Mosquito Intruder Pilot
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| Author | : Jeremy Walsh |
| Publisher | : Air World |
| Total Pages | : 326 |
| Release | : 2022-06-16 |
| Genre | : Biography & Autobiography |
| ISBN | : 139908478X |
This illustrated WW2 biography chronicles the wartime experiences of a young Royal Air Force pilot who flew into combat over Europe and Burma. Ben Walsh lied about his age to join the RAF, determined to play his part in the Second World War. He volunteered to be an intruder pilot, flying low level operations in the dark. Ben flew ops for three years, starting in the skies over with Europe, then ferrying one of the first Mosquito FB VIs to India before flying in the Burma campaign. After surviving belly landings, crashes, enemy fire and engine failures, the strain of combat operations took its toll on the young pilot. When Ben and his navigator asked to be removed from operations, their request was only denied, but also resulted in threats of court martial. By the end of the war, Ben was suffering from a nervous condition known as ‘the twitch’. His confidence and health were restored by the young woman who would become his wife. Throughout the war, Ben maintained a ‘Roll of honor’ in his photograph album, memorializing his friends and colleagues who lost their lives. That album forms the backdrop to this biography, which is based on Ben’s own recollections, his logbook and the notes he kept through the war.
| Author | : Finn Eriksrud |
| Publisher | : |
| Total Pages | : 158 |
| Release | : 2014-09 |
| Genre | : Bomber pilots |
| ISBN | : 9781781553114 |
In 1943, Norwegians formed their third squadron flying under RAF command: No. 333 Squadron. One of the chosen few to fly 'The Wooden Wonder', the revolutionary and deadly de Havilland Mosquito, was 21-year-old Finn Eriksrud. Eriksrud had traveled all the way across the world to end up in Scotland to fly the Mosquito after a hazardous escape from Norway. He would now fly over his native country on extremely dangerous low-level reconnaissance and patrol missions from May 1943 onwards. By December 1943, all of the original Mosquito pilots were either killed from flying accidents or shot down over Norway. That same month was Eriksrud's final mission with No. 333 Squadron. He was forced to ditch his Mosquito off the coast of Norway where he was taken prisoner alongside his navigator Erling Victor Johanssen. Eriksrud had not gone down without a fight. During those dangerous months, he had shot down a Junkers Ju 88, his navigator taking a snapshot before the German bomber crashed in flames.
| Author | : Jeremy Walsh |
| Publisher | : Pen and Sword |
| Total Pages | : 304 |
| Release | : 2024-02-22 |
| Genre | : History |
| ISBN | : 1399052691 |
The exploits of the Mosquito crews in Burma, skimming at low-level and at speed along rivers and over treetops to their targets, are the stuff of legend. Surprisingly, however, only five RAF squadrons ever flew these operations. Mosquito Intruders – Target Burma explores the achievements of these intruder squadrons, as well as the costs to the men who flew and supported them. Their story starts in mid-1943, almost as soon as the fighter-bomber variant of the ‘Mossie’, the iconic de Havilland Mosquito FB VI, had been introduced to squadron service in the UK. The first challenge was to deliver the new aircraft, with its radical wooden construction, to India and build a supply chain to support it. Then, with few dual-control aircraft, they needed to train the crews to operate the Mosquito to the limits of its performance in often hostile weather over inhospitable territory against an aggressive enemy. Some crews converted from a similar low-level role to extend the reach of the impressive but already obsolescent Beaufighter. Other squadrons, converting from the single-engine Vultee Vengeance dive bomber, needed to learn how to handle a faster twin-engine intruder and to fly at low level. Against the odds, both the aircraft and their crews delivered! Mosquito Intruders – Target Burma uses diaries, first-hand accounts, and official records to take the reader through the Mosquito intruders’ three-year campaign to help force the Japanese out of Burma, living and dying with the brave warriors in the five squadrons which flew the FB VI. The first operations were flown by 27 Squadron, led by the renowned Wing Commander James Nicolson VC, the only person in RAF Fighter Command to be awarded the Victoria Cross during the Second World War. Many of the airmen, like the author’s father who flew Mossie intruder ops with both 27 and 45 Squadrons, felt that they were ‘forgotten’ by the public back home and often by their own high command. But importantly, they knew that their actions were shortening the war in the Far East.
| Author | : George Dunn |
| Publisher | : |
| Total Pages | : |
| Release | : 2020-09 |
| Genre | : |
| ISBN | : 9780993415203 |
Bomber Command pilot George Dunn DFC L d'H completed forty-four operations during the Second World War. George flew his first tour in 1943, on Handley Page Halifax bombers, during one of the most intense periods of the bombing war. Following two trips as a second pilot with No. 10 Squadron, to gain operational experience, George, accompanied by his usual flight engineer Ferris Newton DFM, then flew with No. 76 Squadron crew from May to October 1943, taking part in the Battle of the Ruhr, the Battle of Hamburg and the raid against the German secret weapon research station at Peenemünde. On completion of his tour, and a period as an instructor pilot, George then took up duties flying de Havilland Mosquitos, firstly with No. 608 Squadron and then with No. 1409 Met Flight.In Resolute, the title being the No. 76 Squadron motto, George and Ferris describe in detail their journey from novice airmen, through training, to crewing up and operational duties. It was a time at which the attrition rates in the air battle over Germany were escalating and the odds were against completing a full tour. Despite the pressures of operations George, Ferris and the crew find time to enjoy life - to the full! In the latter stages of the war, George then recalls with fondness and admiration, the opportunity to fly Mosquitos.Resolute is based on the detailed diary that Ferris kept during the war, and on accounts written by George, along with recorded interviews. Author Steve Darlow, with his extensive knowledge of the Bomber Command story, provides the context in which George, Ferris, and their crew went to war.Illustrated with photographs, and images from George's logbook, Resolute tells the gripping story of one crew's fight for survival, and their contribution to the eventual defeat of Nazism.
| Author | : Jonathan Falconer |
| Publisher | : Haynes Publishing UK |
| Total Pages | : 0 |
| Release | : 2013-11-01 |
| Genre | : Transportation |
| ISBN | : 9780857333605 |
Nicknamed the ‘wooden wonder’ , the de Havilland Mosquito was one of the most versatile and successful combat aircraft of the Second World War. Offering insights into the design, construction and operational career of the iconic Mossie, this manual gets under the aircraft’s birch and balsa skin to examine its anatomy and describe the painstaking restoration to flight by Avspecs (New Zealand) of Jerry Yagen’s FB26 KA114 and of Victoria Air Maintenance’s B35 VR796 in British Columbia, Canada.
| Author | : Roger Dunsford |
| Publisher | : Casemate Publishers |
| Total Pages | : 193 |
| Release | : 2017-04-19 |
| Genre | : History |
| ISBN | : 1612004415 |
This “incredibly engaging and deeply personal” story of World War II pilot Joe Singleton “draws the reader into the dangerous world of night fighting” (Manhattan Book Review). Joe Singleton was an unlikely hero. A junior manager at a paints and varnish company at the outbreak of war, he was surprised to discover he had a hidden talent for flying. Despite RAF Fighter Squadrons crying out for replacements after the carnage of the Battle of Britain, Joe was posted to the rapidly developing world of night fighting. He flew first Defiants, then Beaufighters, finding himself in the thick of the very earliest stages of ground-controlled interception and airborne radar engagements. His skills finally began to bear fruit when piloting a Mosquito, and he took part in several successful missions. But the pinnacle came on the night of March 19, 1944: scrambling to intercept a big German raid on Hull, he located and shot down a Junkers 188, then went on to shoot down two more, all in the space of thirteen dramatic minutes. He and his navigator survived the crash-landing that ensued, and he went on to be feted as a national hero. Three in Thirteen is a unique sortie-by-sortie account of his journey from bewildered recruit to celebrated expert, illustrated with extracts from Joe’s RAF logbook and unpublished photographs and illustrations. Roger Dunsford’s extensive experience as an RAF pilot brings a vivid immediacy to Joe’s experiences, combined with astute analysis of the planes, the tactics, and the events of that fateful night. “Inspirational and thoroughly engaging—a true hero’s story.” —Books Monthly
| Author | : C. Martin Sharp |
| Publisher | : Crecy Pub |
| Total Pages | : 540 |
| Release | : 1995 |
| Genre | : History |
| ISBN | : 9780947554415 |
Filled with the Mosquitos operational record and supplemented with tables, drawings, maps and charts. Describes every operational sortie, verifying battle claims wherever possible against Luftwaffe records. Sharp and Bowyer combine their talents to produce this exceptional record of de Havillands legendary Wooden Wonder. Foreword by Sir Geoffrey de Havilland. Fully revised and up-dated.
| Author | : Andrew Thomas |
| Publisher | : Bloomsbury Publishing |
| Total Pages | : 223 |
| Release | : 2012-11-20 |
| Genre | : History |
| ISBN | : 1780964382 |
An illustrated history of three pioneering fighters. The Defiant and the Blenheim enjoying early successes until they came up against the vastly superior Messerschmitt Bf 109, and the American-built Havoc. The Blenheim IF flew some of Fighter Command's early offensive operations, and the type soon proved vulnerable when pitted against single-seat fighters. However, for much of 1940 the Blenheim fighter squadrons provided the RAF's main long-range convoy escort and nightfighter capability. In the mid-1930s, in an attempt to capitalise on its expertise in power-operated gun turrets, the Boulton Paul Company developed the Defiant, a single-engined fighter in which all the armament was concentrated in the turret behind the pilot. Intended as a 'bomber destroyer', the Defiant had its combat debut over Dunkirk, and initially achieved some considerable success. A number of American-built aircraft called Douglas DB-7 light bombers (named Havoc by the RAF), were fitted with radar for nightfighter duties and others successfully replaced the Blenheim as night intruders. As this book outlines, a total of 11 pilots claimed five or more victories when flying these three types to become aces, whilst no fewer than 33 who became aces claimed at least part of their scores when flying the Blenheim, Defiant or Havoc.
| Author | : Martin W. Bowman |
| Publisher | : Casemate Publishers |
| Total Pages | : 408 |
| Release | : 2004-09-19 |
| Genre | : History |
| ISBN | : 1783034521 |
Of all the planes that flew in WW2, the 'Wooden Wonder' the two-engined Mosquito, or Mossie as it was affectionately called, was truly the most versatile and feared by the Germans. Fast and manoeuvrable, the Mossie was just as at home in the pathfinder role as she was as a fighter interceptor, particularly of V1s, as a night-fighter, low level bomber.Mosquitopanik tells of the hugely successful war career of this much loved aeroplane that caught the public's and its pilots' imagination. Here we have gripping tales of action in the air thanks to the most meticulous research by a true enthusiast.
| Author | : Danny Burt |
| Publisher | : Air World |
| Total Pages | : 258 |
| Release | : 2023-04-20 |
| Genre | : Biography & Autobiography |
| ISBN | : 1399017896 |
Bertie Rex OBryen Hoare was born on 6 June 1912. Having been educated at Harrow and Wye Agricultural College, Sammy, as he was often known to friends and family, entered the RAF on a short-service commission in 1936. In October 1938, while piloting a Fairy Battle Bertie sustained a serious injury from a piece of loose piece of aircraft cowling. This incident resulted in him being totally blinded in one eye. Though he was initially grounded, his determination to return to the air never diminished. The outbreak of war in September 1939, saw his wish be granted when Bertie was given permission to return to operational flying duties. Bertie was posted to 23 Squadron, which was flying Blenheims at the time. The squadron then converted to Havocs, the crews being tasked with undertaking out nighttime operations over Occupied Europe. Despite his restricted night vision and depth perception, Bertie went on to became one of the RAFs leading advocates in the art of what was known as intruder operations. In the months and years that followed, Bertie served in, and then commanded, a number of RAF squadrons. By the time the war in Europe came to an end, he was the Station Commander at RAF Little Snoring in Norfolk which, at the time, was home to de Havilland Mosquitos undertaking intruder operations. Bertie opted to remain in the RAF after the war, this time being posted to 84 Squadron. However, his luck finally ran out on 26 March 1947, when the Mosquito he was ferrying to Australia crashed off its northern coast. Reported missing at the time, Danny Burt reveals the full circumstances of this tragic incident. This is the biography of one of the RAFs greatest characters of the Second World War. With his epic over-sized mustache, Bertie Hoare was a pilot who, with the end of the fighting, had risen to the rank of Group Captain, been awarded the Distinguished Service Order and Bar, the Distinguished Flying Cross and Bar, and been Mentioned in Despatches. Bertie ended the war having flown over 100 combat sorties.
