No-one interested in the history of Canadian military aviation will want to miss this 3-volume series from Larry Milberry!
Volume 2 completes 1939-45. Ch.1 & 2 cover night fighters, intruders & medium bombers. Much on Canadians on Defiants, Beaufighters & Mosquitos, the former a period of frustration, the latter of success. Many personal stories end happily, but sad times also fill the pages. Ch.3 deals with Bomber Command, beginning with Canadians on RAF squadrons, then moves to the first RCAF squadrons on Hampdens & Wellingtons. With some 70,000 words, Ch.3 says much of the bombing campaign. If CAFWP has a brutal chapter, this is it -- some 10,000 young Canadians die on bombers. Chief data sources are the official 6 Group records + diaries, logs & albums of the men who were there. Ch.4 studies Coastal Command on Beaufighters, Liberators, Sunderlands, etc. 60,000 words of new coverage and photos. While RCAF at War revealed new material on the Hornell VC, more is added here. Special coverage of 422 & 423 Sqns (Sunderlands) is not to be missed, nor are the excerpts from combat reports. Air transport is the theme of Ch.5, with more of Norseman, Dakota, Fortress, etc.
Standing Against Fire chronicles the history of the Fire Service that has served within Canada's military for the better part of a century. Today, the Fire Service is a cohesive organization with its members qualified to stringent international standards. However, for years after its tentative beginnings during World War I, the Fire Service led a nomadic existence, first as part of one military branch then another, before settling in as a component of the Military Engineers.
Drawing on archival documents, personal memoirs, contemporary accounts, and military records, Standing Against Fire gathers together for the first time a comprehensive account of the Fire Service's legacy and accomplishments. Embarrassments, humorous tales and outstanding achievements by both fire crews and individual firefighters are recounted. Approximately 200 visuals complement the text. Standing Against Fire is a tribute to the men and women who have proudly and honourably served Canada in the Fire Service.