As a child, Dilip Sarkar was fascinated by the haunting image of an
anonymous RAF Spitfire pilot. Taken minutes after landing from a Battle
of Britain combat, this was Squadron Leader Brian Lane DFC, the
commander of 19 Squadron, based at Fowlmere - and author of the stirring
firsthand account Spitfire! The Experiences of a Fighter Pilot,
published under the pseudonym B.J. Ellan. Deeply moving was the
discovery that in 1942 Brian was reported missing after a futile
nuisance raid over the Dutch coast.
During the mid-1980s, Dilip began researching the life and times of both
Brian Lane and 19 Squadron, forging close friendships with many of the
unit's surviving Battle of Britain pilots and support staff. This
enabled identification of the wartime censor's blanks regarding people
and places in Brian's book, and the publication in 1990 of Dilip's first
ever book, Spitfire Squadron: 19 Squadron at War 1939-41.
Nearly thirty years later, sadly all of the survivors are now deceased,
but Dilip's close relationship has provided a huge archive of
correspondence and interviews in addition to a unique photographic
collection. Furthermore, the author, a retired police detective, has
thoroughly investigated the life - and death - of Squadron Leader
Lane.
This completely new Spitfire! The Full Story of a Unique Battle of
Britain Fighter Squadron covers everything we would ever need to know
about such a unit during the critical pre and early war period: the
social, political, aviation and military history all in one volume -
emphasizing the human experience involved and the stories of casualties.
With an immense photographic collection - many published here for the
first time - this book is destined to become a classic.
So, strap yourself in, turn gun button to 'fire', and join 19 Squadron's
Spitfire pilots during our Darkest and Finest Hours ... the ultimate
'Band of Brothers'?
