Fighter Boys and Bomber Boys: Saving Britain 1940–1945
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24 ‘When the cutters’: Patrick Barthropp, Paddy, the Life and Times of Wing Commander Patrick Barthropp, DFC, AFC, Howard Baker, London, 1990, p. 29.
25 ‘To some…it seemed’: David, My Autobiography, p. 25.
26 ‘Kingcome considered’: quoted in Richard C. Smith, Hornchurch Scramble, Grub Street, London, 2000, p. 37.
27 ‘Deere lost his temper’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 28.
28 ‘Kingcome enjoyed’: IWM, no. 10152.
29 Brothers: interview with author.
30 Drake: interview with author.
31 Sheen: IWM, no. 12137.
32 Banham: IWM, no. 6799.
33 Nicholas: IWM, no. 12405.
34 ‘gone were the halcyon days’: Peter Townsend, Time and Chance, Book Club Associates, London, 1978, p. 95.
35 Doe: interview with author.
36 Sheen: IWM, no. 12137.
37 ‘Deere…spent his first weeks’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 33.
38 ‘a school bully’: Barthropp, Paddy, p. 20.
39 Gillam: IWM, no. 10049.
40 ‘Kingcome was to deliver the opinion’: Kingcome, A Willingness to Die, p. 23.
41 Unwin: interview with author.
42 Brown: IWM, no. 12404.
43 Johns: IWM, no. 11616.
44 Haw: IWM, no. 12028.
45 Berry: IWM, no. 11475.
46 Foster: IWM, no. 12738.
47 Foxley-Norris: interview with author.
48 ‘Beaumont wrote’: S. G. Beaumont, The Reminiscences of S. G. Beaumont, privately published, p. 143.
49 Barran: see Frank H. Ziegler, The Story of 609 Squadron, Crécy Books, Manchester, 1993, p. 49.
50 ‘but slow rolls I hated’: Hugh Dundas, Flying Start, Stanley Paul, London, 1998, pp. 10-12.
51 Foxley-Norris: interview with author.
52 ‘Hillary was also a poor learner’: David Ross, Richard Hillary, Grub Street, London, 2000, p. 28.
53 Yvonne Agazarian: interview with author.
4. The Fatal Step
1 Brown: IWM, no. 12404.
2 Beaumont: IWM, no. 10128.
3 Foxley-Norris: IWM, no. 10136.
4 Brown: IWM, no. 12404.
5 ‘never a plane “so loved”’: Dundas, Flying Start, p. 19.
6 Quill: IWM, no. 10687.
7 Unwin: interview with author.
8 Kingcome: IWM, no. 10152.
9 Nicholas: IWM, no. 12405.
10 Considine: IWM, no. 10961.
11 ‘Kingcome judged’: Kingcome, A Willingness to Die, p. 64.
12 Drake: interview with author.
13 Deere: IWM, no. 10478.
14 ‘Half the pilots’: Paul Richey, Fighter Pilot, Guild Publishing, London, 1990, p. 10.
15 ‘Deere wrote later’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 36.
16 Brothers: IWM, no. 10218.
17 Hall: IWM, no. 10342.
18 ‘Kingcome recalled’: IWM, no. 10152.
19 ‘Deere wrote afterwards’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 36.
20 Winskill: IWM, no. 11537.
21 ‘Townsend also noticed’: Townsend, Time and Chance, pp. 99-100.
22 Sanders: interview with author.
23 Hancock: interview with author.
24 ‘Quill wrote to his mother’: letter in Quill family archive.
25 ‘Bartley decided to visit Germany’: Tony Bartley, Smoke Trails in the Sky, William Kimber, London, 1984.
26 Bowring: IWM, no. 12173.
27 ‘Hillary went to compete in Germany’: Richard Hillary, The Last Enemy, Macmillan, London, 1942, p. 23.
28 ‘At Cranwell’: Journal of the Royal Air Force College, spring 1939.
29 Drake: interview with author.
30 Page: IWM, no. 11103.
31 ‘Hillary was contemptuous’: Hillary, The Last Enemy, pp. 28-9.
32 ‘old-fashioned patriotism?’: Beaumont, Reminiscences, p. 131.
33 Deere: IWM, no. 10478.
34 ‘spent a lot of time’: see Oliver Walker, Sailor Malan, Cassell, London, 1953.
35 ‘wrote an RFC veteran’: Flight, 18 March 1939.
36 ‘Kingcome was ordered’: Kingcome, p. 61.
37 ‘Townsend recorded’: Townsend, A Willingness to Die, p. 99.
38 ‘Brothers had to appear’: interview with author.
39 ‘Vigors on leave from Cranwell’: Vigors, unpublished autobiography, p. 117.
40 ‘the inevitable, well lubricated games’: Dundas, Flying Start, p. 12.
41 ‘what a party’: Townsend, Time and Chance, p. 102.
42 Haw: IWM, no. 12028.
43 Walker: IWM, no. 10617.
44 ‘one of the few to be surprised’: Fenwick, Dear Mother, p. 36.
45 Down: IWM, no. 11449.
46 ‘Kingcome was struck’: quoted in Richard C. Smith, Hornchurch Scramble, Grub Street, London, 2000, p. 51.
5. Winter of Uncertainty
1 Freeborn: interview with author.
2 ‘According to Eric Clayton’: Eric Clayton, What If the Heavens Fall, RAF Museum, Hendon, ref. 34870.
3 ‘eighteen years old’: in fact he was nineteen.
4 Deere: IWM, no. 10478.
5 ‘His biographer wrote’: Walker, Sailor Malan.
6 ‘Al Deere noted’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 41.
7 Quoted in Henry Buckton, Birth of the Few, Airlife, Shrewsbury, 1998, p. 89.
8 Maclean: IWM, no. 10788.
9 ‘Townsend took part’: Townsend, Time and Chance, pp. 105-6.
10 Bennions: IWM, no. 10296.
11 Paddy Finucane: Pilot Officer B. E. F. Finucane, letters, in IWM, documents archive, ref. 97/43/1.
12 Benson: Pilot Officer Noel Benson, letters in RAF Museum, Hendon, ref. 133331.
13 ‘told Benson’s father later’: correspondence and eyewitness account of death of Pilot Officer Benson in IWM, documents archive, ref. 133332.
14 Wissler: diary of Pilot Officer Denis Wissler in IWM, documents archive, ref, 91/41/1.
15 Earp: IWM, no. 11772.
6. Return to the Western Front
1 ‘wrote Paul Richey’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 19.
2 ‘Mould felt bad about his victory’: see ibid., p. 24.
3 ‘Richey noticed’: accidental brushes with death, it seemed, could cause more distress to a pilot than encounters with enemies who had set out to kill them. Eric Clayton, a corporal on the 56 Squadron ground staff, was at North Weald in the early spring of 1940 when Flight Lieutenant Ian Soden, a much-admired and highly experienced pilot, landed after practice formation flying with Flying Officer Illingworth and Flying Officer Rose. ‘Soden got out of the cockpit looking white, released his parachute and leaned over the tailplane, clearly distressed. As the other pilots approached him, he said: “My God Illingworth! You hit me.” Inspection revealed a large dent in the sternpost of the tail fin. Illingworth, a short, cocky fellow, did not seem too perturbed and Rose was slightly amused. What surprised us, though, was Soden’s show of distress, for he was a man who displayed little emotion, was rather distant, and, as events proved, very brave’ – Clayton, What If the Heavens Fall.
4 Matthews: IWM, no. 10451.
5 Paulette Regnauld: interview with author.
6 ‘the main attraction was the Roxy’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 29.
7 ‘Gallagher wrote’: in Daily Express, 28 November 1939.
8 Foxley-Norris: interview with author.
9 ‘Richey pulled up violently’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 46.
10 ‘Beamont discovered’: IWM, no. 10128.
11 Sanders: interview with author.
7. The Battle of France
1 Parrott: IWM, no. 13152.
2 Drake: interview with author.
3 ‘four farm hands had been working’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, pp. 69-70.
4 ‘We took off’: quoted in Brian Cull and Bruce Lander with Heinrich Weiss, Twelve Days in May, Grub Street, London, 1999, p. 48.
5 ‘The official RAF daily report a
dmitted’: ibid., p: 52.
6 Brothers: interview with author.
7 ‘Richard Whittaker’s report’: Public Record Office, diary of 17 Squadron.
8 ‘Richey had been hurrying’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 75.
9 ‘He described’: quoted in Cull and Lander with Weiss, Twelve Days in May, p. 85.
10 Drake: interview with author.
11 ‘Richey had to collect something’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 86.
12 ‘David received a letter’: David, My Autobiography, p. 26.
13 ‘Our nerves’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 80.
14 ‘Churchill was woken’: see Terraine, The Right of the Line, pp. 135-40, for an account of Cabinet discussions.
15 ‘met a column of Belgian refugees’: David, My Autobiography, p. 26.
16 ‘When they retold the stories’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 90.
17 ‘Matthews was sent one day’: IWM, no. 10451.
18 ‘A pilot officer from “B” Flight’: interview with author.
19 ‘Richey wrote’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 108.
20 ‘No. 1 Squadron took over a café’: ibid., p. 112.
21 Brothers: interview with author.
22 Hancock: interview with author.
23 ‘He concluded that it would be “criminal”’: see Terraine, The Right of the Line, p. 153.
24 Beamont: IWM, no. 10128.
25 ‘David flew to their airfield’: David, My Autobiography, p. 28.
26 ‘David, who had been shot up’: ibid., p. 29.
27 Drake: interview with author.
28 ‘Richey “noticed”’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 129.
29 Long: IWM, no. 12217.
30 Hancock: IWM, no. 10119.
31 Dawbarn: interview with author.
32 Rosier: IWM, no. 10157.
33 ‘one Hurricane carried a passenger’: IWM, no. 10093.
34 ‘No. 1 Squadron diary’: quoted in Cull and Lander with Weiss, Twelve Days in May, p. 25.
8. Dunkirk
1 ‘wrote Brian Kingcome’: Kingcome, A Willingness to Die, p. 74.
2 ‘As Al Deere pointed out’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 46.
3 ‘Deere reported’: ibid., p. 49.
4 ‘Deere agreed’: ibid., p. 55.
5 ‘Leathart…promised’: ibid., p. 59.
6 ‘Crossley noted’: quoted in Graham Wallace, RAF Biggin Hill, Putnam, London, 1959, p. 116.
7 ‘the squadron chronicler recorded’: Mounson, The Flying Sword, p. 51.
8 Kingcome: IWM, no. 10152.
9 Unwin: interview with author.
10 Unwin: interview with author.
11 ‘Leathart…described’: quoted in Norman Franks, Air Battle Dunkirk, Grub Street, London, 2000, p. 27.
12 ‘biographer wrote’: Paul Brickhill, Reach for the Sky, Collins, London, 1954, p. 170.
13 Kingcome: IWM, no. 10152.
14 ‘Malan found’: Walker, Sailor Malan, p. 77.
15 ‘When Deere explained’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 70.
16 ‘Rosier…told how his wife’: IWM, no. 10157.
17 ‘Kingcome saw’: Kingcome, A Willingness to Die, p. 77.
18 Unwin: IWM, no. 11544.
19 ‘Malan said afterwards’: quoted in Walker, Sailor Malan, p. 79.
20 Bartley: IWM, no. 11086.
21 Unwin: IWM, no. 11544.
22 Nicholas: IWM, no. 12405.
23 Dundas: IWM, no. 10159.
24 Bartley: IWM, no. 11086.
25 ‘Vigors…went off on the last patrol’: Vigors, unpublished autobiography.
9. Doing It
1 ‘At Duxford aerodrome’: Vigors, unpublished autobiography, contains the whole account.
2 ‘Richey found’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, p. 114.
3 ‘Kingcome found’: Kingcome, A Willingness to Die, p. 51.
4 Brothers: interview with author.
5 Freeborn: interview with author.
6 ‘the release from tension’: Walker, Sailor Malan, p. 74.
7 Kingcome: IWM no. 10152.
8 Unwin: IWM, no. 11544.
9 Parrott: IWM, no. 13152.
10 Rosier: IWM, no. 10157.
11 Brown: IWM, no. 12404.
12 ‘I was suddenly drenched’: quoted in Cull and Lander with Weiss, Twelve Days in May, p. 123.
13 ‘Just as’: quoted in ibid., p. 203.
14 ‘Dundas was to find’: Dundas, Flying Start, pp. 2-3.
15 ‘Richey…began to feel peculiar’: Richey, Fighter Pilot, pp. 80-81.
10. Before the Storm
1 ‘Tim Vigors heard’: Vigors, unpublished autobiography.
2 ‘Ministry of Information instructions’: The Times, 19 June 1940.
3 ‘a newspaper circulating in south-east England’: Chichester and Southern Post, 22 June 1940.
4 ‘in the officials’: quoted in Brian Gardner, Churchill in His Time, Methuen, London, 1968, p. 65.
5 Brothers: interview with author.
6 ‘shortages were so acute’: see Fenwick, Dear Mother.
7 Haw: IWM, no. 12028.
8 Usmar: IWM, no. 10588.
9 ‘Beaumont’s diary entry’: Beaumont, Reminiscences.
10 ‘awareness of problems’: Ziegler, The Story of 609 Squadron, p. 99.
11 ‘The first person to greet him:’ Vigors, unpublished autobiography.
12 ‘Deere was particularly proud’: Deere, Nine Lives, p. 90.
13 Bird-Wilson. IWM, no. 10093.
14 ‘Fenwick…was in love’: Fenwick, Dear Mother.
15 Rosier: IWM, no. 10157.
16 Unofficial diary of 72 Squadron in RAF Museum, Hendon.
11. The Channel Battle
1 ‘was now at’: quoted in Deere, Nine Lives, p. 94.
2 ‘Deere narrowly escaped’: ibid., p. 99.
3 Foxley-Norris: IWM, no. 10136.
4 Quayle: IWM, no. 10609.
5 Drake: interview with author.
6 ‘The leading historian of the Polish air force in Britain’: Adam Zamoyski, The Forgotten Few, John Murray, London, 1995, p. 71.
7 Brothers: interview with author.
8 Bartley, IWM, no. 11086.
9 ‘the Me 109 carried the heavier punch’: see Deighton, Fighter, p. 77.
10 Unwin: interview with author.
11 Cox: IWM, no. 11510.
12 ‘Pilots were told’: see Anthony Robinson, RAF Fighter Squadrons in the Battle of Britain, Brockhampton Press, London, 1999, p. 31.
13 Page: IWM, no. 11103.
14 ‘courage, these days’: quoted in Walker, Sailor Malan, p. 101.
15 ‘was said to have been able to spot’: Allen, Battle for Britain, p. 77.
16 ‘Page…confessed’: Page, Shot Down in Flames, p. 63
17 ‘Beaumont…was told’: Beaumont, Reminiscences.
18 ‘Kingcome’s feeling’: Kingcome, A Willingness to Die, p. 99.
12. The Hun
1 ‘Milch chose Bob Tuck’s aircraft’: Larry Forester, Fly for Your Life, Frederick Muller, London, 1956, p. 59.
2 ‘Milch…sent a thank-you gift’: Haslam, The History of RAF Cranwell, p. 62.
3 ‘Kingcome’s sardonic style wavered’: IWM, no. 10152.
4 Becker: interview with author.
5 Schöpfel: interview with author.
6 ‘his first private meeting with Hitler’: David Baker, Adolf Galland, the Authorized Biography, Windrow & Greene, London, 1996, p. 43.
7 Foxley-Norris: interview with author.
8 ‘as long as I can’: Wick quoted in Mike Spick, Luftwaffe Fighter Aces, Greenhill Books, 1996, p. 73.
9 ‘to attach, to track’: ibid., p. 128.
10 Galland, IWM, no. 2791
11 Schöpfel: interview with author.
12 ‘he told his biographer’: Baker, Adolf Galland, p. 94.
13. Hearth and Home
1 Brothers: interview with author.
2 Greenwood: letter to Dilip Sarkar, in RAF Museum, Hendon archives
.
3 Elkington: interview with author.
4 Considine: IWM, no. 10961.
5 Foxley-Norris: IWM, no. 10136.
6 ‘circling and sweeping’: quoted in Ziegler, The Story of 609 Squadron, p. 119.
7 Page: IWM, no. 11103.
8 Constable Maxwell: diary of Michael Constable Maxwell, in RAF Museum, Hendon, Research Department.
9 Fink: interview contained in research papers of Alexander McKee (for his book Strike from the Sky – the Battle of Britain Story, New English Library, London, 1969), now in RAF Museum, Hendon.
10 ‘After two months’: Dennis Armitage, unpublished memoir.