In 1939, Kent had operational airfields at Biggin Hill, Gravesend, Manston, Lympne and Hawkinge, and West Malling was under construction. The RAF's recently formed Fighter Command knew that Kent would bear the brunt of an inevitable onslaught by Goering's Luftwaffe formations as they strove to dominate the skies above England. During the subsequent Battle of Britain, Kent was known as Hell Fire Corner, as inexperienced but determined young pilots threw their Hurricanes and Spitfires into the melee of tracer bullets and vapour trails above the county. Kent remained at the centre of the conflict throughout the war, and the courageous pilots of Fighter Command received countless decorations for their bravery. In a vivid and carefully documented account, Rupert Matthews describes Kent's air war and pays tribute to the gallant young men who flew sortie after sortie against desperate odds; heroes every one of them.
A5 (softcover) 192 pages
