There Shall Be Wings the Raf to The

by Max Arthur

This volume is an oral history of the Royal Airforce from 1918 to the present day, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the founding of the youngest of the three British armed services. With the inclusion of eye-witness accounts, it records the role of the RAF in World War II, and, particularly, the Battle of Britain and the desert battles of North Africa, as well as in the Falklands and in the Gulf War. Through original interviews with air and ground crew, the spirit and comradeship, the stress, courage, isolation, vulnerability and the wonderment of the wartime flying experience is explored. Poems of the airmen involved are included. Max Arthur has also written "Above All, Courage", "Northern Ireland Soldiers Talking" and "Men of the Red Beret".

Genres: History, Nonfiction

Paperback

Published January 1, 1993

About the author

Max Arthur is an author who specialises in first-hand recollections of historical events. He has worked closely with the Imperial War Museum to bring together two books in the Forgotten Voices series, Forgotten Voices of the Great War and Forgotten Voices of the Second World War. Prior to becoming a writer, he served with the Royal Air Force and for some years was an actor.

Reviews

[Robert Hepple · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published in 1993, 'There Shall Be Wings' is a series of personal accounts and extracts from serving members of the RAF from 1918 up to near the date of publication, and was presumably one of the deluge of RAF related books published at the time of its 75th anniversary. It does this very well, but concentrates mainly on WW2. The book was substantially revised to form the basis for the 2005 publication 'Lost Voices of the Royal Air Force'.

[Jack Woodholme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written account of the RAF from WWI to their 75th anniversary.