249 at Malta

RAF’s Top-Scoring Fighter Squadron

Nonfiction, History, Military, Aviation, United States, World War II
Cover of the book 249 at Malta by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea, Fonthill Media
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Brian Cull, Frederick Galea ISBN: 1230001907605
Publisher: Fonthill Media Publication: September 19, 2017
Imprint: Language: English
Author: Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
ISBN: 1230001907605
Publisher: Fonthill Media
Publication: September 19, 2017
Imprint:
Language: English

By the end of 1941, following its participation in the Battle of Britain, 249 Squadron was posted to Malta. Having been informed that its pilots would be required to fly from the deck of an aircraft carrier, intensive practice flights took place with two Hurricanes fitted with long-range tanks, making shortened take-off runs from an airfield runway. The following month, having been ferried to Gibraltar, the aircraft were off-loaded on to the Ark Royal and all twenty safely reached Malta – an area dubbed a fighter pilot’s paradise.

This was the beginning of 249’s adventure in the defence of Malta. Spitfires would follow early in 1942 and by the time it moved to a new theatre of operations, 249 had claimed 245 air victories, producing ace pilots such as ‘Screwball’ Beurling, ‘Laddie’ Lucas, Johnny Plagis and John Lynch to name but a few. There was seldom a shortage of targets as the Luftwaffe endeavoured to flatten the defences and destroy the small air force, in which it failed, but only narrowly.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

By the end of 1941, following its participation in the Battle of Britain, 249 Squadron was posted to Malta. Having been informed that its pilots would be required to fly from the deck of an aircraft carrier, intensive practice flights took place with two Hurricanes fitted with long-range tanks, making shortened take-off runs from an airfield runway. The following month, having been ferried to Gibraltar, the aircraft were off-loaded on to the Ark Royal and all twenty safely reached Malta – an area dubbed a fighter pilot’s paradise.

This was the beginning of 249’s adventure in the defence of Malta. Spitfires would follow early in 1942 and by the time it moved to a new theatre of operations, 249 had claimed 245 air victories, producing ace pilots such as ‘Screwball’ Beurling, ‘Laddie’ Lucas, Johnny Plagis and John Lynch to name but a few. There was seldom a shortage of targets as the Luftwaffe endeavoured to flatten the defences and destroy the small air force, in which it failed, but only narrowly.

More books from Fonthill Media

Cover of the book Crescenta Valley History by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book The Hull Zeppelin Raids 1915-1918 by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book Deveron to Devastation by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book Rise Against Eagles by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book The Lion and the Rose by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book The British Army of the Rhine After the First World War by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book While You See A Chance by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book Conquest of the Atlantic by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book St George and the Dragons by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book Everyday Life of a Soldier on Hadrian's Wall by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book A Race to Freedom by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book Norway 1940 by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book This Is What Hell Looks Like by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book A Royal Engineer at War 1940-1945 by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
Cover of the book Charles Dickens by Brian Cull, Frederick Galea
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy