Snakes in the Cockpit: Images of Military Aviation Disasters

Building on the success of the previous volume, Flying Under Fire, Volume Two, features nine more personal accounts from Canadian pilots who flew in the Second World War. From training camps to posting across Canada, Britain, Europe, and North Africa, these stories capture the excitement, fear, hope, and dread of war-time service, and are all told with the vivid detail of first-hand experience. The contributors to this volume are a distinguished group: two are Air Commodores, three are Hall of Fame members, one has an Order of Canada and a McKee Trophy, and five have Distinguished Flying Crosses. Some, including Art Wahlroth and Bob Fowler, flew bombing missions in the war, many were fighters, and others, like Bill Carr and Jack Winship, performed reconnaissance duties, but all brought back tales of incredible resourcefulness and courage in the face of danger. And central to all their stories are the planes - Mosquitoes, Spitfires, Wellingtons, Meteors, Mitchells, and Kittyhawks fill the pages, each exhibiting the special quirks and personalities the pilots came to know and trust. Flying Under Fire, Volume Two, pays tribute to the roughly 35,000 Canadian airmen involved in the Second World War, honouring their contributions and preserving their stories for generations to come.