This is a good book!
I was unsure about buying it, but I had to use the book voucher from last year and only two books in that shop were worth having. An unusual voucher in that few shops accepted it! Only W. H. Smiths did, but only senior staff knew about this! Tsk!
Having dumped it aside while I vegetated it was a while before I opened the book. Having done so I read it through in a very short time. John Nichol is not the greatest writer, but having been shot down over Iraq himself he understands something of the mindset of the men he quotes freely throughout the book.
We read something of the needs of the day, the war was in full flow and a need for a heavier bomber than what was available was noted. A plane called the 'Manchester,' flying on two engines was designed. This was underpowered and ineffective. One Roy Chadwick and his associates fought through the red tape and official obstructions to produce the improved version of the 'Manchester.' After much fighting the four engined 'Lancaster' was born! This powerful beast, much loved by those who flew it, became the backbone of RAF 'Bomber Command,' in the fight against Nazi Germany.
Using personnel stories of the men who flew these aircraft John Nichol takes us through the building of the aircraft, thousands of high quality pieces, many made by women workers, the conditions in the factories, the relationships good and bad, and then the actual tales of combat.
Skilfully integrating individuals stories regarding the team of seven men aboard the aircraft, and on one occasion one woman, a friend of the pilot, who was stowed away on board, once! We read of the preparation, instruction, ground crews who worked tirelessly on the aircraft, flights to the destination and the bombing of targets.
The author is very good at making you feel part of the operation. Memories from those who were there describing the appearance of a burning city, the flak from the ground attempting to kill them, the searchlights seeking them, and the desperate manoeuvring to avoid them. All through this the steady, quiet voice of the bomb aimer as he sought precision to drop the bombs. If he missed you came back the next day and tried again, this was not popular. 'Bombs Gone!' the plane lifts several feet into the air, a photograph is taken, and then the escape, at high speed, out of the flak area. This meant heading for home, avoiding ground flak and Luftwaffe fighters on the way. Sometimes the plane had been hit, an engine dead, flaps broken, and then the lower altitude as you struggled for the Channel and home.
Not all succeeded.
A fully loaded Lancaster hit before dropping the bombs could explode killing all aboard. Others would fail to make the coast, men dropping from the, often burning aircraft, forced to leave behind wounded colleagues, and then try to avoid capture on the ground. Here, whether in France or Netherlands, the populace would do their best to aid fallen airmen. However, it was not easy, had they been caught they could all be in a concentration camp and dealt with. Inevitably, though aided, the men found themselves in POW camps.
One such was Cy Grant, one of 500 or more West Indians who served with the RAF during this time. He was aided in the Netherlands but there was no choice but to hand him over. Cy was in the camp made famous by the 'Great Escape,' though he did not take part, a black man would stand out in German held Poland at the time. Several West Indian men are featured in the book, no racism was recorded, indeed the RAF strongly opposed this. Only one US airman from the deep south made any comment, and he did not get far.
This book covers the daily experience of men in action, the sleeping arrangements, the women, the pubs, the fact that death and the lost were never mentioned again. Young men, rarely over 25, flew 30 'ops' before they could be relieved. Many never made it, the chances of succeeding were low. Cy Grant, as a Navigator, was part of a 'Wellington' crew who survived their 30 'ops' intact, the only crew on 'Wellingtons' to do so. He then volunteered for Lancs!
Some lives are continued into the end of the war and the rebuilding afterwards. No-one wished to know their story. All were rebuilding their life, many had even worse experiences in Army and Navy, and the joy of life, family and future lay ahead. But the war left nightmares and a desire to find those who had fallen, to visit graves, and meet those who rescued them long years before. This book covers all this well.
Fighting a war is hard, humans are expendable, even to the most careful General. This book covers the hardship of war and the human reaction to it, and the life afterwards. I recommend it.
@Bob Herriott
6 comments:
I'll order that, thank you!
I remember mother telling me of seeing the bombers returning, a line of ambulances awaiting them.
Fly, I think you will like it. Indeed, the ground staff were excellent when planes landed.
I'm always so grateful to the guys who flew those little planes. I know that many of them enjoyed it, but others must have found a lot of what they had to do terrifying. I once went in a Lancaster bomber when I was young (my dad was in the forces, but I cannot imagine why or how, all that has faded in the mists of time. I am not sure it actually flew, as the only thing I remember was how incredibly cramped it was, and how very noisy. If we had flown anywhere in it I am sure I would have thrown up, one of the hardest things I ever did in my life was avoid throwing up when someone kindly took me up in a little biplane that appeared to me to be made of canvas and thin wire. I just couldn't chuck up all over his pride and joy of a plane but I felt ill for the rest of the day. never again!
Oh, I wonder if my comment will arrive with you. I have an idea I left the screen too soon after clicking to post, but I'll return later and check.
Jenny, Sheer discipline, and a tight welded efficient crew kept them going. Fear was always there, especially when something hit the plane. Lancs were not designed for crew comfort, there was little room, and tall men must have suffered a lot. How loveley to have been inside one, only 5 remain, and only 2 can fly, one here and one in Canada.
Jenny, Worry not, all is well.
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