Text for the Above Print :
Royal Air Force and Royal Navy fighter aircrews flew combat throughout
the six long years of World War Two. At the outbreak of war in 1939
four RAF Hurricane squadrons and two equipped with Gladiators went
immediately to France where in short time New Zealander "Cobber"
Kain became the first Allied Ace of the war. In April 1940
Hurricanes and Gladiators saw action in Norway, when Rhodesian Caesar Hull
of 263 Squadron became the second air Ace.
By the fall of France the new Spitfire joined in the great air battles
over the Channel as the British Expeditionary Forces evacuated
Dunkirk. Bob Stanfor - Tuck, Douglas Bader, Peter Townsend, Sailor
Malan, and many other great Aces gained their first victories, but with
German forces massing on the French coast, the invasion of Britain looked
imminent. Only RAF Fighter Command stood in Hitler's way.
By July, the most famous of all air battles had begun. The next
three months, under glorious summer skies, saw the most decisive and
continual aerial fighting in history. The British victory in the
Battle of Britain was to fundamentally change the course of the war and,
ultimately, the course of history.
But there were four and a half more years of air battles still to be
fought and won - from the English Channel Front to the North African
desert, from the Mediterranean to Far East Asia. It fell to Fleet
Air Arm pilots to see the last air fighting for British and Commonwealth
pilots, by then equipped with Seafires and American Corsairs and Hellcats,
as they took part in the final assaults on the Japanese mainland. As
the last embers of hostilities faded into history the centuries old
doctrine of maritime supremacy had gone. Now the aircraft ruled.
In his masterful painting A Time For Heroes, Robert Taylor pays tribute
to the World War II fighter aircrews of the RAF and Fleet Air Arm. A
panoramic scene from the era of the Battle of Britain shows Mk I Spitfires
of 234 Squadron, 10 Group's top scoring squadron, returning to St Eval
after intercepting heavy raids on south coast ports during the heaviest
fighting, in September 1940. St Michael's Mount, the castle built on
the site of a 14th Century monastery to defend Britain's shores from
earlier enemies, provides a symbolic backdrop as once again a band of
brothers is called upon to defend their Sceptred Isle.
Signatures:
All Editions :
Group Captain Tom Dalton Morgan DSO, DFC*, OBE
Tom joined the RAF in 1935, serving with 22
Squadron. In June 1940 he was posted to Tangmere as 'B' Flight
commander with 43 Squadron, flying Hurricanes, scoring his first victory
on 12 July. In action over the Channel in August he was hit by
crossfire, bailing out with slight wounds. He soon resumed flying
but was again wounded on 6 September. Ten days later he was promoted
to command 43 Squadron. In January 1942 he left the squadron to
become a Controller. Promoted Wing Commander Operations with 13
Group, he then led the Ibsley Wing, consisting of 4 Spitfire, 2 Whirlwind,
and 2 Mustang Squadrons. His final victory in May 1943 brought his
score to 17. Briefly attached to the USAAF 4th Fighter Group, he was
then Operations Officer with the 2nd TAF until the end of the war.
Wing Commander Bob Doe, DSO, DFC*
Posted to 234 Squadron in November 1939, and 238
Squadron in September 1940, Bob Doe achieved great success during the
Battle of Britain, scoring 14 and 3 shared victories. He was one of
the few pilots to fly both the Hurricane and the Spitfire. In
October he was shot down, but rejoined the squadron soon after, however in
January 1941 he suffered engine failure and was forced to crash land,
suffering severe injuries resulting in plastic surgery. Able to
resume operational flying in May 1941, he joined 66 Squadron, moving to
130 Squadron in August. In July 1943 he joined 118 Squadron, then
613 Squadron flying Mustangs. In October he was posted to the Far
East to form 10 Squadron Indian Air Force on Hurricanes, which he led in Burma.
Wing Commander George 'Grumpy' Unwin, DSO, DFM*
George Unwin joined the RAF in 1929, and in 1936 was posted to Duxford
with 19 Squadron as a Sergeant Pilot. He was one of the first pilots
in the RAF to fly the Spitfire. With the outbreak of war 19 Squadron
moved to Hornchurch and George, now one of the Squadron's most experienced
pilots, took part in the great air battles over France and Dunkirk,
scoring 3 and a half victories. He flew with 19 Squadron
continuously during the whole of the Battle of Britain. He was
commissioned in 1941. After a period instructing, he resumed
operations, flying Mosquitoes with 16 Squadron. George finished the
war with 13 victories, 2 shared, 2 unconfirmed, and 2 probables.
Fighter Pilots Edition :
Includes all above signatures, plus the following.
Squadron Leader Neville Duke, DSO, OBE, DFC*, AFC, CzMC
Neville Duke flew Spitfires as wingman to Sailor Malan in 92
Squadron. In November 1941 he was posted to 112 Squadron in the
Middle East. After a second tour in the Desert, he flew a third
tour, with 145 Squadron in Italy. He was the top scoring Allied Ace
in the Mediterranean with 28 victories. After the war, in 1953, he
captured the World Air Speed record.
Wing Commander John Freeborn DFC*
Johnie Freeborn flew Spitfires with 74 Squadron over Dunkirk, and was
in action throughout the Battle of Britain, he had been with his squadron
longer, and flown more hours, than any other Battle of Britain
pilot. He joined 602 Squadron in 1942, and commanded 118 Squadron in
June 1943. In June 1944 he was promoted Wing Commander Flying of 286
Wing in Italy. John Freeborn scored 17 victories.
Commander Mike Crossley DSC* Royal Navy (signed companion print)
Fleet Air Arm Ace Mike Crossley joined the carrier HMS Eagle in 1941,
flying Sea Hurricanes in defence of the Malta convoys. In August
1942 he was lucky to escape when Eagle was sunk by a u-boat. He
joined HMS Biter flying Sea Hurricanes in Operation Torch, and Seafires
during D-Day. He finished the war in the Far East, an Ace with 5 and
a half victories.
Flight Lieutenant John Squier
John Squier was called up from the RAFVR at the outbreak of war,
joining 64 Squadron at Kenley in June 1940 flying Spitfires. In
August he crash landed following an attack by Hannes Trautloft of
III/JG51, suffering severe injuries. Rejoining 64 Squadron in
November, he was posted to 72 Squadron, then 603 Squadron, and finally 141
Squadron. He was commissioned in 1942. After the war he became
a test pilot and was the first pilot to eject at supersonic speed.
Lieutenant Commander Peter Meadway Royal Navy (Signed companion print)
Peter Meadway joined the Royal Navy in 1939, and was posted as Observer
to 825 Squadron FAA flying Swordfish from HMS Furious. Transferring
to 810 Squadron FAA on HMS Ark Royal he took part in the successful
torpedo attacks on the German Battleship Bismarck on the night of
26th/27th May 1941, and was witness to her sinking the following day.
Squadron Leader Mahinder Pujji DFC
In 1940 Mahinder, a qualified pilot flying for Shell in India,
volunteered to join the RAF and was commissioned as Pilot Officer.
Arriving in England, he was posted to 43 Squadron, and then 258 Squadron
at Kenley, flying both Hurricanes and Spitfires. Later posted to the
Western Desert, then to India, and finally to Burma, where he completed
two tours against the Japanese.
Veterans Edition :
Includes all above signatures, plus the following.
Air Commodore Peter Brothers CBE, DSO, DFC*
Pete Brothers flew in the Battles of France and Dunkirk. During
the Battle of Britain he flew with Bob Stanford Tuck at 257
Squadron. In 1941 he formed 457 Squadron (RAAF), and later led 602
Squadron on the Dieppe Raid. He was then Spitfire Wing Leader at
Tangmere, and later given command of the Culmhead Wing for the Normandy
Invasion. He finished the war with 16 victories.
Air Marshal Sir Denis Crowley-Milling KCB, CBE, DSO,
DFC, AE
At the outbreak of war he was called up, joining 615 Squadron in
France, later posted to 242 Squadron in the fighting over Dunkirk.
During the Battle of Britain he flew in Douglas Bader's section, and
joined his Spitfire Wing at Tangmere as a Flight Commander of 610
Squadron. In 1942 he formed the first Typhoon Bomber Squadron.
He finished the war with 5 victories.
Air Vice Marshal Johnnie Johnson CB, CBE, DSO**, DFC*
The top scoringAllied Ace of World War II with 38 victories, Johnnie
Johnson had joined 92 Squadron in August 1940. He flew with Douglas
Bader in the famous Tangmere Wing, and then led 610 Squadron on the Dieppe
Raid. After commanding the Canadian Wing at Kenley, he led 144 Wing
again flying Spitfires, 127 Wing, and then 125 Wing.
Wing Commander Harbourne Stephen CBE, DSO, DFC
Flying Spitfires with 74 Squadron, Harbourne took part in the great air
battles over France and Dunkirk. With 7 victories already to his
credit he was in the thick of the Battle of Britain, and by the end of
1940 this talented Spitfire Ace ad accumulated 22 and a half air
victories. After forming 130 Squadron, he then led 234 Squadron, and
later commanded 166 Wing in the Far East.
Group Captain Peter Townsend CVO, DSO, DFC
Peter Townsend was one of the most inspirational fighter leaders of the
Battle of Britain. In February 1940, flying a Hurricane, he had shot
down the first German aircraft to fall on English soil in World War II,
and this was the first of a string of successes for the popular commander
of 85 Squadron. Shot down twice, wounded, and flying part of the
Battle when he couldn't walk, Peter Townsend survived to lead the first
night-fighter squadron. He later became Equerry to King George VI, a
post he held for 8 years
