Aircrew Book Review: Springbok Fighter Victory

18 February 2012

Springbok Fighter Victory

Long-term readers of ABR will know I have 'favourite' theatres of war and a penchant for accounts of the more obscure campaigns. North Africa, Burma and the Far East in particular feature heavily in my aircrew fascination but, to some extent, these, happily, are not as neglected as they once were (although they should receive more attention still).

The South African Air Force's activities over and around the Mediterranean are well known but, surprisingly, do not seem to be widely covered by the likes of memoirs and squadron histories. A trip to South Africa in 2006 gave me the opportunity to peruse several bookshops around Jo'burg but, to my surprise, I did not turn up any relevant titles. A quick bit of online searching soon after my return revealed a few books - some of which I discussed here - and in the years since I've turned up titles such as Barry Keyter's From Wings To Jackboots and the Bagshawe anthology Warriors Of The Sky (another edition published by Pen & Sword recently). It's been a bit of work though and books on the SAAF Marauders (and RAF ones) continue to elude me.

Reading the obituary of AVM Don Hills today led to me checking for reference of him in Michael Schoeman's Springbok Fighter Victory Volume 1 - East Africa 1940-1941. Regular readers will know I tend to go off on tangents so you won't be surprised to hear that, upon remembering SFV was the first volume, I did a quick search and found Volume 2 - Crisis Above The Desert 1940-1942 - is now available or, more correctly, has been available for a few years. Excellent!

The easiest place to find out more - and there's not a hell of a lot out there - is the website of the publisher, Freeworld Publications (who reports Volume 1 is out of print and cannot be reprinted). Besides the other titles available it is most gratifying to see Volumes 3-5 of the SFV series also listed although the third volume is sold out (but can be reprinted if there is sufficient interest). What this promises is a complete series of titles that will prove to be the 'bible' in terms of SAAF fighter operations during the war. For that we can be grateful.

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Welcome

Welcome to one of my silly ideas. I have been an avid reader of aircrew memoirs from the Second World War for as long as I can remember (not counting the various other interests that I have flitted to over time). I started collecting titles as found on Amazon but in the past few years have concentrated on books about the members of the RAF, FAA and Commonwealth air forces. I still maintain an interest in the operations of the USAAF, USN, Luftwaffe and Japanese forces but, as an Australian, you can probably understand where my heart lies!

Around about 2000, when I started collecting in earnest, I stuggled to find vast amounts of books on the subject. For those of you in the know this is a ridiculous thing to say as there are thousands of titles on the RAF alone.

In the past four or five years I have been fortunate to make some excellent friends in the UK and Australia who have helped broaden my knowledge of what's available and, in some cases, spend my money for me. In doing so, I have also corresponded with and met several authors and gained some insight into what it takes to put a well-researched book together. One of these days I hope to do the same but for the time being writing reviews and the occasional article will see me through as I gather what I need.

I have worked as a journalist in the past and run my own online magazine which was very time consuming and eventually led to another blog which is much easier to maintain. My interest in the aviation of the Second World War began with a school library book on The Battle of Britain when I was nine. Numerous plastic models, museum visits, magazine subscriptions, movies and Commando comics later I branched out into books like Squadron Signal's 'In Action' series (cheap for a teenager) and generalist titles covering certain aircraft. My first memory of a memoir (ha) was an oldish, secondhand copy of Alex Henshaw's superlative Sigh for a Merlin bought at a primary school market - incidentally, still the best Spitfire book I have ever read. I devoured it and although I haven't read it since (early 1990s) I can still vividly remember many of Alex's adventures testing this greatest of aircraft. One of these days I'll read it again.

My time as a journalist proper was short-lived as I had to make some decent money but it followed time as an accountant, truck driver and recruitment researcher. As of March 2010, I have stepped into commercial accounting which is a different kettle of fish and certainly not all spreadsheets and numbers (to be honest, the best job I have ever had).

Throughout my various incarnations I have maintained a fascination for what aircrew experienced during the war. I have been fortunate enough to meet several veterans and have even worked alongside some on a couple of major aircraft restorations down here in Australia. To a man I have found them friendly, modest and, at times, wondering what all the fuss is about. A gross generalisation perhaps but any variance would be understandable considering what they lived through. I know I could certainly not have done what they did in their late teens/early 20s. Fortunately, I have not had the opportunity to prove this otherwise and that's largely because of what these men (and women) sacrificed for what we have today.

Each book is a pleasure to read (even the not-so-great ones) and I try to convey what each is like to read without giving the game away too much. I also endeavour to let you know when or where I bought my copy and where it is available now as I try to review a mix of old and new titles (basically whatever takes my fancy at the time although when review copies come in, these take precedence). Honesty is at the core of everything I write on here so if something doesn't sit right with me or I feel it affects the 'experience' of the book, I will mention it.

Please feel free to recommend titles I may not be aware of or that you think would complement a reviewed title.

Cheers

Andy Wright

18 February 2012

Springbok Fighter Victory

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