Churchill's Few

In speaking of the RAF fighter pilots who fought and won the Battle of Britain, the words of Prime Minister Winston Churchill "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few..." immortalized those pilots as "The Few". During the period 10 July to 31 October 1940, a total of 2,917 airmen flew and fought in the Battle of Britain. Of that number, 544 were killed during the battle and a further 795 would lose their lives before the end of 1940. This book is a tribute to these men. Both casualties and those who survived are included in this photographic record. As the reader looks at the faces of these men, they are looking at the individuals who collectively held the Luftwaffe at bay during 1940 as the Germans attempted to wrest air superiority from the RAF, an essential prerequisite to their planned invasion of Britain. Day in and day out these young men held the line against overwhelming odds. The nation, collectively, knew exactly what Churchill meant in his laudatory speech and understood the debt that was owed to the "Few". Speaking in 1980, HRH The Queen Mother said: "In the hearts of the British people there will always be a special place for The Few. Without their courage, skill and determination in the face of fearful odds, who can tell what the final outcome of the war might have been. Many of them gave their lives, young lives, which held so much promise for the future. They will always be remembered." This book will hopefully go some way towards marking that remembrance, respecting the debt that is owed to those airmen.