| ID | Description | Categories | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1522 | WINDSOR, David. Nearly a Hero. 207p. [London]: DJD Publications, 1994. ISBN: 0952381206.
Windsor was called up in 1942 and trained as a Telegraphist. The book is largely concerned with the over two years he spent near Freetown at a direction finding station taking bearings on U-boat transmissions. Something of a barrack room lawyer and a gambler he was in regular trouble. |
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| 1523 | WINN, Godfrey. Home From the Sea: A Chronicle in a Prologue, Three Acts and an Epilogue. 131p., illus. London: Hutchinson, 1944.
Winn enlisted as an anonymous ordinary seamen after three years as a war correspondent. Tells of his training and service on Cumberland, before he was invalided out. |
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| 1524 | WINN, Godfrey. The Positive Hour: Volume II of his Autobiography. xv, 445p., illus., index. London: Joseph, 1970. ISBN: 0718106695.
Covers the war years. He is perhaps best known for the account of PQ17 while on Pozarica, but he later served on Cumberland, before being invalided out. |
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| 1525 | WINTER, Margaret, & WINTER, John. The Journey Back. 220p., illus. Upton-upon-Severn: Images, 1994. ISBN: 1897817312.
A memorial to his wife. The first part consists of her poems and an account of her war career as a WRNS despatch rider. The larger part recalls his war service and is cast in the form of pseudonymous letters to a sister. He volunteered from Cambridge then, after training, joined Pelican in 1940. In 1941 he was commissioned and joined Vivacious, which took part in the abortive attempt to stop the Channel Dash. In late 1942 he joined the new Haydon, but in mid-1943 volunteered for submarines. In spring 1944 he joined Tantivy at Colombo although she later worked out of Fremantle.In April 1945 she returned to the UK. A rather saccharine account. |
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| 1526 | WINTON, John. Captains and Kings: The Royal Family and the Royal Navy, 1901–1981. 114p., bibliog., illus., index. Llandyrnog: Bluejacket, 1981. ISBN: 0907001017.
Over 30 pages concern King George VI's wartime relations with the fleet and Prince Philip's wartime career. |
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| 1527 | WINTON, John. Cunningham. xxiv, 432p., bibliog., illus., index. London: Murray, 1998. ISBN: 0719557658.
An excellent modern biography, whose sympathies are obvious. |
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| 1528 | WOODROOFFE, Thomas. In Good Company. 229p. London: Faber, 1947.
A retired Lt. Commander, the author was recalled in 1939 and spent some time based at Scapa as captain of the A/S trawler Coventry City. He then moved to the Admiralty as a Naval Observer and recalls various trips: a Malta convoy in Edinburgh, on Somali for a raid on the Lofotens, an aborted Commando raid on Bayonne, on Bleasdale at Dieppe, with convoy KMF1 for TORCH, on the command ship Largs, and finally the fall of Germany. |
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| 1529 | WOODWARD, David. Ramsay at War: The Fighting Life of Admiral Sir Bertram Home Ramsay. 204, [iv]p., illus. London: Kimber, 1957.
Recalled from the retired list, Ramsay was responsible for the planning and execution of all the great amphibious operations in European and North African waters, from Dunkirk, through D-Day to Walcheren. He died in an air accident on 2 January 1945. |
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| 1530 | WOOTTEN, Eric. Dusty Days in the Royal Navy. [iv], 121p. London: Avon, 1996. ISBN: 1860337163.
He joined the RN Supply Branch in 1938 and at the start of the war was serving on Effingham. She saw service in the Atlantic and West Indies before being sunk in the Norwegian Campaign through grounding on an uncharted rock. In June 1940 he stood by Quorn which was to be based at Harwich. Promotion to Leading Hand led to a transfer ashore at Portsmouth then Greenock. Further promotion to Petty Officer led to a posting to the new Racehorse. She had a quiet time in the South Atlantic and South Africa. In August 1943 he was disrated for fiddling the stores and given a shore post in Mombasa. He was rerated in March 1945, drafted home and saw out the war in Lowestoft. A lively and cheeky autobiography. |
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| 1531 | WORSLEY, John, & GIGGAL, Kenneth. John Worsley's War. 116p., illus., index. Shrewsbury: Airlife,1993. ISBN: 1853102571.
It was an active war. Worsley joined up as a midshipman in 1939 and was sunk in his first ship, the AMC Laurentic. This was followed by six months on Lancaster in the Atlantic then Wallace on the East Coast. After only two months there he joined Devonshire in the US and sailed to join the East Indies Fleet in spring 1942. She returned to the UK in the summer of 1943 and he was elected a War Artist, the first of only two active service artists. He next joined the staff of C-in-C Mediterranean and followed the action in Sicily and Salerno before being captured in November 1943 during clandestine operations by Coastal Forces in the Adriatic. He continued to work as an artist while a POW including three important portraits of naval VCs. He also created the famous dummy "Albert RN" used for a successful escape from Marlag "O". At the end of the war in Europe he completed his service by painting portraits of several notable VIPs, including Montgomery of Alamein. |
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| 1532 | WRIGHT, Noel. Sun of Memory. 239p., bibliog. London: Benn, 1947.
A fairly rambling autobiography. During WWII the author was first Fleet Supply Officer on the staff of C-in-C Mediterranean and later Command Supply Officer, Western Approaches. |
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| 1533 | ZIEGLER, Philip. Mountbatten: The Official Biography. 786p., bibliog., illus., index. London: Collins; New York: Knopf, 1985. ISBN: 0002165430.
A critically acclaimed work and probably the most balanced on this controversial figure. A sympathetic but accurate portrait. |
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| 1534 | British Air Forces: The Royal Air Force [and the] Fleet Air Arm, also Aeroplanes of the USA, Germany and Italy, Completely Illustrated and Described. iv, 40, [iv]p., illus., index. London: Illustrated London News, [1943].
A mixture of pictures, text, and photographs with leading details. |
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| 1535 | ABRAMS, Richard. F4U Corsair at War.160p., illus. London: Ian Allan, 1977; New York: Scribner's, 1981. ISBN: 0711007667.
An illustrated history of the last propeller-driven fighter in the FAA. Although usually identified with the US Marine Corps, 2000 served in the FAA from 1943 onward. |
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| 1536 | ADLAM, Henry. On and Off the Flight Deck: Reflections of a Naval Fighter Pilot in World War II. [vii], 237p., illus., index. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Aviation, 2007. ISBN: 184415629X.
An engaging memoir. He entered pilot training in 1941 at Gosport and went on to fighter training at Yeovilton. He joined 890 Squadron that October. They brought Wildcats back on an escort carrier, then joined Illustrious for an Arctic convoy trip followed in mid-1943 by the Mediterranean and support for the Salerno landings. After returning to the UK and leave, they went to Ceylon in London. After training on Unicorn they joined Atheling. After a bout of appendicitis he transferred to 1839 Squadron on Indomitable and a period of intense operations with the Pacific Fleet. In April 1945 he returned to the UK and joined the new Colossus as a Deck Landing Control Officer and flight leader with 1846 Squadron, returning in her to the Far East. |
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| 1537 | BARNES, David J. Fleet Air Arm Roll of Honour: Searchable Database of Men, Squadrons, Ships, Aircraft. [Excel Database] Burnley: author, 2004.
A roll of honour in the form of a spreadsheet with full details of each loss. |
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| 1538 | BARRINGER, E. E. Alone on a Wide, Wide Sea: The Story of 835 Naval Air Squadron in World War Two. [vii], 208p., bibliog., illus., index. London: Cooper,1995. ISBN: 0850522781.
Barringer joined the squadron as Adjutant on its formation in 1942 and later became its CO at the ripe old age of 23. The Squadron served briefly in Jamaica and then joined Furious in Virginia for one convoy. Then came a frustrating 18 months of working up in 16 different places with only one convoy aboard Battler. At the end of 1943 the Squadron joined Nairana and spent the rest of the war there covering 19 convoys, many in the worst Arctic weather. An engaging and modest account. |
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| 1539 | BEATTIE, D. M. The Log of a Naval Airman, Being the Diary and Letters of Sub–Lieutenant (A) David Musk Beattie, RNVR, Observer in the Fleet Air Arm, Killed in Air Operations against the Bismarck, 26th May 1941. Edited and published by his Father. 60p., illus. [n.p.: author, c.1944]
Beattie joined the FAA in 1939 and joined Ark Royal the following June, flying in Swordfishes. He saw action at Oran, Dakar, Cagliari, and on other Force H operations. In 1941 he was posted to Victorious and was killed with his pilot in the night attack on Bismarck off Iceland on May 24. |
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| 1540 | BOWYER, Chaz. Eugene Esmond VC, DSO. 222p., bibliog., illus., index. London: Kimber, 1983. ISBN: 0718304098.
A hagiographic account concentrating on the Bismarck action and the Channel Dash action, in which he was killed. |
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| 1541 | BOYD, George. Boyd’s War: the Story of a Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve fighter during the Second World War. 127p., illus., index. Newtonards: Colourpoint, 2002. ISBN: 1898392064. After his pilot training in Canada and Scotland, Boyd served as a naval gun spotter on D-Day and later served in the Pacific. He was present in Tokyo Bay when McArthur took the Japanese surrender. Well produced but rather bland. |
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