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Old 29th Sep 2005, 07:06
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johnfairr
 
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Winged Victory by V M Yeates is probably the most evocative of WWI flying books, on a par with Journeys End by Sheriff for the Army guys. Strange there seems to be no equivalent for the RN in WWI.

James McCudden, Five Years in the RFC, and King of Air Fighters, by Ira Jones, about Mick Mannock and his sojourns on 74 and 85 Sqns are also worth a read if you are into the old stuff.

These are the books that I grew up with in the 50s/60s as my Old Man had them and I naturally browsed the bookcase.

From the Japanese point of view, Samurai by Saburo Sakai is outstanding, but only if you get the version that was printed in the 50s/60s, which details the selection procedure for NCO pilots in the Imperial Japanese Navy. A couple of examples that spring to mind, jumping off diving boards onto the concrete below to practice aerobatics and trying to sharpen up your eyesight by spotting stars in the daytime and then swinging back to them after moving away.

All first class books, which have now got me trundling off to the bookcase myself.....

jf
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