Warplanes of the Second World War - William Green
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Green's Last Book
I think William Green's last work was "Aircraft of the Third Reich 1933-45 Vol.1" published by Aerospace around 2010. It is a comprehensive and impressive book covering more than just warplanes of the Luftwaffe. I was looking forward to the planned volumes 2 and 3 but Aerospace Publishing ran into difficulties and they never materialised.
Much like his "Aircraft of the Second World War" series I suppose.
Much like his "Aircraft of the Second World War" series I suppose.
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William Green used to write in ink to his correspondents on aerograms with a minute cursive hand . As I used as a lad in Canberra gather piles of hand outs from the RAAF PRO office in the old Commonwealth office block called east block, and forward them to WG, my archive contains several of these original keepsakes. As he was such a prodigious researcher and author, and so notable in his field, is there any detailed biographical record? Or even informative obituary?
(Never met the man, understandably, but one day in Alice Springs Chris Wren came on board my Queenair, and sat in the co-pilot's seat all the way to Victoria River Downs, where he changed planes for Darwin and thence BOAC home to London. A more interesting and delightful character you'd not meet in a month of Sundays.)
(Never met the man, understandably, but one day in Alice Springs Chris Wren came on board my Queenair, and sat in the co-pilot's seat all the way to Victoria River Downs, where he changed planes for Darwin and thence BOAC home to London. A more interesting and delightful character you'd not meet in a month of Sundays.)
Thanks H.H. Now in a better place so we can thread drift a bit. Polecat2 noted that "I think William Green's last work was "Aircraft of the Third Reich 1933-45 Vol.1"
Of course the original effort was his "Warplanes of the Third Reich" first published ( by Macdonald ) in 1970.This A4 tome of nearly 700 pages was for me at the time a base reference on German warplanes 1933-45: my 1972 edition cost a tenner. As Polecat2 has noted this was expanded, e.g.to include captured aircraft (why?) and hopefully updated with corrections c.2010. I had a glimmer of interest in the Aerospace effort until I saw the pricing, IIRC around 100 pounds for the three volume set. In the meantime of course Putnams had come out with Smith and Kay's "German Aircraft of the Second World War" (smaller format but c750p.p.) My edition was 20 pounds in 1985 . To be honest I felt Aerospace had misjudged the market, especially considering the impact of the Internet.
Going back to a more innocent era(1950's) the Dumpy books were cheap, basic and for a small boy a great stimulant to discovering aviation and aeroplanes. Also the quality of language and explanation was high. For another example, the "Boys Book of Flight" (published for "Flight" in 1957) shows a level of required literacy that pushed readers to expand their comprehension of aeronautical matters.
Of course the original effort was his "Warplanes of the Third Reich" first published ( by Macdonald ) in 1970.This A4 tome of nearly 700 pages was for me at the time a base reference on German warplanes 1933-45: my 1972 edition cost a tenner. As Polecat2 has noted this was expanded, e.g.to include captured aircraft (why?) and hopefully updated with corrections c.2010. I had a glimmer of interest in the Aerospace effort until I saw the pricing, IIRC around 100 pounds for the three volume set. In the meantime of course Putnams had come out with Smith and Kay's "German Aircraft of the Second World War" (smaller format but c750p.p.) My edition was 20 pounds in 1985 . To be honest I felt Aerospace had misjudged the market, especially considering the impact of the Internet.
Going back to a more innocent era(1950's) the Dumpy books were cheap, basic and for a small boy a great stimulant to discovering aviation and aeroplanes. Also the quality of language and explanation was high. For another example, the "Boys Book of Flight" (published for "Flight" in 1957) shows a level of required literacy that pushed readers to expand their comprehension of aeronautical matters.
Last edited by Haraka; 2nd Apr 2018 at 08:26.
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A few years ago I bought a copy of "Warplanes of the Third Reich" secondhand from the SA river company for about £25. It was the fourth edition and a bit saggy but a lovely book with lots of great information all in one place. Unexpectedly however, it was also signed by Mr Green as well. A real bonus, and one of my more treasured books.
Back to the original subject.
Thanks all, I've spent years scouring old bookshops and aviation museums looking for WW2 Vol 11 and WW1 Vol 5 onwards, now to find they were never written. As you've said, the existing volumes hold a lot of information in a small space.
Of late I've noticed that second hand copies of Aircraft of the Fighting Powers, and a lot of the Putnam books are becoming more common. Could this be that the original owners have passed on and their treasured volumes are now on the market again?
Thanks all, I've spent years scouring old bookshops and aviation museums looking for WW2 Vol 11 and WW1 Vol 5 onwards, now to find they were never written. As you've said, the existing volumes hold a lot of information in a small space.
Of late I've noticed that second hand copies of Aircraft of the Fighting Powers, and a lot of the Putnam books are becoming more common. Could this be that the original owners have passed on and their treasured volumes are now on the market again?
