WW2 Nostalgia

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Received the following message from Aviaforan Adrian Batchelor:

Originally emailed by Adrian Batchelor

In case you are not aware, Spitfire P9374 was recently sold at auction, fetching over 3 million pounds, with all proceeds going to charity, and which I thought was fantastic.

Enjoy!

Ade

Spitfire P9374

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Supermarine Spitfire, quite literally firing-up!

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New Book on Jimmy Stewart to be Released on 24th October

In March 1941, Jimmy Stewart, America’s boy next door and recent Academy Award winner, left fame and fortune behind and joined the United States Army Air Corps to fulfill his family mission and serve his country. He rose from private to colonel and participated in 20 often-brutal World War II combat missions over Germany and France. In mere months the war took away his boyish looks as he faced near-death experiences and the loss of men under his command. The war finally won, he returned home with millions of other veterans to face an uncertain future, suffering what we now know as PTSD. Younger stars like Gregory Peck were now getting roles that might have been Stewart’s, and he didn’t know if he would ever work in Hollywood again. Then came It’s a Wonderful Life.

For the next half century, Stewart refused to discuss his combat experiences and took the story of his service to the grave. Mission presents the first in-depth look at Stewart’s life as a Squadron Commander in the skies over Germany, and, his return to Hollywood the changed man who embarked on production of America’s most beloved holiday classic.

Author Robert Matzen sifted through thousands of Air Force combat reports and the Stewart personnel files; interviewed surviving aviators who flew with Stewart; visited the James Stewart Papers at Brigham Young University; flew in the cockpits of the B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator; and walked the earth of air bases in England used by Stewart in his combat missions of 1943-45. What emerges in Mission is the story of a Jimmy Stewart you never knew until now, a story more fantastic than any he brought to the screen.

Available here: https://www.amazon.com/Mission-Jimmy...rt+book+matzen

The UK's Daily Mail has also published a write up on this book: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...rful-Life.html

This isn't the fist book written about Jimmy's flying career, in 2006 "Jimmy Stewart: Bomber Pilot" was published and which gave detailed insight into his military service. Available here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jimmy-Stewa.../dp/0760328242

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The Battle of Britain: A Documentary

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Hurricane Mk IIB of No. 151 Wing RAF, Vaenga Airfield, Murmansk, Russia 1941

No. 151 Wing Royal Air Force was a British unit which fought alongside Soviet forces on the Kola Peninsula during the first months of Operation Barbarossa during World War II. The 1941 expedition to Murmansk achieved three objectives from the point of view of the British government: Firstly, it provided vital aid to the Soviet Union at a critical moment; secondly it introduced the Soviet forces to the use of modern technology, control systems, and fighter tactics; and thirdly it showed the Finns that offensive action against the Soviet Union would result in direct military confrontation with the Western Allies.

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The Indomitable Spitfire: A Documentary

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Supermarine Spitfire, need one say more!