Ace Pilots of World War II

Only a boy when World War II broke out, E. C. R. Baker was gripped by the stories he heard of heroism in the skies as the Allies defeated the mighty Luftwaffe. But in the years after the war, he was struck by how few of the RAF's legendary fighter aces could be named by the general public. Some, whose feats in deadly aerial combat equaled or even surpassed those of the most famous pilots, were virtually unknown. Baker set out to make this right, devoting many years of research to collecting the personal life stories and combat details of the nearly fifty RAF fighter pilots who each shot down and destroyed more than twenty hostile aircraft. Compiled with the help of surviving pilots and members of their squadrons, Fighter Aces of the RAF is a riveting and powerful book which combines meticulous historical accuracy with vivid descriptions and brings some truly great men the recognition they so richly deserved.

In terms of enemy aircraft shot down or destroyed, Squadron Leader Thomas "Pat" Pattle was the greatest fighter pilot of the Second World War. A South African who flew with the RAF, Pattle was an airman of outstanding skills and leadership who became the Allies' top-scoring fighter pilot after winning scores of stunning victories in deadly aerial combat. But for years after the war ended, Pattle was virtually an unsung hero because the records of his extraordinary achievements were destroyed amid the turmoil of war. Compiled with the help of surviving pilots and members of the squadrons with which Pattle fought in the air over Greece, Ace of Aces is a gripping and authoritative account of his amazing flying career, and the book which finally brought Pattle the recognition he so richly deserved.