In News

Hispano Buchón flies Page 7

Lysander fires up Page 8

Italian Vampire Page 10

Grumman Avenger Page12

FMA Pucará

Page 14

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established 1911

Aeroplane traces its lineage back to the weekly The Aeroplane, founded by the legendary C.G. Grey in 1911 and published until 1968. It was relaunched as a monthly magazine in 1973 by Richard T. Riding (Editor for 25 years until 1998)

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Battle of Britain

Battle of Britain

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70th A IVERSARY

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Features

16 Setting the scene . . . Johnny de Uphaugh introduces our 55-page Battle of Britain Special Section with a situation report on Britain’s position in the desperate days following the fall of France in June 1940

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20 Undaunted by Odds Using the logbooks of South African Battle of Britain Spitfire pilot Flt Lt Brian Van Mentz, Eric Benjaminson provides a fascinating insight into what it was like to be one of “The Few”

28 How The West WasWon The Director General of the RAF Museum, Air Vice-Marshal Peter Dye OBE, takes an in-depth look at the logistical aspects of the Battle — with some surprising conclusions

56 The Forgotten Few Michael J.F. Bowyer details Coastal Command’s vital contribution to the RAF’s “finest hour” in an excerpt from his splendid new book from Crécy Publishing on the Battle of Britain

66 Their Finest Words Aviation literature connoisseur Johnny de Uphaugh concludes our Battle of Britain coverage with a look at a handful of the best books written by those who were there — on both sides

DATABASE 37 The Messerschmit Bf 109 German wartime aviation specialist Dr Alfred Price traces the genesis of Willy Messerschmitt’s innovative Bf 109 and its development up to and including the Bf 109E “Emil” variant, as pitted against the RAF’s Spitfires and Hurricanes in the Battle of Britain. Includes scale drawings and artwork by Juanita Franzi and cutaway illustration by J.H. Clark

Regulars

6 News All the latest preservation news, compiled by Tony Harmsworth

26 Aircrew The Dornier Do 17 pilot — with illustration by Ian Bott

65 From the Archives News and issues of 70 years ago — 1940

70 Reader Offer

72 Q&A Your questions asked, and answered

91 Picture of the Month Armstrong Whitworth Argosy G-APRN

103 Book Reviews

107 Events

109 Flying Visit Chairman of the Vintage Aircraft Club John Broad on his aviation career

111 Moving On . . . Registration updates with Mike Hooks

112 Competition

113 Services, Next Month

116 Readers’ Album David O’Byrne’s photographs from his time as an engine fitter at Gatwick

118 Skywriters A selection of readers’ letters on a wide range of topics

122 Hairy Moment Our regular spot for your historicaviation close calls

COVER IMAGE

To commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, GARETH HECTOR was specially commissioned by Aeroplane to illustrate Flt Lt Ian “Widge” Gleed of No 87 Sqn flying his Hawker Hurricane in combat with a Bf 109E of JG26 during the Battle, our coverage of which starts on page 16 . . . Battle of Britain Pages 16–66

German WW1bird Page 82

Miles’s midget racer Page 92

Contents July 2010 Vol 38 No 7 Issue No 447 (on sale June 1)

Also in this issue . . .

76 The Hot Seat Peter N. “Ando” Anderson reports from Australia’s Temora Aviation Museum on the challenges of fitting a “live” ejection seat in its Vampire jet trainer

80 50 Not Out! On April 16, 2010, well-known display pilot Sir John Allison celebrated the 50th anniversary of his first solo flight in a Tiger Moth — with a solo flight in a Tiger Moth! Steven Jefferson was there to capture the event for Aeroplane

82 The Allies’ Albatros Philip Jarrett investigates the story behind a German Albatros biplane used by the Royal Naval Air Service during World War One

88 Airliner Archive This month’s classic inter-war airliner image is of Swissair’s sole Curtiss Condor biplane — the only one ever to fly in European skies

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92 Small but Perfectly Formed In 1937 F.G. Miles and his wife Blossom decided to design a diminutive racer for the King’s Cup Air Race and fit it with a new 140 h.p. Gipsy Major engine — the result was the tiny but very sleek M.13 Hobby, as Peter Amos relates

96 The Greatest Gathering Tony Harmsworth witnessed the reunion of surviving members of Lt Col James Doolittle’s daring raid on Japan

BELOW The Doolittle Raiders insignia, much in evidence in Ohio on April 17-18.

BELOW Here come the Captains of Cacophony. The first of 17 North American B-25s rumble out at Urbana, Ohio on April 17 at the start of the 68th Doolittle Raiders anniversary celebrations, an event sponsored by Lockheed-Martin.

TONY HARMSWORTH