Desert Warriors Australian P-40 pilots at war in the Middle East and north Africa 1941-1943
Maryborough, Australia: Banner Books, 2000. Quarto, navy-blue hardcover with gilt embossed lettering on spine, xii, 322 pp., endpapers illustrated with black and white maps, text illustrated with black-and-white photographs throughout as well as some logbook sheets, 14 appendices included with one featuring four full-colour leaves of aircraft illustrations. Bumped at top end of spine, slight fading on dust-jacket spine; otherwise a near-fine copy. First edition. Details the activities of Royal Australian Air Force Squadrons Nos. 3 and 450 which flew Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawks and Tomahawks during World War Two, and the Australian pilots who flew the same models with Royal Air Force Squadrons Nos. 112, 250 and 260.
In the hands of these ingenious pilots, the P-40, while not made to be a pure fighter, became a solid and formidable performer handling tasks above and beyond its original purpose. This was illustrated by the significant contribution made in difficult and challenging conditions by the Australian pilots of the Desert Air Force to the Allied victory in North Africa in 1943.
Russell Brown's detailed factual research and inclusion of personal stories from squadron members combine to make this book a comprehensive and moving history of Australia's "Desert Warriors" Item #4431
Price (AUD): $280.00