Through this fantastic book, the reader will discover the story of the men who joined the Royal Flying Corps, and who defended the trenches from above during the First World War.

The men who joined the Royal Flying Corps in 1914 were the original heroes of flying, treading into unknown territory and paving the way for later aerial combat.

 

The author has uncovered a wealth of previously unknown stories told by these men, covering the perils of training, the thrills of learning to fly, and the horrors of war in the air.

 

The gripping, moving, and poignant personal narratives reveal the feelings of the men who defended the trenches from above. Here they tell their story, in their own words, for the first time.

 

Introduction

 

There are certain historical subjects which can always be counted on to capture the public imagination. One of these is infantry fighting on the Western Front, with its vivid evocations of suffering and wasted life. Yet taking place above the very same Western Front was a conflict that is less well known, but which deserves to become just as embedded in the public consciousness - the Great War in the Air.

 

Most people will have heard of Baron von Richthofen, but they will have little idea of why he was flying or who he was flying against. Yet the story of air fighting is one of intense human emotion, of young men growing up quickly in an exciting and terrible world, of chivalry and fear and danger, of the creation of modern warfare, of the development of modern sensibilities. Such an extraordinary story deserves a wider audience, and an acknowledgment of its place in History. ( ... )