Excellent BBC info on the Battle of Britain

[toppstuff]

FYI

I stumbled upon this.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11029903

They have collated information on the losses incurred during this conflict. You can download an excel spreadsheet of the data. There are also live links to other really interesting points of quite detailed information about day by day events. Quite fascinating IMO and really brings it home to read some of the detail.

It is hard to imagine what it would have been like to live in Southern England, convinced that invasion was imminent and with it war on your own doorstep, while watching the battle unfold in the skies above you..

TS

Edited by toppstuff on Friday 20th August 16:49

[Sheets Tabuer]

wow, got their arses handed to them didn't they?

[Eric Mc]

I just read James Holland's "Battle of Britain" and it is well worth the read.

He was on Radio 4 this morning emphasising how near the end of their thether the Luftwaffe airmen and aircraft were. They were almost a spent force by October 1940 and were not replacing pilots nor aircraft at anything like the rate the RAF were able to.

The header shot shows Spitfire Is as they would have looked in 1938/39 rather than 1940.

These media researchers never really make an effort to find appropriate pictures.

Edited by Eric Mc on Friday 20th August 17:04

[Elroy Blue]

Look at the picture of Sqn Ldr Sandy Lane. 23 years old and he looks 40! The stress must have been enormous

[Eric Mc]

Bed at 10.00 a,m. and up at First Light (which is why Geoffrey Wellum's book is so called) didn't help either.

Many of the aircrew hit the bottle and partied big time in the evening and then had to get up very early the next morning to be at readiness.

[stitched]

Quite interesting that the number of sorties flown were overwhelmingly higher by the RAF, do bomber attacks count or does sortie relate only to fighters?

[Eric Mc]

Each bomber attack by each bomber would count as an operational sortie.

Are the RAF sorties listed fighters only or are the bomber attacks on the invasion barges and Luftwaffe airfields included.

Some fighter sorties would have been regular patrols which would not have ended up with an engagement with the enemy, Scrambles for false alerts (of which there would have been quite a few) would also count as a sortie.

[tubbystu]

Eric Mc said:

Bed at 10.00 p,m. and up at First Light (which is why Geoffrey Wellum's book is so called) didn't help either.

Many of the aircrew hit the bottle and partied big time in the evening and then had to get up very early the next morning to be at readiness.

ETA

and the partying is hardly a surprise if tomorrows breakfast might be your last meal is it. For all concerned, not just the pilots.

"The few" and the many, I salute you.

[Eric Mc]

tubbystu said:

Eric Mc said:

Bed at 10.00 p,m. and up at First Light (which is why Geoffrey Wellum's book is so called) didn't help either.

Many of the aircrew hit the bottle and partied big time in the evening and then had to get up very early the next morning to be at readiness.

ETA

and the partying is hardly a surprise if tomorrows breakfast might be your last meal is it. For all concerned, not just the pilots.

"The few" and the many, I salute you.

Actually, i meant to type 1.00 am.

I'm not having a go at them for playing hard - but the Germans were noticeably less inclined to do so.