Amy Johnson CBE was a pioneering English pilot predominantly operating during the 1930s but was sadly killed in the early years of WW2 and so in light of her extraordinary career which included many “world firsts” (Amy was the first woman to fly solo from London to Australia for example – more on this later) …
Amy Johnson – the short life and tragic end of an incredible aviator Read More »
Few people can have crammed more into a life time of service than Ulric Cross and whilst this site is dedicated to all matters 1940s, this gentleman’s story spans a far greater timeline than that and as a result of his overall achievements, we have included a potted life history. Philip Louis Ulric Cross was …
British RAF personnel are not generally well known for their prowess as Dive Bomber pilots during WW2, being more well known as fighter pilots or heavy bomber crew on famous aircraft such as the Halifax or Lancaster. However, Arthur Gill broke that mould and became probably Britain’s best ever Dive Bomber pilot although his name …
The Lancaster bombers of 61 Squadron thundered down the runway into the gathering gloom on yet another one of their relentless crusades and the early Autumn air was alive with the mix of mown fields and aviation exhaust fumes. That year had been quite a warm one in England and drier than average conditions in …
When your luck runs out…the sad tale of Sgt Harry Broadhead Read More »
On a warm spring morning in April 1943, a sardine fisherman spotted the corpse of a British soldier floating in the sea off the coast of Spain and set in train a course of events that would change the course of the Second World War. Operation Mincemeat was the most successful wartime deception ever attempted, …
Born in 1874 at Blenheim Palace, Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill was the eldest child of Lord Randolph Churchill and American heiress Jennie Jerome. After schooling to prepare him for a military role, Churchill joined the British Army in 1895 and was posted to India. It was during this period that he began his career …