The Silver Spitfire by Tom Neil
During the build up to the Allied invasion of Northern Europe, Battle of Britain hero Tom 'Ginger' Neil was assigned as an RAF liaison to an American fighter squadron. Acting as a British representative, Neil was tasked with negotiating and overcoming the countless culture clashes that existed between the two allies. From encountering unfamiliar planes and uncomfortable attitudes towards the British to meeting the King of Yugoslavia and General George Patton and falling in love, Neil's time with the Americans was anything but dull. As the Allies pushed east, Neil commandeered an abandoned Spitfire as his own personal aeroplane. Erasing any evidence of its provenance and stripping it down to bare metal, it became the RAF's only silver Spitfire. Love affair and culture clashes on hold, he took the silver Spitfire into battle alongside his US comrades until - with the war's end - he was forced to make a difficult decision. Faced with too many questions about the mysterious rogue fighter, he contemplated increasingly desperate measures to offload it, including bailing out mid-Channel. He eventually left the Spitfire at Worthy Down, never to be seen again. The Silver Spitfire is the first-hand, gripping story of Neil's heroic experience as an RAF fighter pilot and his reminiscences with his very own personal Spitfire.
An icon of battle as well as one of the most successful pilots, Neil is uniquely qualified to tell a story that is both the ultimate military epic and also distinctly personalMILITARY TIMES Tom Neil is one of the last of the Few Best of British, DAILY EXPRESS The first-hand, gripping story of Neil's heroic experience as an RAF fighter pilot and his reminiscences with his very own personal Spitfire. ROYAL AIR FORCE NEWS Amusing and enjoyable. GOOD BOOK GUIDE
Wing Commander Tom Neil DFC*, AFC, AE, joined 249 Squadron flying Hurricanes just before the start of the Battle of Britain. He was one of the pilots the War Ministry used in their propoganda at the time of the Battle of Britain, partly because of this height (6'4") and his good looks. He flew 141 combat missions (few pilots reached 50). His other books include GUN BUTTON TO FIRE, FIGHTER IN MY SIGHTS, and ONWARD TO MALTA. He is 92 and lives in Norwich with his wife Eileen who was a Fighter Command plotter when they met in 1940.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780297868132 |
| ISBN 10 | 0297868136 |
| Title | The Silver Spitfire |
| Author | Tom Neil |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Orion Publishing Co |
| Year published | 2013-02-28 |
| Number of pages | 320 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |