From Spitfires To Vampires And Beyond

Author : Owen Hardy
Publisher : Grub Street Publishing
Page : 273 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 2023-07-25
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781911714545

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From Spitfires To Vampires and Beyond by Owen Hardy Pdf

World War Two Spitfire pilot Owen Hardy was probably the last New Zealand ace to tell his story. He left home at 18 bent on joining the RAF and by 1942, aged only 20, he was at Biggin Hill with 72 Squadron under Brian Kingcome. D-Day found him flying over the Normandy beaches with 485 (New Zealand) Squadron. That he survived the war unharmed owed as much to luck as it did to his ability as a fighter pilot. Unable to settle in civilian life afterwards in New Zealand, he returned to the RAF for the second phase of a remarkable career. Converting to jets, Hardy went on to command 71 Squadron, leading a Vampire aerobatic team with considerable success across Europe – dodging MiGs at the same time! But adapting to peacetime service wasn’t easy. Previously stimulated by the wartime environment and still passionate about flying, he was less enamored with staff jobs; and this despite working on the introduction of a new, state-of-the-art missile system, Bloodhound. Then a fateful decision, to turn down command of a Javelin squadron and follow his mentor, led finally to disillusionment. Hardy pulls no punches in this forthright and refreshingly honest autobiography. In retelling his eye-opening story, editor Black Robertson shines a light on what it was like not just to fly in combat, but also on the changing face of a post-war RAF which arguably undervalued some of its heroes. From the heat of North Africa to the uncertainties of the Cold War, it’s a unique and enthralling tale.

Author : Black' Robertson
Publisher : Air World
Page : 440 pages
File Size : 45,5 Mb
Release : 2020-08-31
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781526784872

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Fighters in the Blood by Black' Robertson Pdf

A retired RAF air marshal looks back on his career and the career of his World War II pilot father in this military memoir. As this fascinating memoir unfolds, moving backwards and forwards through time, two parallel stories emerge: one of a Second World War Spitfire ace whose flying career comes to a premature end when he’s shot down and loses an eye, the other of his progeny, a second-generation fighter pilot who eventually reaches the rank of air marshal. The narrative is unique in its use of two separate and distinct voices. The author’s own reminiscences are interwoven with those his father recorded more than thirty years ago, embellished by extracts from some 300 of his wartime letters. Intensely personal and revealing, controversial too at times, this account is above all about people, not least those with whom the author flew while serving with the USAF—a tour marked by tragedy; that said, they proved altogether more friendly than the P-38 pilots who twice attacked his father in North Africa! A daughter with dual citizenship subsequently helped him sustain his links with the US, both while serving and afterwards in business. The irony is that the son spent a lifetime training for the ultimate examination—one that, despite strictly limited preparation, his father passed with flying colors. To “Black” Robertson’s eternal regret he was never able to put his own training to the test. His father, “Robbie,” was awarded the DFC and retired as a flight lieutenant after five years or so. He himself served for nearly thirty-six years, earned a Queen’s Commendation, an OBE and CBE and served as an ADC to HM The Queen. But after reaching almost the top of the RAF tree, in one important sense he retired unfulfilled; his mettle was never tested under fire. Anyone interested to know more about flying, about the RAF, about leadership, about character even, need look no further than this beautifully crafted, immensely readable account. Praise for Fighters in the Blood “Offers an insightful look into the professional development of an RAF airman from Cranwell cadet to Air Marshal, the evolution of the Royal Air Force itself from the early jet era of Hunters through the demanding days of NATO versus the Warsaw Pack and the defence of British interests (e.g. the Falklands) with the Phantom, and then on into the post-Cold War world where the need to strengthen RAF airpower is challenged by drawdowns, budgetary stringencies, and often misguided Mandarins driving questionable defence policy. I was struck by how beautifully the author integrated his father into the story . . . it is at once very moving and very effective, and, once again, works to integrate the RAF "then" with the RAF of the 1960s-1990s. The photographs are wonderful. This book is a real winner.”” —Dr. Richard P. Hallion, Aerospace Historian

Author : Ron Lloyd
Publisher : Air World
Page : 224 pages
File Size : 50,9 Mb
Release : 2020-09-30
Category : History
ISBN : 9781526759092

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Fast Jets to Spitfires by Ron Lloyd Pdf

How often have you glanced skywards at the sound of a passing aircraft and wondered what it would be like to fly one of those gleaming metal machines? Or admired the skill and the daring of the fighter pilot swooping down upon his enemy in the awe-inspiring, unrivalled elegance of a Spitfire? Ron Lloyd has had the experience of flying the majestic propeller-driven aircraft of the Second World War as well as the roaring, sound-barrier-breaking jets of the Cold War – and in this exciting book, he places the reader in the cockpit, describing what it really feels like to be sitting at the controls of a fighter aircraft. Ron Lloyd joined the RAF after the Second World War. During his early service he was selected to be one of the pilots to fly the wartime aircraft in the famous feature film The Battle of Britain, being fortunate to fly a Spitfire and even a Messerschmitt Bf 109 during the six weeks of filming. His role with the RAF, on the other hand, saw him on the front line in the Cold War, piloting de Havilland Vampires, Hawker Hunters, Gloster Javelins, Lightnings and Phantoms. He also served on exchange in the USA where he flew Convair F-102s, Convair F-106s and Lockheed T-33s. Ron wanted to share the thrills and the dangers of flying such aircraft with those who have not had such privileges – as well as relive such moments with those who have. Packed with unique photographs of the golden age of British military aviation, _Fast Jets to Spitfires_ brings the recent past back to life and allows readers to experience, through Ron Lloyd’s graphic accounts, the pure joy of being airborne, alone and in control of the great flying machines that have helped forge this nation’s history.

Author : Christopher Shores,Giovanni Massimello,Russell Guest,Frank Olynyk,Winfried Bock
Publisher : Grub Street Publishing
Page : 736 pages
File Size : 54,5 Mb
Release : 2014-07-19
Category : History
ISBN : 9781910690970

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A History of the Mediterranean Air War, 1940–1945. Volume 2 by Christopher Shores,Giovanni Massimello,Russell Guest,Frank Olynyk,Winfried Bock Pdf

This second volume in the seminal series on aerial combat, pilots, and tactics in Libya and Egypt in the middle of World War II. In volume two of this series, historian Christopher Shores begins by exploring the 8th Army’s movements after Operation Crusader when they were forced back to the Gazala area in northeastern Libya, as well as their defeat in June, 1942, the loss of Tobruk, and the efforts of Allied air forces to protect their retreating troops. Shores continues with the heavy fighting that followed in the El Alamein region. This features the Western Desert Air Force and the arrival of the first Spitfires. The buildup of both army and air forces and the addition of new commanders on the ground aided the defeat of Rommel’s Deutsche Afrika Korps at Alam el Halfa, after which came the Second Battle of El Alamein. With the arrival of the United States Army Air Force, the Allied air forces gained dominance over the Axis. Shores recounts the lengthy pursuit of the Italo-German forces right across Libya, including the capture of Tripoli and the breakthrough into Southern Tunisia. This allowed a linkup with other Allied forces in Tunisia (whose story appears in Volume 3). Included with the action are stories of some of the great fighter aces of the Desert campaign such as Jochen Marseille and Otto Schulz of the Luftwaffe, Franco Bordoni-Bisleri of the Regia Aeronautica and Neville Duke, Billy Drake, and “Eddie” Edwards of the Commonwealth air forces. Finally, Shores touches on the Allied and Axis night bombing offensives and the activities of the squadrons cooperating with the naval forces in the Mediterranean.

Author : Alec Brew
Publisher : Crowood Press (UK)
Page : 228 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2003-12-18
Category : History
ISBN : STANFORD:36105114640985

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Vampires and Fleas by Alec Brew Pdf

In this book Alec Brew tells the whole story of the British aircraft preservation movement. From early days at Old Warden and the Science Museum, through the establishment of the famous, but now long-past, Skyframe and Strathallan collections.

Author : Anthony J. Moor
Publisher : Air World
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 40,5 Mb
Release : 2019-12-19
Category : History
ISBN : 1526753235

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RAF West Malling: The Raf's First Night Fighter Airfield - WWII to the Cold War by Anthony J. Moor Pdf

This is the story of West Malling airfield, from its earliest days through its role in the Second World War - when several dramatic and tragic events occurred - and beyond into the Cold War. Opened as a private landing ground after the First World War, the airfield at West Malling, then known as Kings Hill, became home to the Maidstone School of Flying in 1930. It was then renamed West Malling Airfield, and, in 1932, Maidstone Airport. The airfield's RAF role came to the fore in June 1940, by when the station had been fitted with a concrete runway. The first aircraft arrived on 8 June 1940. As the UK's first designated night fighter base, over the years that followed RAF West Malling was home to many famous pilots, men such as John Cunningham, Peter Townsend, Bob Braham and even Guy Gibson, later of Dambusters fame. During the summer of 1944, Mosquitoes, Spitfires and Mustang Mk.3s successfully destroyed many V-1s, as well as played their part in the D-Day landings. Following the war, units such as Nos. 25 and 85 squadrons were equipped with Meteor NF fighters and de Havilland Vampires and Venoms, continuing West Malling's strategic night fighter role into the Cold War. No.500 (Kent's Own) Squadron also adopted RAF West Malling as its home in this period. A US Navy Facility Flight was also based at the airfield in the 1960s. After closure as an operational air station in 1969, West Malling re-acquired its civilian guise, hosting a Gliding School, Short Brothers and several major Great Warbirds Air Displays during the 1970s and 1980s, until eventually closing completely as an airfield, for re-development. Anthony J. Moor's exhaustively researched and highly-illustrated book is the first to tell the full story of the part West Malling played in the defence of the United Kingdom, and how it served the RAF for twenty-eight action-packed years.

Author : Simon Webb
Publisher : Pen and Sword History
Page : 234 pages
File Size : 47,8 Mb
Release : 2022-02-03
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9781399000086

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The Origins of Wizards, Witches and Fairies by Simon Webb Pdf

“Webb takes what we know about these magical beings via pop culture and explores their origins and how their respective images have changed over time.” —The Portalist This book tells the fascinating story of the origin of our ideas about wizards, witches, and fairies. We all have a clear mental image of the pointed hats worn by such individuals, which are based upon actual headgear dating back 3,000 years to the Bronze Age. Carefully sifting through old legends, archaeological evidence, and modern research in genetics, Simon Webb shows us how our notions about fairies and elves, together with human workers of magic, have evolved over the centuries. This exploration of folklore, backed by the latest scientific findings, will present readers with the image of a lost world; the one used as the archetype for fantasy adventures from The Lord of the Rings to Game of Thrones. In the process, the real nature of wizards will be revealed, and their connection with the earliest European cultures thoroughly documented. After reading this book, nobody will ever be able to view Gandalf the wizard in the same light and even old fairy tales such as “Beauty and the Beast” will take on a richer and deeper meaning. In short, our perception of wizards, witches and fairies will be altered forever.

Author : Anonim
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 120 pages
File Size : 42,9 Mb
Release : 1951
Category : Military art and science
ISBN : UIUC:30112105093675

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Quarterly Review of Military Literature by Anonim Pdf

Author : Anonim
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 532 pages
File Size : 41,6 Mb
Release : 1951-07
Category : Military art and science
ISBN : UOM:39015005540813

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Review of Current Military Literature by Anonim Pdf

Author : Anonim
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 1476 pages
File Size : 42,9 Mb
Release : 1951
Category : Military art and science
ISBN : UCAL:B2861876

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Military Review by Anonim Pdf

Author : Christine Feehan
Publisher : Penguin
Page : 396 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2006
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 0425211673

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Dark Celebration by Christine Feehan Pdf

Despite the dangers to his lifemate Raven and their daughter Savannah, Mikhail Dubrinsky, Prince of the Carpathians, risks everything to protect his people from the extinction of their species, as Carpathians gather from around the world to take on their adversaries in an ultimate showdown.

Author : Jackie Moggridge
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 333 pages
File Size : 47,5 Mb
Release : 2014-07-03
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781781859889

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Spitfire Girl by Jackie Moggridge Pdf

The inspiring memoir of the remarkable Jackie Moggridge: ATA girl, Spitfire expert and pioneer. 'We had returned to a different world. We had taken off in peace at nine-thirty and landed in war at noon.' Jackie Moggridge was just nineteen when World War Two broke out. Determined to do her bit, she joined the Air Transport Auxiliary. Ferrying aircraft from factory to frontline was dangerous work, but there was also fun, friendship and even love in the air. At last the world was opening up to women... or at least it seemed to be. From her first flight at fifteen to smuggling Spitfires into Burma, Jackie describes the trials and tribulations, successes and frustrations of her life in the sky. What Amazon readers are saying about Spitfire Girl: 'There is something for everyone in this remarkable autobiography, adventure, romance, flight, struggle, victory. Must read!' 5* 'An amazing book by an inspirational woman' 5* 'Drama, aircraft, relationships... it's all there in this great page-turner!' 5* 'I am left with real admiration for Jackie Moggridge, truly an amazing lady' 5* 'Brilliant book. What an amazing women she was' 5*.

Author : S. Steinberg
Publisher : Springer
Page : 1595 pages
File Size : 41,7 Mb
Release : 2016-12-27
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780230270817

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The Statesman's Year-Book by S. Steinberg Pdf

The classic reference work that provides annually updated information on the countries of the world.

Author : Anonim
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 796 pages
File Size : 40,9 Mb
Release : 1947
Category : Airplanes
ISBN : UOM:39015080126561

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The Aeroplane by Anonim Pdf

Author : Anonim
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 48 pages
File Size : 55,7 Mb
Release : 1982
Category : Asia
ISBN : UOM:39015081727334

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Vikrant by Anonim Pdf