David L. Bashow

As he did in his earlier book, No Prouder Place, which was the history of Canadians in Bomber Command, Bashow covers the exploits of Canadians flying fighter aircraft in World War Two. He does it by combining the history of the war with the experiences of individuals often in their own words from interviews or from their published works.

He also describes the many aircraft Canadians flew from the famous Spitfire to the big and rugged Typhoon explaining what their strengths and weaknesses were.

The detail in this volume might overwhelm some readers but for a fan it is a treasure trove of information about Canadian fighter pilots whose contribution is often overlooked in the huge amount of information that comes from the publishers of British and American sources. Includes some photos and an extensive bibliography.… (altro)

This an amazing work by a dedicated aviation historian. The detail is mind boggling and what he has not managed to jam into the main text, may be found in the end notes. There are also many photographs of airplanes, crewmen, air battle scenes as well as full colour paintings of some fighters and bombers.

The focus of the study is the participation of Canadian airmen in the Bomber Command battle over occupied Europe and Germany. The different Allied aircraft are analyzed for their weaknesses and strengths. As well, the author details the contribution of the Canadians all of whom volunteered for the job.

As would be expected in a book about the bombing campaign over Germany, Bashow discusses whether the effort really hurt Germany and helped shorten the war. In his view which he supports with a great amount of research including support from German historians is that the bombing campaign really did shorten the war and while casualties on both sides were high, it was worth the effort and really the only way to bring the war to the German homeland early in the war.… (altro)

A good, readable survey of Bomber Command, and by extension the strategic bombing of Germany. It fairly puts to bed a couple myths - that Harris was a dumb murderous butcher; and that the bombing had no effect. However, David Bashow tries too hard to give a significance to the strategic bombing of Germany that doesn't exist. It was not a war-winning campaign. The Russian army fought the war winning campaign, which is barely if at all mentioned. Some of the issues Bashow raises to show the effect of the bombing campaign are immaterial. For example there is a massive discussion on the morale of the Germans. It was low. No surprise. But he glosses over the fact that they never ceased to work and/or to fight until the last weeks, and even then they ceased against the western allies, not the Soviets. Bashow gives an excellent view of much of the human drama of the campaign, and the toll taken on the aircrew. A recommended read.… (altro)