ISBN 1-871187-43-5
430 pages

Introduction; Notes; Sources; Acknowledgements; photos; tables; OBs; sidebars; Index

   John Foreman's new book is the latest in his Fighter Command War Diaries series, about which we have had a great deal to say over the years, all of it very favorable:

Volume one

Volume two

Volume three

   In our reviews of the first three volumes, we've said almost all there is say about the series, except that now we've been pleasantly surprised to discover that volume four is the best of the lot. As he has worked his way diligently through the war years, as the nature of the air war has grown more dramatic and more complicated, so Foreman's coverage has become more complete, more compelling, and more sophisticated. Once again, FCWD proves itself to be one of the most important works on World War II in many years.
   So what makes this volume the best so far? In addition to the usual core of daily statistics, Foreman provides more explanation of daily activities, more introductory material for each month, more contemporary combat reports, more thumbnail biographies, more OB material, more text tying together the air and ground situations (especially useful for the D-Day landings), more photos, and more in the way of monthly summaries. It also seems like more information covers the German perspective of Fighter Command's engagements.
   This time around, the following chapters appear:

1. Allied Might, Luftwaffe Response
2. Spitfire Summer
3. Fiery Autumn
4. Re-Organisation
5. The Fateful Year
6. Attrition: A Necessary Evil
7. Gathering Pace
8. 'Point Blank'
9. Final Preparations for Overlord
10. Invasion

   As always, chapters are introduced with a few paragraphs about the overall situation and the general course of events. For every day of every month, Foreman summarizes the daily action in a few paragraphs and presents the daily statistical tally in the familiar tabular format. Here's a short example of one of the quietest daily entries:

21st September 1943
Day: Offensive Operations: Ramrod No. 235 was flown at 07.15 hours, when B-26s were taken to Beauvais-Tille and B-25s to Lievin. Reaction was slight, the escorts claiming 2:1:1 without loss, although three bombers were shot down. Mosquito crews were also out; a 605 Squadron aircraft went on a morning Ranger to Denmark, where Flight Lieutenant Blomeley claimed two Ju88s destroyed. Far to the west, four from 456 Squadron flew an Instep to Biscay, where they fought more Ju88s, claiming 1:1:1.

Mosquitos
Unit	Dest	P.D.	Dam	MIA	Cat E	KIA	MIA	WIA
456 Sqdn	1	1	1	-	-	-	-	-
605 Sqdn	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Spitfires
Unit	Dest	P.D.	Dam	MIA	Cat E	KIA	MIA	WIA
19 Sqdn	-	-	1	-	-	-	-	-
331 Sqdn	1	1	-	-	-	-	-	-
NW Wg	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Night: A Do217 was claimed destroyed off Spurn Head.

Mosquitos
Unit	Dest	P.D.	Dam	MIA	Cat E	KIA	MIA	WIA
604 Sqdn	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

   The daily entries are interspersed with a variety of sidebars. Here's an example:

29th April - A Very Bad Idea

   At 14.10 hours. Squadron Leader A.G.Page led six 132 Squadron Spitfires off from Detling on another Ranger, briefed to sweep from Eindhoven to Munster. Geoffrey Page had been shot down and severely burned on 12th August 1940 when his 56 Squadron Hurricane had set on fire by cross-fire from Do17s. Rushed to hospital, he became one of Sir Archibald Mclndoe's 'guinea pigs' at the new plastic surgery department of East Grinstead hospital. The next two years had been spent in hospital, where he underwent a dozen painful operations, and then he returned to duty, first going to the Air Fighting Development Unit, thence to 122 Squadron and then, in January 1944, taking command of 132 Squadron. During his time in hospital he had resolved to destroy one German aircraft for every operation that he had undergone. His score was, at this time, four destroyed and 'shares' in three more, so he had some way to go to reach his twelve. Now, as the flight approached Deelen airfield, he saw his chance to improve. A Bf110 night-fighter was approaching the airfield, its nose bristling with radar aerials, and Page called 'Tally ho!' and led the flight down on it, picking up speed.
   The Messerschmitt was from Stab./NJG 1, flown by Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Jabs, who had taken command of the Geschwader on 1st March. He already had 45 victories to his credit and had won the Ritterkreuz with Eichenlaub (Oak Leaves) on 24th March. He hadn't fought Spitfires since the heady days of 1940, but, warned by his gunner, he was ready for them.
   The Spitfires were going far too fast for accurate shooting and as Jabs broke, they overshot. One Spitfire swung into his gunsight and he took a snap shot, the heavy armament hitting Spitfire MJ170 flown by Pilot Officer R.B. Pullin, which went down in flames, too low for the pilot to bale out. Reefing his Spitfire around, Flying Officer J.J. Caulton came back at Jabs head-on, felt cannon shells smacking into his aircraft and the engine stopped dead. He glided around and bellied MJ639 on the grass of Deelen airfield. Page, less headstrong, had curved around behind the 110 and now opened fire. Jabs knew that he had no chance of escape, nosed down, and also belly-landed on Deelen airfield, where he met John Caulton. Geoffrey Page had one less German aircraft to hunt down.

Aftermath

   Many years later, the author was privileged to be invited to the Jagdfliegertreffen in Furstenfeldbruck, where the ex-Luftwaffe fighter pilots held their annual reunion. They had invited people from the RAF, USAAF, RCAF, and the author found himself at a table beside Bob Tuck and directly opposite Geoffrey Page, who was drinking with a tall German. "See this chap?" said Page. "I shot him down in 1944!" Hans Joachim Jabs raised his glass and said solemnly, "On that day, he was the hotter man!" Page then related what had happened. "I had told Johnny Caulton", he said, "that it would be a very bad idea ever to try things head-on with a 110. The nose armament was formidable. Better to go in from behind against a single machine-gun. Johnny simply forgot about it".
   John Caulton, first introduced to Jabs on Deelen airfield after belly-landing his Spitfire, also renewed his acquaintance many years later, with same result.

   Foreman wraps up each month with a summary:

Summary - May 1944

Air Combat Claims:

119:9:15 [A]; 12:1:35 [G]

Missing Destroyed aircraft:

27 Mosquitos, 35 Typhoons, 69 Spitfires, 11 Mustang Ills, 3 Mustang Is, 4 Tempests and 3 Seafires missing or destroyed on operations. 140 aircrew missing or killed and 15 wounded. (Above figures include 19:0:0 [A] and 9 Mosquitos lost with 18 aircrew missing by 100 Group and three Seafires and 2 missing pilots of the Fleet Air Arm).
USAAF: Claims: 575:41:145 [A]. 54 P-38s, 78 P-47s and 119 P-5 Is missing or destroyed on operations with the loss of 232 pilots plus 8 wounded.

Notes:
80 Sqn returned to UK in late April, reforming at Hornchurch with Spitfire IXs.
157 Sqn replaced Mosquito Us, with Mosquito XIXs.
302 Sqn replaced Spitfire IXs with Spitfire IXEs.
438 Sqn relinquished Hurricane IVs, retaining Typhoon IBs.
604 Sqn relinquished Mosquito XIIs, retaining Mosquito XIIIs.

   In sum, volume four even more than the first three volumes excels at presenting tons of carefully calculated statistical data in tabular format on a daily basis while simultaneously supplementing the raw data with copious amounts of explanation and numerous sidebars both interesting and enlightening. That approach—integrating daily numbers, summaries, objective text, and human interest material—ties the whole campaign together in brilliant fashion.
   We receive, examine, read, and review a great many air books, and we're absolutely convinced that FCWD is one of the most important works ever published about the air war over England, Northwest Europe, and the Channel. Unfortunately, we get the feeling—not backed up by any hard data—that the series might be under-appreciated by distributors and retailers and even some readers (or at least those who haven't seen it yet). That's a shame, because John Foreman and Air Research deserve a full measure of support for continuing to produce and publish such excellent resources. These are the kind of books that, although somewhat overlooked today, will in the future grow to be more and more highly respected while simultaneously becoming more and more difficult to locate and acquire. As with the first three, we give volume four our highest recommendation. When you're trying desperately to get hold of copy a few years from now, remember that you heard it here first.
   Available from online booksellers, local bookshops, or directly from Air Research Publications.
   Thanks to Air Research for providing this review copy.