My father was reluctant to talk about the war: killing people, and having friends killed, is not something he wanted to think about, I suppose. I levered little bits out of him but it was hard work.
Before the war he had been a keen wild-fowler. After the war he never shot again beyond teaching us to shoot a rifle. ("Next time the Germans might be Russians" he said waggishly.)
16 October 2019 at 11:40
For the past few weeks I have been visiting daily the excellent military videos of Mark Felton. He specialises in telling fascinating snippet stories (about 5-20 minutes) of specific aspects of the 1939-45 war.
For example, today's story was an account of the Italian Air Force's surprising involvement in the Battle of Britain (the results were unimpressive... biplanes versus Hurricanes, massive losses due to accidents and mechanical failures etc.)
There are a series of really interesting pieces on the astonishing German high technology experiments towards the end of the war - such as the rocket-powered Komet fighter; the only rocket plane ever to be in active service:
Or the experimental 188 ton Maus tank - a crazily massive tank.
There are loads of other vids about particular operations, combats, dogfights, personalities - it's a real treasure trove; one of the very best YouTube channels I've ever seen.
"Italian air force in the Battle of Britain! Mark Felton for military history buffs (especially World War II)"
1 Comment -
My father was reluctant to talk about the war: killing people, and having friends killed, is not something he wanted to think about, I suppose. I levered little bits out of him but it was hard work.
Before the war he had been a keen wild-fowler. After the war he never shot again beyond teaching us to shoot a rifle. ("Next time the Germans might be Russians" he said waggishly.)
16 October 2019 at 11:40