Life and Death in Bomber Command - Hardcover

Redding, Tony

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1781552282 ISBN 13: 9781781552285

Verlag: Fonthill Media, 2013

Inhaltsangabe

Life and Death in Bomber Command is an intimate account of the bombing offensive against Germany and targets in Occupied Europe. The story, told by Lancaster reargunner W/O Sidney Knott DFC, is set in the context of a detailed assessment of the bomber war by author Tony Redding. This unique combination of dramatic narrative and strategic overview is supported by 115 photographs and graphics. Sidney Knott survived sixty-four operations, beginning in January 1943, when he joined 467 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force. His aircraft, captained by twenty-year-old Frank Heavery, attacked Duisburg five times and Essen on three occasions. The crew also participated in three raids on Berlin. Having survived sorties against twelve heavily defended targets, Knott's crew was offered the choice of transferring to a new unit for "special duties", or to continue the tour with 467 Squadron. The crew was split and Heavery held the casting vote, deciding they would stay put. The crew posted for special duties in their place was the first to die during 617 Squadron's attack on the Ruhr dams in May 1943. Of the 258 crews posted to 467 Squadron RAAF, 115 failed to return. Many crews during Sidney Knott's first tour failed to survive ten operations. Five of 467 Squadron's Commanding Officers were killed in action. As a screened gunner, Sidney Knott trained fledgling gunners during his rest from operations. When sharing his operational experiences with the "sprogs", he was careful not to mention that a posting to an operational bomber squadron was equivalent to a death sentence for one in three. By April 1944 Knott had found a new crew. He began a second tour as a Pathfinder with 582 Squadron, also flying Lancasters.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Tony Redding has a BA Hons in Classical Archaeology. He is a journalist and international specialist in the media aspects of emergency response. He is the author of Best Endeavours, a study of marine salvage, War in the Wilderness: The Chindits in Burma 1943-44 and On the Street Where You Live: Growing Up in the 1950s. Life and Death in Bomber Command is Redding's first book for Fonthill Media.

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Fonthill Media
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2013
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1781552282
• ISBN 13: 9781781552285
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 288
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Nicht verfügbar