MORE BOOKS BY TOM DOCHERTY

OURS TO HOLD - RAF Aldergrove at War 1939-1945.

Published by Old Forge Publishing

ISBN 978-1-906183-03-5.

Out 20th June 2008 price £20.00.

During WWII RAF Aldergrove in Northern Ireland was a hive of activity. A principal

base for Coastal Command in the all-important Battle of the Atlantic and against the

U-boat menace, Aldergrove was also an important training base. Although this book

mainly covers the years 1939-1945, a full history is provided from the airfield's

beginnings in 1917. Much of the airfield is now Belfast International Airport, but the

RAF and Army Air Corps still have a significant presence today. Much detail is

provided about Liberator operations from the base, an aircraft more associated with

the USAAF and its bombing campaigns in Europe.

DINGHY DROP - 279 Squadron RAF 1941-1946.

Published by Pen & Sword. £19.99.

ISBN 978 1 84415 482 1.

OUT NOW!

From small beginnings the RAF Air Sea Rescue Service grew into a large

organisation by the end of WW2. With the need to search further and further

from the shores of the British Isles came a requirement for longer-ranged and

better equipped aircraft both in terms of search & rescue equipment and defensive

capability. No 279 Sqn was formed in 1941 to meet this requirement and was

successively equipped with the Lockheed Hudson and the Vickers Warwick as well

as a small number of Hawker Hurricanes and Supermarine Sea Otters. The

squadron was heavily involved in the development and trials of the Airborne

Lifeboat designed by the famous yachtsman Uffa Fox and was the first to use it

operationally. 279 Sqn was instrumental in the search & rescue of numerous RAF

and USAAF aircrew during its existence and suffered many losses to enemy action

and bad weather in theprocess. This book is recommended to all those with an

interest in the RAF and Air Sea Rescue during WWII.