Pen and Sword Books: A Century of British Naval Aviation 1909-2009 by David Wragg

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Above the Waves is the history of the first century of British Naval aviation, with personal accounts adding colour to the achievements both in technology, such as angled flight decks, mirror deck landing systems, helicopter assault and vertical take-off, and in operations, including the sinking of the Konigsberg and the daring attack on the Italian fleet at Taranto, convoy protection, operations with the United States Navy in the Pacific, then, post-war, Suez, and later the recovery of the Falklands from Argentine invasion.

The Royal Navy was in the forefront of aviation from a very early stage. As the author reveals Officers such as the legendary Admiral of the Fleet Lord Fisher quickly recognised the strategic and tactical importance of air power. Winston Churchill, as First Lord of the Admiralty, volunteered the Navy for the air defence of the UK in WW1 but with the formation of the RAF in 1918 the Navy had a fierce fight to retain its own air arms and this is a struggle that has continued up to the present day.

Not only are there many thrilling accounts of operations but this fascinating book also includes a chronology of major events. Above the Waves will appeal to those who have served, those who serve today and those who intend to serve in the future, and for their relatives and the many enthusiasts who sense the particular excitement of air operations at sea.

This book has a strong narrative theme and tells the story of the creation of the Royal Navy's century of flight in a very readable and entertaining way.
Ulster Airmail - April 2011

by by Vice Admiral BB Schofield

Our Price: £19.99

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David Wragg has published several highly praised books on railway history, and he produced a textbook for the old Chartered Institute of Transport. He has also written on railways for the Sunday Telegraph, The Spectator, The Scotsman, and the Yorkshire Post. His Wartime on the Railways was reviewed by Rail as 'very readable' and by Railways Illustrated as 'as a fascinating insight and also an important record', and Railways Illustrated chose his Southern Railway Handbook as 'Book of the Month'.

One of his most recent publications is The Historical Dictionary of Railways in the British Isles. He is also well known as a writer of military history and provide the British, Australian, Canadian and New Zealand material for ON SEAS CONTESTED - THE SEVEN GREAT NAVIES OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR, published in 2010 by the Naval Institute Press in the United States and which won the Stonebooks award for "The Best Non-Fiction book on World War II" to have been published that year.'