Men Behind The Medals: A New Selection

Of the many human characteristics that emerge in warfare, none generates more admiration than gallantry. Using as a starting point medal groups chosen for their unique combinations of gallantry and campaign awards, Graham Pitchfork pays tribute to the bravery of twenty Allied airmen who flew combat operations during the Second World War. Encompassing a wide cross-section of operational roles, theatres, aircraft types and aircrew categories, the men behind the medals' experiences and actions are narrated in relation to the wider war.
These crucial operations are seen through a variety of different actions, including a night-fighter crew, a pilot flying over the jungles of Burma, a navigator who took part in supply drops to Resistance movements and a pilot who landed agents at night in France. The air war at sea is seen through the experiences of a Beaufighter pilot and a Royal Navy observer who attacked the Italian Fleet at Taranto. Daring low-level attacks by the men flying light bombers contrast with the work of their compatriots on heavies, and in the Pathfinder Force. Other chapters relate the gallantry of the aircrews flying reconnaissance aircraft and a Royal Artillery pilot spotting for the guns at Cassino.
As the Second World War generation fade into history, their exploits need to live on forever as a stimulus and example for future generations. In describing the exploits of the lesser-known heroes of that air war, Graham Pitchfork has ensured that `The Many' will never be forgotten.


by Graham Pitchfork
Published by Sutton Publishing 2003 1st edition. 274pp profusely illustrated. 16x24 mint, in very slightly rubbed d/j.





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