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Long after the Battle of Britain, the aircrews of RAF Bomber Command risked their lives night after night during the Second World War. Over 55,000 of the airmen never returned from these missions; a further 10,000 became prisoners of war. And yet Bomber Command has been mired in controversy and its veterans - all volunteers - have never been awarded a campaign medal. Their crucial contribution to the outcome of the war has all too often been overlooked. BOMBER CREW exposes the bravery of these men using gripping first-person testimony from the surviving pilots and crew. For them this was a time of incredible hardship and adrenaline, courage and friendship, and their stories bear witness to the strength of the human spirit in times of incredible danger. Never before has their story been so vividly told. This is also a revealing look at the history of Bomber Command itself, from the early days through to eventual victory in 1945. From the terrifying action of the bombing raids to the intimate personal accounts of heroism, tragedy and triumph, this is the ultimate account of these brave men and their contribution to the Allied victory.
Bomber Crew was self-published by the author, Jack E. Thompson, in 1989. This second edition has been re-published to acknowledge the 60th anniversary of VE-Day, to commemorate 2005 as the Year of the Veteran and to help celebrate the life of Jack E. Thompson (1923-2003). Some additional material including photographs, not available for the original version, have been added by the author's son, Stephen Thompson. Bomber Crew is the record of a tour of duty of the crew of the Lancaster bomber G-George of Bomber Command 12 Squadron based at RAF base Wickenby, Lincolnshire. This is a story of the bonds formed among seven men, five Canadian with the RCAF and two English with the RAF, bonds that lasted their lifetimes. This is the story of the happenstance and chaos of "crewing up", of endless "practice, practice, practice" sessions, and the excitement and terror of late-night bombing runs over occupied Europe and deep into Germany. The author and his crew would suggest that their tour was very ordinary and unremarkable. From data declassified post-war, they learned otherwise, that it was remarkable that these seven crew members survived the war and returned to civilian life. Only 40% of Bomber Command aircrew survived the war, and not all of those without physical or psychological injury.
An antique trophy inspires a quest to uncover the history of an outstanding crew of WWII airmen who first flew into combat on D-Day. After discovering a discarded trophy in an Edinburgh antique shop, author David Price endeavored to tell the stories of the men whose names had been engraved upon it. Praised as ‘Outstanding Crew of the Month’, the members of 388th Bombardment Group set out on their very first mission on June 6, 1944—D-Day. This baptism of fire heralded the start of an illustrious career in battle. During August and September of 1944, they took part in over thirty perilous missions. And yet the details of their endeavors have largely been forgotten. Here, the history of 388th Bombardment Group’s service is told in great detail from interviews with each surviving member of the group, together with family members, in an effort to glean more information about their wartime deeds, and to reunite them with the trophy that they won in the midst of it. A Bomber Crew Mystery serves as a poignant and evocative tribute to the 388th Bombardment Group, as well as all those who fought in the skies of the Second World War.
Aviation physiology is a highly relevant field to flyers of unpressurized aircraft that flew at altitudes in excess of 25,000 feet. Crew members had to contend with severe environmental factors while flying long bombing missions during WWII. The limits of human physiology must be the main concern of any battle plan involving flyers and fatality/mortality rates should be the primary focus in evaluating the success or failure of such a plan. The purpose of this research project is to determine if human factors were overlooked intentionally or by accident. If they were overlooked unintentionally, then what was done to resolve the physiological problems of the aircrews? The project will also underscore the continued need to address the human machine during any plan in today’s demanding aviation environment. Chapter one explores whether or not the limits of the human being was taken into account when the WWII bombing planners developed AWPD-1. It provides an insight into why AWPD-1 was created without regard to the aircrew members, and how this neglect could have possibly been remedied. Chapter two examines the machines of the day, in particular the B-17, to see if it was ready to carry out the assigned missions envisioned by the war planners. The early wartime experience of the B-17 by the Royal Air Force was disappointing, but nevertheless it was looked upon by the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) as the ultimate bomber that could complete any assignment. This chapter also provides some insight into a “typical” mission the B-17 aircrew had to endure and the aircraft’s ability to carry out the assigned bombing missions. Chapter three deals with the physiological problems experienced by the aircrews and what was done to alleviate them. Chapter four focuses on the non-combat accident rates of the Eighth Air Force, what they meant, and how the leadership reacted to them.
A moving tribute to the sacrifice and bravery of the fliers of RAF Bomber Command. ****************************** The Crew, based on interviews with Ken Cook, the crew's sole surviving member, recounts the wartime exploits of the members of an Avro Lancaster crew between 1942 and the war's end. Gloucestershire-born bomb aimer Ken Cook, hard-bitten Australian pilot Jim Comans, Navigator Don Bowes, Upper Gunner George Widdis, Tail Gunner 'Jock' Bolland, Flight Engineer Ken Randle and Radio Operator Roy Woollford were seven ordinary young men living in extraordinary times, risking their lives in freedom's cause in the dark skies above Hitler's Reich. From their earliest beginnings – in places as far apart as a Cotswold village and the suburbs of Sydney – through the adventure of training in North America and the dread and danger of the forty-five bombing raids they flew with 97 Squadron, David Price describes the crew's wartime experiences with human sympathy allied to a secure technical understanding of one of the RAF's most iconic aircraft. The drama and anxiety of individual missions – to Kassel, Munich and Augsburg as well as Berlin – is evoked with thrilling immediacy; while the military events and strategic decisions that drove the RAF's area bombing campaign against Nazi Germany are interwoven deftly with the narrative of the crew's operational careers. ****************************** Reviews: 'A sensitive account of the bomber's life... Price has given the bomber offensive a human face. This book [...] has a heart and soul' The Times. 'A fascinating and fast-paced account of the exploits of an Avro Lancaster bomber crew from 97 Squadron RAF' The Herald. 'A remarkable insight into the bravery, determination and skill of British Bomber Command crews during WWII' Waterstones.
Three weeks after Imperial Japan’s surrender, five men dressed in baggy khaki uniforms stared at the camera. They and two colleagues were the only survivors out of the 210 Allied airmen which Imperial Japan had imprisoned in “paradise.” Joining them were 18 British soldiers, the only survivors of 600 of their countrymen similarly but separately imprisoned. Another 10,000 Allied soldiers and civilians were also imprisoned on the South Pacific island of New Britain. More than half died before liberation. What motivated such inhumane treatment? This book’s quest for an answer traces the genesis of Bushido, Imperial Japan’s martial code, and surveys the prisoners’ recollections of their ordeal as the Battle for Rabaul raged around them from 1942 to March 1944.
An autobiographical account of the wartime experience of an American bomber crewman, John Comer, who survived 25 combat missions over Nazi-occupied Europe at the height of the allied bomber offensive.
Celebrates the American writer who in his works confronted and explored the social fabric of the United States in the early 20th century. More than 500 entries include synopses of his novels, short stories, and nonfiction; descriptions of his characters, details about family, friends, and associates.
The ultimate history of the Blitz and bombing in the Second World War, from Wolfson Prize-winning historian and author Richard Overy The use of massive fleets of bombers to kill and terrorize civilians was an aspect of the Second World War which continues to challenge the idea that Allies specifically fought a 'moral' war. For Britain, bombing became perhaps its principal contribution to the fighting as, night after night, exceptionally brave men flew over occupied Europe destroying its cities. The Bombing War radically overhauls our understanding of the War. It is the first book to examine seriously not just the most well-known parts of the campaign, but the significance of bombing on many other fronts - the German use of bombers on the Eastern Front for example (as well as much newly discovered material on the more familiar 'Blitz' on Britain), or the Allied campaigns against Italian cities. The result is the author's masterpiece - a rich, gripping, picture of the Second World War and the terrible military, technological and ethical issues that relentlessly drove all its participants into an abyss. Reviews: 'Magnificent ... must now be regarded as the standard work on the bombing war ... It is probably the most important book published on the history of he second world war this century' Richard J Evans, Guardian 'Monumental ... this is a major contribution to one of the most controversial aspects of the Second World War ... full of new detail and perspectives ... hugely impressive' James Holland, Literary Review 'This tremendous book does what the war it describes signally failed to do. With a well-thought-out strategy and precision, it delivers maximum force on its objectives ... The result is a masterpiece of the historian's art' The Times 'It is unlikely that a work of this scale, scope and merit will be surpassed' Times Higher Education 'What distinguishes Mr Overy's account of the bombing war from lesser efforts is the wealth of narrative detail and analytical rigour that he brings to bear' Economist 'Excellent ... Overy is never less than an erudite and clear-eyed guide whose research is impeccable and whose conclusions appear sensible and convincing even when they run against the established trends' Financial Times 'Hard to surpass. If you want to know how bombing worked, what it did and what it meant, this is the book to read' Times Literary Supplement About the author: Richard Overy is the author of a series of remarkable books on the Second World War and the wider disasters of the twentieth century. The Dictators: Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia won both the Wolfson Prize for History and the Hessell-Tiltman Prize. He is Professor of History at the University of Exeter. Penguin publishes 1939: Countdown to War, The Morbid Age, Russia's War, Interrogations, The Battle of Britain and The Dictators. He lives in London.
They were the best of enemies – dedicated, skilled and deadly. In the night skies above wartime Germany an RAF navigator-air bomber from New Zealand and a Luftwaffe pilot seek out their targets, testing the gap between success and their own destruction as they cross each other's paths. The odds are heavily against either of them making it through the war, but as this sobering realisation displaces their initial exuberant sense of adventure, both come to see in their youthful sacrifice the survival of all they hold dear. UNDER A BOMBER'S MOON reaches across the divide of years, of geography, of nationality, to tell their story largely in their own words – describing both the breathtaking clashes in the air and the camaraderie, humour, patriotism and personal tragedies that became their war. Stephen Harris began his journey of discovery because he wanted to know the truth of his great-uncle Colwyn Jones's fate. With Col's vividly written letters and diary as a starting-point, he set out to discover what really happened on the night Col's extraordinary luck ran out. Little did he know that his quest would lead him to a meeting with a former Luftwaffe pilot who was pitted against his great-uncle in the skies over Germany. Otto-Heinrich Fries proved to be both engaging and articulate, eventually allowing Harris to tell his story in this book. The result is a unique and personal account of two highly successful airmen from opposing sides.