Fighter Command 1939-45

Ref: 5048

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{detailed description}'Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few'. In the summer of 1940 the pilots of Royal Air Force Fighter Command stood in the forefront of Britain's defences after the fall of France. The courage and determination of 'The Few' prevented the Luftwaffe achieving air superiority and forced the Germans to cancel Operation 'Sealion', the proposed invasion of Britain. The Battle of Britain was, however, only part of the story of Fighter Command during World War 2. In the years that followed, the RAF's fighter squadrons went on to the offensive, taking the war to the enemy in the air and on the ground. By the time of the Normandy invasion in June 1944, Fighter Command had been split into two -the Air Defence of Great Britain maintained a guard over the home front while the 2nd Tactical Air Force was committed to the support of the Allied armies on the Continent.
Following on from his acclaimed companion volume Bomber Command 1939-1945, Ian Carter turns his attention in this book to the fighter squadrons of the RAF. Drawing upon the extensive photographic collections held by the Imperial War Museum in London, he provides a year-by-year account, from the outbreak of war in September 1939 to final victory in Europe in May 1945. Fighter Command's war-winning aircraft are featured, including the Supermarine Spitfire, perhaps the most famous fighter of World War 2; the Hawker Typhoon, much-feared in its ground-attack role; and the de Havilland Mosquito, without peer as a night-fighter. Full weight is also given to the vital and frequently overlooked work of the ground crews, the men and women who kept the aircraft flying. Many of the photographs are published here for the first time, and all have been extensively researched. This fascinating pictorial record of Fighter Command will be of interest to all those who wish to know more about the history of the RAF in World War 2.
{Author / Publisher / Date}by Ian Carter
published by Ian Allan 2002 1st edn. 160pp profusely illustrated 21x26
{condition}mint, inc. d/j
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