Bomber Group at War

Without question, No 5 Group was the most publicised Group with RAF Bomber Command both during World War 2 and, indeed, ever since. Even within bomber circles during the latter war years it became dubbed the 'Fifth Air Force' and 'Cocky's Private Airworks' - the last in deference to the high degree of autonomy granted to its most famous commander, Ralph Cochrane, by the AOC-in-C, Bomber Command, Arthur 'Butch' Harris, This glamour' image - at least, in the public eye - was enhanced by various outstanding exploits undertaken by some of its squadrons throughout the war, while in its ranks served some of the most colourful characters ever to fly in bombers. Former members of 5 Group almost invariably assert that 'their' Group was the best in Bomber Command.

Yet beneath that imposed, if unsought façade of daring deeds and superlatives lay a much vaster effort by the host of unpublicised crews - air and ground - which contributed a lion's share to ultimate success. That 'silent majority' - as in every facet of RAF endeavours - forged the sword of eventual victory; its individual membership also paid the greatest numerical sacrifice. Thus this book is not intended simply as a regurgitation of the well-broadcast aspects of 5 Group, but is meant primarily as a necessarily limited yet utterly sincere tribute to that multitude of 'unknowns' - the 'ordinary' men and women who toiled, and too often died, carrying out a plain duty, with no thought of reward or craving for public acclaim.

Following the now well-established tradition of this highly successful Ian Allan series, Bomber Group at War is not a formal history but an evocation in personal anecdote and rare photography of what it was like to serve in one of the outstanding fighting formations of World War 2.