Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Aircraft and Vehicles => Topic started by: Karnak on December 14, 2005, 04:29:50 PM
-
I am feeling tempted to buy more Mossie books and am interested in hearing some advice on a good technical book or two.
I was probably going to get "Terror in the Starboard Seat" to give me a fix on operations and personal experiences. It is a short book (less than 200 pages) written by a navigator in 418 squadron, RCAF who flew 41 operations.
-
All the books I've read by RAF nightfigher pilots & R/Os have been great (four or five of them IIRC).
Pursuit Through Darkened Skies is an excellent one, with some valuable technical information in the appendicies
-
Originally posted by Karnak
I am feeling tempted to buy more Mossie books and am interested in hearing some advice on a good technical book or two.
I was probably going to get "Terror in the Starboard Seat" to give me a fix on operations and personal experiences. It is a short book (less than 200 pages) written by a navigator in 418 squadron, RCAF who flew 41 operations.
Terror in the Starboard Seat is a must have. A great read.
Don't have much on the Mossie on my shelves. Moquito at War by Chaz Bowyer and The DeHaviland Mosquito by MJ Hardy.
2 Group RAF by MJF Bowyer details lots of Mossie Ops. He also did a book specific to the Mossie I believe.
You've been here I imagine :)
http://www.mossie.org/books/Mosquito_books.php
-
^ What he said about Terror in the Starboard Seat. Really, it's probably the best war memoir I've read, all Mosquito-fan stuff aside.
Thanks also Guppy for the link to the book site. Royalties from Amazon purchases go to the Mosquito Museum.
Technical books though, well, that's a bit tougher. "The Mosquito Manual" is fun, in nerdy kind of way. "Construction of the DH. 98. Mosquito", first book on the website page, isn't exactly a gripping read but it's exellent background stuff.
For operational info, I like The Mosquito Log a great deal - I think it's a very under-rated little book, collection of first-hand stories from various Mossie operational viewpoints: Night-fighter, day bomber, Israeli ops, etc.
A Separate Little War is an extremely well-researched account of the Banff strike wing. A Most Secret Squadron is almost as good, and has the added flavour of being a first-hand account.
The Gestapo Hunters is also reputed to be very good, though I've not read it - 464 Squadron RAAF / 2nd TAF low-level strike stuff.
Mosquito Thunder is about as good as it gets for Mosquito bomber stuff - takes the story of 105 Sqn. from the earliest day-bombing Mossie raids through to the end of the war. Again, extremely well researched.
It's not listed on the site, but there's a book called, I think, Mosquito Pathfinder, by Albert and Ian Smith, which is also an excellent first-hand account. Albert was the father, Ian his son and a professional writer, so it's better than just "and then I ..."
Enjoy, mate.
-
Enemy Coast Ahead - Guy Gibson
Mostly covers his time with 617 'Dambusters' , but does include his later time with the pathfinder Mosquitos.
Excellent read.
Worth it just for the 1st hand account of the Dambuster raid.
-
Thanks for the suggestions. What I want out of a technical book, really, is some solid flight test data that I can provide to get the Mossie in AH the speed it should have sans flame dampers (oh, how I do loathe the flame dampers) so that the Mossie will be more viable in AH. I have found hints and bits of information and I am 95% sure that the Mosquito FB.Mk VI with Merlin 25s and no flame dampers would do 350-355mph on the deck at +18lbs boost. While still not wonderously fast by AH standards, it is a whole heck of a lot better than the 336mph it does now.
The books I have right now are 'Mosquito' by C. Martin Sharp and Micheal J. F. Bowyer (it was dang exspensive too, 45 quid and at the exchange rate at the time....) and a bunch of books by Martin W. Bowman.
I am interested in the personal accounts and operation history just to feed my own curiosity and desire to know more.
-
Don't know if this helps - FB VI pilot manual
http://www.zenoswarbirdvideos.com/Images/Mosquito/MosquitoFB6Manual.pdf
Puts it at 370kts on the deck in a clean condition.
Flame dampers - removing them added approx 10mph to speed.
As ours has a rocket option it makes it a 'late' series 2 FB VI, late series 2 Mossies had flame dampers removed.
Try here
http://www.mossie.org/forum/read.php?f=1&i=1561&t=1520#reply_1561
Few possible contacts in there for you.
Just to add a bit of controversy - Mid 1944 it seems they used 150 octane fuel (in the outer and drop tanks only though).
Would love to see -
BI V
FB VI
FB XVIII (Tse-Tse) - 57mm gun, 25 rounds in 20 secs :)
On the remodel.
Or replace the FB XVIII with an NF Mk 30 - 424mph @ 26.5k (1944 Mossie, 528 built)
I believe somewhere along the line they got 'handed' engines, i.e. specific left and right rotating different directions to eliminate torque.
-
WOW
Look at this -
http://www.angel.ne.jp/~tochy/index.htm
Choose the 'Merlins' link midway down the page.
ALL CGI and very vey impressive.
-
This old newsreel has some footage of Canadian Dh.98 production & flying
http://www.archive.org/details/USNewsRe00
-
Originally posted by Kev367th
Try here
http://www.mossie.org/forum/read.php?f=1&i=1561&t=1520#reply_1561
Few possible contacts in there for you.
:lol
I am Arizsun Ahola. That is my real name.
I have the FB.VI Pilot's manual in PDF format.
Thanks though.
-
Just got "633 Squadron" by Frederick E. Smith.
Also have "Nightflyer" - it's buried somewhere in my "library", lol
Anyway, that one is o.k. It's written by the navigador of the top scoring nightflying duo. Started on Beaufighters ended with Mossie. Pilot's name was Benson if that helps.
Anyway let us know if you find anything juicy.
Anyway, Arizsun Ahola are you related to Borat?
-
I'm looking for a mossie book or two for xmas:)
I have found a nice looking thing about the spitfire V "spitfire mk V explored" (http://www.flyingzonedirect.com/spitfirevcdrom/spitfirevindex.htm) i may buy.
-
There's a new book coming out by Alex Crawford - he mentions it on the Mossie.org site mentioned by Ken.
Tony Williams: Military gun and ammunition website (http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk) and discussion forum (http://forums.delphiforums.com/autogun/messages/)
-
I thought that "outer tanks and drop tanks" was how they tested the 150 setup, not sure where I read it.
Tha-rilllllllllllllllllll-laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
Glad to see you still hanging about.
The "Night Flyer" book mentioned above is by Lewis Brandon - he was teamed up with James Benson on 157 Squadron. As you say, it's OK.
There's also a book by Jeremy Howard-Williams, who was on the FIU. Read the foreword to the latest edition - it has an interesting tie-up to Terror in the Starboard Seat.
Alex Crawford's book is about the Mk. XVIII Tsetse - the version equipped with the 6-pounder gun. Also covered in detail in Most Secret Squadron, which also has very rare first-hand stuff about Highball, the Mossie version of the bouncing bomb, initially intended for Tirpitz, then for Japanese shipping, but never used. Apparently there was also a test on land - bounced a dummy bomb into a disused railway tunnel in Wales.
If it's not been said before, *everyone* should read Dave McIntosh's book.
-
Heya scherf!:) I've been at leeds for since sept and i have no internet connection there. I took my pedals + stick there too so i can't play AH while i'm home for christmas. I'm not even sure if the home PC can handle AH, i'll download it and see.
What i am looking for is a book written by or about Bob Braham, anyone know of one?
-
Heya thrila:
Braham's autobiography is called "Scramble", but I've not read it. There is another book about him called "Night Fighter Ace" by Tony Spooner, which I have read. Slightly fanboi-ish, but it has all the details, and of course is probably a better all-round picture.
My fave site for out of print stuff is http://www.abebooks.com , though if you can try the amazon links on the mossie site, the Mosquito Museum benefits.
You might also try "Pursuit Through Darkened Skies", by Mike Allen, as he and his pilot Harry White flew with Braham on 141 Sqn. (Incidentally, they also flew with Guy Gibson when the latter was on 29 Sqn. - after they screwed up, he banished them to the Turbinlite flight, which is where Allen says he and White perfected their trade!)
Leeds eh? There was a fellow down the road from where I used to live who had a bumper sticker which read, IIRC, "Leeds - Probably the Greatest University in the World". Such cheek!
Take care mate,
Scherf