Hurricanes Over Tobruk

At the beginning of 1941 the strategically vital port of Tobruk and its allied garrison was under siege from Rommel's troops and the Luftwaffe and Italian Regia Aeronautica. The only air defence standing in the way comprised a handful of RAF Hurricane pilots supported by their RAAF and SAAF colleagues.
Until the last remaining Hurricanes were forced to withdraw from the garrison at the end of April 1941, this gallant band had flown almost daily against overwhelming odds while Rommel's troops attempted to penetrate the garrison's defences, defended mainly by unyielding Australian forces.
It was a life and death struggle, a desperate period in which the name of Tobruk made world headlines. Whoever controlled Tobruk controlled the central Mediterranean. The squadrons involved in this titanic struggle were 73, 6 and 274 of the RAF, 3 RAAF and 1 SAAF, with 73 Squadron bearing the brunt of the action until forced to evacuate when the German Messerschmitts arrived.
There were many unsung heroes from these squadrons – survivors like Peter Wykeham-Barnes, 'Ginger', Murray, Mike Beytagh, 'Jas' Storrar, Dickie Martin, Geoff Garton, 'Monty' Ellis, Fred Marshall, and the two Frenchmen, James Denis and Albert Liftoff –and many, many more; and there were those who paid the supreme sacrifice like 'Smudger' Smith, 'Benny' Goodman, 'Tiny' Millist, 'Kiwi' Lamb, Pete Haldenby, John Elsworth, Bill Wills, and 'Webby' Webster. Hurricanes over Tobruk is their story, and also that of the gallant Australians of 3 RAAF Squadron who supported them – men like John Jackson, Alan Rawlinson, Peter Jeffrey, Wilf Arthur, 'Jock' Perrin, to name but a few.
By carefully studying records, logbooks and diaries, including much new material from Italian and German records, Brian Cull and Don Minterne have written an extremely well researched action-packed account of these months and these men, which is a fitting tribute to their magnificent contribution to the war.

by Brian Cull, with Don Minterne
Published by Grub Street 1999 1st edition. 224pp illustrated, maps, index, appendix, bibliography. 16x24 mint, including d/j.





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"Long" descriptions, where shown, may have been taken from the book's dust jacket notes, and as such are relevant to the date of publication (e.g. any references to "previously unpublished photographs" etc.) and not the present.

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