The Royal Canadian Air Force at War, 1939-1945

Sidney Allinson is the editor at the Royal Canadian Military Institute
and author of The Bantams: The Untold Story of World War I.

The enormous contribution of the rcaf during World War II warrants a
massive, large-format book like this to do it justice. This work is such
a rich source of information, facts, anecdotes, and images that the most
avid aviation buffs can gorge themselves on its absorbing 480 pages. The
depth of research indicates a labor of love by the authors. Nothing less
could inspire so comprehensive an account of the rcaf’s growth from a
puny complement of 4000 in 1939 to its 1945 war-end strength of
250,000—the fourth-largest Allied airforce.

It is evident that a good deal of thought has been given to the
book’s organization. Early chapters document the significance of the
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, which trained 25,661 Canadians.
Virtually nothing is missed about Canada’s part in the air war: home
defence; trans-Atlantic ferry work; the Women’s Division that formed
eight percent of rcaf strength; and the operations by each main combat
command. This logical form of presentation, with a lengthy index, helps
both the casual reader and the more serious researcher to home in on
specific interests.

Canadian airmen made their largest numerical contribution to raf Bomber
Command. Bomber Command gets good coverage, including umpteen “no
bull” reminiscences. We ride along with the airmen to “Happy
Valley,” the Ruhr, Berlin, and Hamburg—coned in searchlight glare,
braving a sleet of flak. Milberry and Halliday meticulously describe how
each crew member went about his particular job. The authors have done
their homework well, setting down exactly the duties of pilot,
navigator, flight engineer, bomb-aimer, wireless operator, and air
gunner. The vital roles of the ground crew are also explained. These
detailed and vivid explanations will provide greater historical value in
future years.

The “glamour boys” of Fighter Command get their just coverage, too.
About 105 Canadians are known to have fought in the Battle of Britain.
Thousands more served as fighter pilots elsewhere, with the same élan
as their forefathers had in World War I. Other sections describe the men
in Coastal Command, on long hauls aboard Sunderlands and Libs, helping
fight the bitter Battle of the Atlantic against submarines; or in
Transport Command, flying supplies in Dakotas high over the Hump to
China.

The astonishing collection of 1500 photographs, most of which have
never before been published, is alone worth the $75 price. In addition
to official photographs, there are many others that appear to be from
personal albums. They not only show us the airmen and their
“crates,” but they also illustrate everyday details of those
gallant, desperate years, now half a century ago. Casual snapshots
document crewmen living their great adventure half a world away from
their peaceful homes in Canada. There are village pubs, mascot dogs, ops
rooms, and proud British war-brides. Tragically, many of the smiling
faces are frozen in time, ever young, photographed soon before their
early deaths in foreign skies.

This unique book presents the facts with a lavish use of personal
anecdotes. Here again the industry and persistence of the authors must
have been prodigious. Two of the hundreds of personal stories come from
the rcaf’s two recipients of the Victoria Cross. An appendix lists
8951 honors and awards.

Milberry and Halliday have created fine testimony to the
quarter-million members of the Royal Canadian Air Force who valiantly
served the cause of freedom during World War II.