Product Description

By the close of World War II, Flight Lieutenant Chan Chandler had flown a remarkable 98 missions, 65 of them with No 49 Squadron and 28 with the famous Dambuster Squadron, No 617. In addition he flew five trips with No 1 Photo FU. His career started early in the war, flying the twin-engined Handley Page Hampden, an aircraft that did not boast any power-operated gun turrets and which was particularly vulnerable in the presence of night-fighters. Later, he moved into the lonely end of the venerable Avro Lancaster. In that aeroplane the tail turret was power driven and boasted four .303in (7.7mm) guns. Chandler describes in vivid detail the experience of the remote tail gunner's position, what it was like to be cramped into a perspex cocoon for seven hours, your only link with the crew via RT. This is a vivid recollection of life with Bomber Command and, more significantly, life with 617 Squadron under Leonard Cheshire, VC.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #339390 in Books
• Published on: 2002-02-19
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

Customer Reviews

A well written account of one man's war
This is a well written account of one man's service in Bomber Command in WWII. It is a compelling book, modest and without histrionics, recounting his early flying career in Hampdens through to the finish in Lancasters with 617 Squadron. The book expresses his camradship for all the people he served with and which continued long after the war. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and would recommend it to anyone wanting to try to understand the lives of the men who bought the freedoms we now take for granted.

glossed over
upon reading this book i found that it started in a similar way of any other autobiography, giving an account of his life as a boy, where he grew up and his family. When the author started writing about the sorties he took part in and individual accounts of battle he seems to gloss over the event very quickly and moves onto the next sortie. The first and historical 1000 bomber sortie over Germany is passed over within 4-5 lines.
I found that the book doesn't seem to grab you and make feel as though your there with him as so many others do.
There appears to be a rushed feel about the book that makes you feel that the author was more interested in finishing the book rather than writing a captivating story about his life in bomber command.
All said, it does give you an insight into the role of bomber command during the war and the types of raids that the crews had to take part in.
If your after a book that really makes you feel as though your there with him, then this probably isn't the book for you.

Much more than the story of 98 raids in World War II
The entire life of a very able story teller, which admittedly concentrates on his exploits during the war and his later activities with the Bomber Command Association. The book is eminently readable and full of interesting snippets of information. Even if you had no interest in the war or aircraft you would probably still enjoy this book. But beware, the ending is very, very sad (I cried my eyes out on a crowded morning City commuter train).