G. A. 'Black' Robertson - Böcker
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3 produkter
3 produkter
249 kr
Skickas inom 7-10 vardagar
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, though, 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 enamoured 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.
Flying through the Ranks
The Extraordinary Experiences of Airmen to Air Marshals from the Cold War to the Gulf
Inbunden, Engelska, 2024
249 kr
Skickas inom 7-10 vardagar
The inspiration for this brilliant anthology is the ‘I Learnt About Flying from That’ articles that first appeared in the RAF Flight Safety magazine Air Clues in the 1940s and continues to feature in the magazine to this day.Flying Through the Ranks gets a five-star start with an extraordinary tale from a Marshal of the Royal Air Force and continues in the same vein. Men and women of every rank – pilots, navigators, engineers, an RAF Regiment officer and airmen too – reveal similar intriguing experiences in both war and peace. Exciting, amusing, poignant too at times, their stories say as much about the development of the RAF and the making of the Cold War warrior as they do about the individuals themselves.It’s impossible not to be moved by these rousing stories of courage and leadership, risk-taking and pressure, invention and adventure. Starkly exposing human fallibility at times, they highlight the skill and improvisation central to the flying business. Other common themes across some uncommon accounts are the sheer exhilaration of flying, the role that luck plays in everyone’s life and the unspoken bond of respect that binds aviation professionals together.Strap yourself in for a top flight experience!
Shy Assassin
The Inspiring Story of Cyril ‘Frank’ Babbage, Battle of Britain Spitfire Ace turned D-Day Mosquito Pilot
Inbunden, Engelska, 2025
249 kr
Skickas inom 7-10 vardagar
One of the few RAF aircrew to play a central part in two of the Second World War’s most momentous events, the Battle of Britain and D-Day, Cyril ‘Frank’ Babbage was a survivor. He wasn’t just an immensely skilled pilot; he was also blessed with extraordinary good fortune. Shot down three times, once by a Luftwaffe Experte and Ritterkreuz (Knight’s Cross) holder, he would later claim the first of the new German Focke-Wulf 190 fighters lost in aerial combat, killing another holder of the Ritterkreuz in the process.If Babbage’s name was little known, his image shot to national prominence in late August 1940, briefly becoming the face of ‘The Few’. Photographs appeared in the press of him stepping out of a rowing boat on Bognor beach. There he was met by a small crowd who’d seen him rescued by fishermen after bailing out. He’d been shot down by a German fighter, but only after disposing of another one first.Babbage’s fascinating wartime experiences are complimented brilliantly by the stories of those who crossed his path, famous names like Amy Johnson and Douglas Bader as well as countless other unsung heroes. Many of the latter were youngsters he served with all too briefly: the Spitfire pilots of 602 and 41 Squadrons and the Mosquito crews of 464 RAAF Squadron – a unit engaged mostly in night interdiction to support the Normandy invasion but famous too for its daring, low-level raids on Amiens prison and a Gestapo barracks near Poitiers. The success of the latter ‘revenge raid’ owed much to the efforts of an intrepid SAS team and its inspiring leader, operating behind enemy lines after the Normandy invasion.Between his contrasting operational tours Babbage spent time as a flying instructor, insulated to a degree against the ravages of war. It was a role to which he returned post-war when he converted to jets and commanded one of the first Meteor advanced flying training units.Wing Commander C. F. Babbage DFM, AE retired in the summer of 1964. Like so many of his ilk, he owed his final years of peacetime service to the sacrifices of others – others like those brave men with whom he flew, but who enjoyed less than their own share of good luck.