit during the Second World War, flying Dornier 217s, Heinkel 111s and Heinkel 177s. From missions in Norway and Britain to the Eastern Front and North Africa, this book captures the operations of KG 100 throughout the war in a series of photographs and extended captions.

The Luftwaffe favoured light bombers in support of ground forces during the blitzkrieg advances of 1939 and 1940 but turned to heavy bombers for the mass attacks on England in 1940 and 1941. Including Heinkel 111s, Junkers 88s, Messerschmitt 410s and Dornier 217s, this book presents 100 photographs of German bombers and their crews from the preparations for Operation Sea Lion in 1940 to the V1 and V2 rocket attacks.

This is the biography of one of the leading Spitfire aces of the war. Australian by birth, Pat Hughes joined the RAF in 1937 and led 234 Squadron during the Battle of Britain until he was killed in action in September 1940.

In 2012 the Imperial War Museums acquired a remarkable collection of 15,000 photographs showing American servicemen who were stationed at air bases in Britain during the Second World War. This selection presents more than 70 of the images illustrating the GIs’ work and recreations, both at military sites and among local communities. The accompanying text gives brief biographies of those pictured and celebrates the resilience and bravery with which pilots flew deep into enemy territory.

The Battle of Britain may have been won by 'the Few' but resistance to German aerial attack in the early part of the Second World War also relied on a well-organized network of support staff. Based on interviews with members of this formidable team, the book pays tribute to the men and women who enabled the Spitfires and Hurricanes to prevail, from radar engineers and coastal spotters to Wrens in the control rooms and pilots in the air.

The British Airborne forces were created during the Second World War and took part in crucial campaigns in Europe, the Mediterranean, North Africa and the Middle East between 1939 and 1948. This definitive record of the honours achieved by its personnel during that period is an updated edition of the reference work, now including the battalion of each recipient, brief narratives of the events rewarded and an index of recipients.

Before Pearl Harbor and the entry of the United States into the Second World War, American pilots seeking adventure, or with strong political motivations, volunteered for the RAF to fight the Germans. From cultural conflicts with their English hosts to action over France, particularly the Dieppe raid of August 1942, this book charts the experiences of the 270 airmen who flew in the three RAF 'Eagle' squadrons of American volunteers before being reassigned to the USAAF by late 1942.

In this 1928 account of a pilot in the First World War, the letters and diaries of Flying Officer Michael John Enderby and the comments of Group Captain Merrivale are ostensibly fiction. They are in fact closely based on the experiences of the author and offer an insight into the workings of the Royal Flying Corps, with descriptions of real combat events and observations on the development of aviation technology and the tactics of aerial combat during the war.

Above the trenches of the First World War, the battle in the air between the first primitive aircraft and the intrepid aviators who flew them was played out like a medieval knightly tournament. This deadly contest is brought to life in the memoir of Ernst Udet (1896–1941), the German ace whose reputation was second only to that of the Red Baron. Richard Overy introduces this new edition of this aviation classic.

At the beginning of the Second World War, Hitler ordered the Luftwaffe to take aerial photographs of Britain in preparation for an invasion. In 1945 British Intelligence discovered 16 tons of pictures in Bavaria, which were sent to Britain and classified top secret; but other Luftwaffe photographs were found and kept by ordinary servicemen. Here, Nigel Clarke presents approximately 200 such photographs, many with bomb runs marked, along with wartime images of the corresponding damage on the ground. Slightly off-mint.

The military potential of aviation was first exploited in the First World War, when London and other major cities were attacked by Zeppelins and, from 1917, Gotha and Staaken 'Giant' biplanes. This book examines the offensive and defensive strategies, the impact of each of the attacks and their legacy in defence planning. This is an updated, single volume version of London 1914–17: The Zeppelin Menace (2008) and London 1917–18: The Bomber Blitz (2010).

Given Britain's scientific pre-eminence at the beginning of the 20th century, one might have expected that the significant early breakthroughs in flight would have come from this country, rather than America or France. This book examines British experimentation in the 19th century, explains how the initiative was lost to the Wright Brothers and others, and describes how independent enthusiasts laid the foundations of an aeronautical industry before the First World War, despite little interest from the military establishment.

Sir Michael Beetham joined the RAF as a pilot in 1941 and stayed on after the war, serving as a commanding officer at a number of critical moments, from the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 and Aden in 1964 to the Falklands War, and was appointed Marshal of the RAF in 1982. This biography traces his long, distinguished and very active career, from flying Lancasters in the Second World War to sending Vulcan bombers to the Falklands.

208 Squadron, based at RAF Valley in Anglesey, was disbanded during its 100th year of operations in 2016. In this history marking the centenary, Air Commodore Graham Pitchfork, who formerly commanded the squadron, describes how it evolved, from its formation as Naval 8 on the Western Front during the First World War, through its activities in the Second World War and Gulf War to its modern-day role as an advanced flying training squadron.

The RAF's resources in facing the Luftwaffe in 1940 may have been meagre, but 'the few' left an abundance of first-hand testimony in the form of combat reports, letters, diaries, contemporary interviews and memoirs written in the immediate aftermath of the battle or shortly after the war. This book compiles a selection of accounts from Fighter Command pilots covering the period from the Battle of France in May 1940 to the end of the year.

Hugh Trenchard (1872–1956) had an unpromising start in life, failing the Army and Navy entrance exams, but found his métier when he joined the fledgling Royal Flying Corps in 1912. Nicknamed 'Boom' for his stentorian voice, he was obstinate and tactless, yet inspired unflagging loyalty in his men. As this fascinating biography makes clear, it was these very qualities that enabled him to create the Royal Air Force in the face of entrenched opposition from the older services.

The period from the declaration of war in September 1939 to the beginning of the Battle of France in May 1940 is usually known as the 'Phoney War' or even the 'Bore War'. RAF Bomber Command, however, was far from inactive, losing 68 aircraft and crews in the four months of 1939 alone. This book describes the struggles of Bomber Command to become an effective offensive force in 1939 and 1940, flying missions in Scandinavia, France, Belgium and Germany.

An accomplished author and war correspondent during the Second World War, Norman Macmillan was a fighter pilot during the First World War and turned his literary skills to recording his experiences in this classic book, first published in 1929. Joining the Royal Flying Corps in 1916, Macmillan's active service included flying Nieuports, Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutters and Camels in France and Italy, claiming nine victories before an injury forced him to take up a training post.

As the First World War progressed and the capabilities of combat aircraft improved, new units were formed to keep pace with the German aerial threat. No.3 (Naval) Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps was among them and this classic memoir, first published in 1977, is pilot 'Tich' Rochford's account of his time with the unit flying Sopwith Camels and Pups on the Western Front from January 1917 through to the end of the war.

Between 1939 and 1945, hundreds of European cities, towns and villages were devastated by aerial bombing; around 600,000 Europeans were killed and more than a million injured. In this first full narrative history of the air war, Overy deals with the whole of Europe, Scandinavia and the USSR; he considers bombing as part of broader strategies; and he looks at the campaigns from two perspectives: what they were meant to achieve and the impact they had in reality on bombed populations.

A leading First World War ace, Billy Bishop's preference for 'lone wolf' attacks was daring and dangerous but also left him open to suspicion over the accuracy of his victory claims. With over 70 illustrations and archive photographs, this forensic examination of his flying career cross-references his combat reports with other accounts by both friend and foe and his own private correspondence (which relate some death-defying experiences) to build up a complete picture of the Canadian-born pilot's aerial exploits.

Born in Berlin to Polish-American parents, Andrew Wiseman was forced to flee from the Nazis twice, first to Poland and then to England. Having enlisted in the RAF, he was shot down over France, captured, and in 1945 suffered the 'long march' as the Germans forced prisoners hundreds of miles westward to evade the advancing Russians. This biography traces a remarkable life through these extraordinary experiences and into post-war London, where Wiseman became a television producer for the BBC.

When Gerald Constable Maxwell was flying as a fighter pilot in WWI his brother Michael was born – both went on to have distinguished flying careers in WWII. This is the story of

Based on the records of the Air Ministry, along with eyewitness accounts of military and naval officers, this is the first volume of Professor Raleigh's great history of the British air forces' contribution to the First World War. Written in 1922, it remains one of the most important accounts of early aerial warfare and the formation of the Royal Flying Corps and the Naval Air Service. Tragically, Raleigh did not live to write volume two. Eyewitnesses from the Great War series.