Scramble Quotes

“Our squadron commander said, ‘You’ve got to shoot down four enemy planes before you’re shot down yourself because that’s what the odds are. Otherwise you’re wasting your time.”
― Norman Gelb, Scramble: A Narrative History of the Battle of Britain

“Before the Battle of Britain, the Luftwaffe had things their own way. They had won in Spain, in Poland, in Belgium, in France. Over Britain, for the first time, they came up against something they couldn’t beat. It was not easy for them to understand that.”
― Norman Gelb, Scramble: A Narrative History of the Battle of Britain

“Britain’s position is hopeless. The war is won by us. A reversal in the prospects of success is impossible.”
― Norman Gelb, Scramble: A Narrative History of the Battle of Britain

“For such volunteers, there will be no question about signing or swearing an oath of allegiance to the British crown.”
― Norman Gelb, Scramble: A Narrative History of the Battle of Britain

“At about the time France caved in, I remember some of the men saying, ‘That could be the end.’ We were very worried that the government would sue for peace. The idea that this very exciting life might suddenly come to an end, and that we might all find ourselves back doing office work,”
― Norman Gelb, Scramble: A Narrative History of the Battle of Britain

“There was class distinction in the RAF, as there was and still is in British society as a whole. It was said, for example, that a regular officer was an officer trying to be a gentleman, an auxiliary was a gentleman trying to be an officer and a VR was neither trying to be both.”
― Norman Gelb, Scramble: A Narrative History of the Battle of Britain

“Volunteer Reserve (VR) pilots had also been weekend flyers before the war, but of an inferior social rank.”
― Norman Gelb, Scramble: A Narrative History of the Battle of Britain