Issue No 21 THE AVIATION HISTORIAN 121
mostly hitherto unseen, embellish the glossy
pages of this large-format book. They include
a great variety of inter-war Australian civil
aircraft, including many British-designed types,
and a good collection of his excellent aerial
photographs. During 1942–47 Pratt flew as
a captain with Australian National Airways,
flying Douglas DC-2s, DC-3s and Stinsons,
and he subsequently flew a de Havilland Puss
Moth for pleasure and to undertake aerial
photography work. He died in January 1968.
This volume is well worth its asking price;
unfortunately the outrageous cost of postage
may well deter English readers from investing
in it, which would be a great shame. However, it
deserves to do well, and Australian enthusiasts
in particular would be wise to acquire it, as
it will undoubtedly become a treasured and
collectable item.
PHILIP JARRETT
Fortresses over Deenethorpe: The 401st
Bombardment Group (H) 1943 to 1945
By Cliff T. Bishop and Malcolm Osborn; East Anglia Books,
PO Box 12408, Stansted, Essex CM24 8UZ; 12in x 8½in
(305mm x 215mm) hardback; 204 pages, illustrated; £40.
ISBN 978-1-869987-18-3
BORN AND RAISED under the big skies of
East Anglia, the late Cliff Bishop took every
opportunity during his early years to cycle from
airfield to wartime airfield, to watch the mighty
B-17s and B-24s of the US Eighth Air Force. He
went on to serve in the RAF and to become a
highly respected Eighth Air Force historian —
such are the influences of intense experience on
a young mind — and he remained rooted in the
region, establishing East Anglia Books (EAB)
in 1982. Sadly, Cliff died in late 2014, but his
daughter Marilyn continues to run EAB.
In 2008 Cliff began work on this history of
the 401st Bomb Group, but other publishing
projects intervened and it was not until a few
weeks before his death that he enlisted the help
of Malcolm Osborn to help him complete it.
Malcolm took up the baton, and the result is a fine
memorial to the book’s instigator.
At the heart of the volume, and comprising
about half of its content, is a comprehensive diary
of the unit’s operations in the UK from November
1943 to June 1945. It is well-illustrated with black-
and-white photographs and also draws upon
maps, tables, charts, combat reports and colour
reproductions of original route and procedure
diagrams. The human angle is not forgotten, with
illustrations of life in the messes and the PX.
Potted biographies of the unit’s commanders
are also included, as is an introduction to the
group’s formation and training before it left the
USA for Europe. An eight-page list of individual
aircraft histories of the group’s B-17s is followed
by chronological charts showing the service
lifespan of aircraft from each Bombardment
Squadron (BS) in the group, some lasting mere
days. Several pages of nose-art photographs are
accompanied by a list of aircraft names (Swingin’
on a Star, Grumblin’ Gremlin etc) tied, in most
cases, to serial numbers.
Towards the back of the volume, a section
of Missing Air Crew Reports and casualties
underlines the heavy toll exacted on the unit
during its operational phase; a concluding colour-
photography section includes some fine wartime
pictures plus more modern images depicting the
unit’s historical legacy.
An especially poignant element of the book
occurs in an extract from a memoir written by an
officer of the group’s 614th BS, where the nature
of luck is discussed: “What we were trying to
rationalise was not that some men lived and
others died, but that, as it seemed, some men
were sought out by death and others were passed
over under particularly deadly circumstances”.MICK OAKEYTHIS ATTRACTIVE NEW periodical was launched in 2017 on the cresting wave of so-called “boutique” print publishing,
in which the traditional mainstream model, with its lumbering market inflexibility and appalling wastage, is replaced with
a far more dynamic direct-to-customer paradigm. The brainchild of former Autocar Associate Editor and Car journalist
Hilton Holloway, 5054 is not an aviation magazine per se, but its “automotive culture” tagline very much includes
aeronautical design and engineering, as evidenced by the sumptuous ten-page feature on Guy Black’s superbly restored
Airco D.H.9 in the first issue. Hilton explains: “ 5054 is my attempt to completely rethink the idea of a ‘motoring’ magazine.
What do I mean by ‘automotive culture’? Automotive means most things with an engine. And engines mean engineering.
The ‘culture’ part of our mission is to investigate the wider world and wider impact of the automotive world”.
Beautifully designed by Art Director Patrick Myles and printed on high-quality paper with excellent colour reproduction,
the first issue contains a thoughtfully-curated collection of immaculately appointed articles on subjects as diverse as
Henry Ford, the Mini Countryman and the Aston Martin DB11. A second issue is being prepared for the end of 2017,
with features on why the internal combustion won’t die and, controversially, why gas turbines could have a brighter
future than batteries. So why 5054? I’m sure TAH readers can work it out (think elliptically)... NS
Published and edited by Hilton Holloway; 8¾in x 11¼in (222mm x 286mm); 126 pages, illustrated; £10. Available only
via the website, http://www.5054magazine.co.uk
TAH5054 MAGAZINE