Author guest post from Tim Hillier-Graves.

To commemorate the 80th Anniversary of the end of the war with Japan, Air World will be publishing this unique record of the conflict as seen through the eyes of one combat unit that fought in the thick of things – the Fleet Air Arm’s 15th Naval Fighter Wing. To the young men who flew with the 15th fell the dubious honour of taking the Vought Corsair to sea after the US Navy had rejected it for shipborne use. This high performance, but notoriously tricky fighter claimed many of their young lives even before combat with the Japanese was joined in April 1944 from the deck of HMS Illustrious. Despite the heavy cost involved they persevered and eventually proved the worth of this extraordinary aircraft. In due course it finally went to sea with the USN where it excelled in the final stages of the war. This is the story of how the 15th Wing achieved this notable success and the extreme cost involved.

The author met or corresponded with many of the Wing’s survivors over many years and was able to record their exciting and very moving memories of this dangerous time. These accounts form the basis of this book and to this has been added a unique collection of their colour and black and white photographs, in many cases, published for the first time here.

Preorder your copy here.