Mosquito Men: The Elite Pathfinders of 627 Squadron

Historian Price follows up The Crew with another fine-grained snapshot of the Royal Air Force during WWII. The focus here is on the 627 Squadron, a specialized unit based in Lincolnshire that conducted bombing raids and target-marking missions over Germany and Nazi-occupied Europe. Flying de Havilland Mosquitos, a wooden-framed light bomber with a pair of powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, the 627 Squadron dropped parachute flares, colored phosphorous markers, and conventional bombs to identify and mark targets for heavy bombers that followed behind them. Initially fearful that their “low-level diving technique” would lead to “the early obliteration of the Squadron,” pilots and navigators quickly gained confidence in the Mosquitos’ ability to evade enemy aircraft and machine guns; one crew flew so low on a raid near Paris that they returned with “bricks from a chimney implanted in their wingtip.” Price stuffs the first half of the book with biographical snippets of senior military leaders and analyses of the Royal Air Force’s evolving war strategy, but gains firmer footing in the second half, when he focuses squarely on members of the 627 Squadron and their missions. Drawing on family archives and mission logbooks, he viscerally conveys the thrill and terror of combat flying. WWII buffs will enjoy the ride. Photos. (Jan.)