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Churchill's Flights by Jerrard Tickell
Previously published by Hodder & Stoughton, 1964
For Sir Winston Churchill no risk was too great if it would help Britain win the war.
As he criss-crossed the world, negotiating crucial pacts with the Allies, or supporting the generals and troops on the ground, the only way to get around was by plane.
But with the entire world caught up in war, the skies were far from safe.
Hitler’s mighty Luftwaffe were geared up and ready to attack. If they could bring down Churchill's plane, Britain's resistance might crumble, and the war might still be turned in Germany's favour.
The York Ascalon and her Douglas C54 Skymaster successor were chosen as Churchill's personal aircraft during the Second World War. And John Mitchell, a junior officer, was selected to navigate the aircraft.
Over the next few years, Mitchell became a friend and confident Churchill: the man who grappled with the red dispatch boxes in the stateroom of what he called “my aerial yacht”.
From the log books and diaries of Group Captain Mitchell, Jerrard Tickell tells the dramatic inside story of those heroic flights.
'Churchill's Flight's' is a fascinating insight into the risks run by Britain's wartime leader, and the heroism and dedication of the staff who supported him. It is a book no one interested in WWII will want to miss.