Flights into History

Final Missions Retold By Research and Archaeology

During the Second World War, men of many nations - Britons, Americans, air men from the Commonwealth and Occupied Europe - and their equally determined, courageous German foes - fought and died in the skies over Europe. Reconstructing events, often from wreckage recovered, new lines of research and eyewitness accounts, Ian McLachlan presents a new selection of stories vividly describing how air men of these nations flew into history. Sometimes, when aircraft crashed, or were shot down, the remains would be quickly buried and forgotten in the turmoil of war. Decades later, these wrecks and relics can reveal their secrets to the expert investigator. Their excavation and preservation can serve as a tribute to the bravery and airman ship of their crews. By reconstructing wartime events from evidence in the wreckage, eyewitness accounts and contemporary documentation, aviation archaeologists can identify the flyers involved and shed new light on the air war over Europe during the Second World War. Aviation archaeology expert Ian McLachlan has assembled a new selection of dramatic stories, written in his highly successful style, full of human interest, recounting the last flights of aviators of many nations.