Britain at War - 09.2019

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RECONNAISSANCE REPORT|ITEMS OF INTEREST

HELMETS OF

THE HOME FRONT

Adrian and George Blake

THIS INCREDIBLE reference book

has been compiled by a father

and son who are both lifelong

collectors of military equipment.

In the 1970s Adrian acquired

his first few items of militaria

and soon started to specialise in

helmets used on the Home Front

• and there are hundreds to seek
  out. In many cases the reason for
  the various letters and symbols
  has been lost in time, but this
  work sets out to right that, and
  will surely be prized by collectors.
  The headgear used by around 40
  services are featured and just
  about each page contains colour
  photos of preserved helmets, plus
  drawings explaining the insignia.

Self-Published

Email: home_front_helmets@

hotmail.com

Hardback: 364 pages

RRP: £65

admits. An attitude of stoicism

he undoubtedly inherited from

his heroic father who served four

long years with the Machine Gun

Corps during the Great War.

Archie McInnes saw many of

his comrades shot down as the

action intensified during October

1940 and rightly salutes the

pilots of 238 Squadron who

did not survive, in recollections

sensitively compiled by the

author.

Plt Off McInnes served aboard

HMS Victorious during the hunt

for the Bismarck and his war

of 1941 in North Africa makes

compelling reading. Shot down

by a Messerschmitt Bf 109, he

crash-landed, blacked out and

awoke to discover his left arm

had been so badly wounded

that it required amputating.

He’d broken his neck which

along with other injuries would

change his life forever. Archie’s

recall of the dogfight that brought

his Hurricane down is brilliantly

sharp and we feel as if we are

experiencing the horror with him.

This quiet man of the Battle

of Britain was rightfully treated

as a VIP at aviation events by

admirers with warm affection for

the hard-fought actions of Archie

and his fellow Few. This book is

a compelling read and a worthy

tribute to a noble Hurricane pilot,

and a very brave man.

Reviewed by Melody Foreman

Publisher: Red Kite

http://www.jonnycracknell.com

Hardback: 145 pages

RRP: £20

AGAINST ADVERSITY:

THE INSPIRATIONAL

STORY OF

ARCHIE MCINNES

BATTLE OF BRITAIN

HURRICANE PILOT

Jonny Cracknell

THE LATEST memoir from

one of The Few – Pilot Officer

Archie McInnes – has been

written by aviation enthusiast

Jonny Cracknell as the 80th

anniversary of the Battle of

Britain beckons next year.

Sadly, Archie passed away

hours after celebrating his

100 th birthday, making this

book particularly poignant.

McInnes had a brief spell

in 1940 with 601 (County

of London) Squadron before

being posted to 238 Squadron

at Chilbolton, Hampshire, on

October 8. Many sorties carried

out by the Glasgow-born pilot

involved dangerous night flying.

“I just had to get on with it,” he

BEAUFIGHTER BOYS

Graham Pitchfork

REGULAR READERS of Britain

at War will be familiar with the

work of Graham Pitchfork, who

served in the RAF for 36 years,

commanding 208 Squadron,

rising to the rank of air

commodore and later serving

in Defence Intelligence at the

MOD. He is, therefore, the

right man to pen books for the

Grub Street publisher’s much

loved ‘Boys’ series and he has

already written the popular

Buccaneer Boys as part of the

same series.

In this latest effort, Graham

steers the series away from

the Cold War and takes a

range of stories from air and

ground crew to piece together

a tantalising account of the

Bristol-built twin-engine terror

• the Beaufighter. He begins by
  briefly introducing the multi-role
  strike aircraft by exploring its
  development and role in the
  various RAF commands. Then,
  the unsung warhorse is detailed
  at great length, incorporating the
  gripping experiences of the bold
  pilots and navigators who served
  on them.
  Operations off Norway, in
  Malta, Sicily and Beaufighter
  sorties in British and Australian
  service over the Far East are
  all covered, among others.
  The aircraft’s debut as a night

fighter and foray in the bomber

support role is also explored, as

is of course, its role in the strike

wings – where the Beaufighter

earned a deadly reputation as

a hardy and rugged ship-hunting

menace.

There isn’t much more we could

ask for from a book of this type,

Beaufighter Boys is exactly the

quality we have grown to expect

from this author and this series

of books.

Publisher: Grub Street

http://www.grubstreet.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-911621-44-7

Hardback, 224 pages

RRP: £20

FRONT LINE

AND FORTITUDE

E J Lockhart-Mure

AN EXCELLENT book that

slipped the review net when

published in February this year,

Front Line and Fortitude tells

the story of Maria Pilbrow and

her experiences in the Women’s

Auxiliary Service (Burma) in

World War Two. The book is

based on and expanded from

Maria's original diary by her

niece and gives a vivid account

of what life was like on or

around the frontline in South

East Asia as the allies fought

back against the brutal invaders

from Japan. Well written and

illustrated, this work is a fitting

tribute to the ‘Wasbies’ and is

compelling reading.

Publisher: Matador

http://www.troubador.co.uk/bookshop

ISBN: 978-1-789016-43-7

Paperback: 316 pages

RRP: £12.50

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