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On Spartan Wings: The Royal Hellenic Air Force in World War Two Paperback – April 29, 2022

by John Car (Author), John Carr (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 35 ratings
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Rarely has an air force gone into combat as poorly prepared and outgunned as the Royal Hellenic Air Force had to when Mussolini's Italy dragged Greece into war on 28 October 1940. Without warning, as Italian forces poured over the frontier from Albania, the RHAF's paltry effective lineup of 128 battleworthy aircraft, most of them obsolete, were pitted against the 463 fielded by the Regia Aeronautica, whose pilots had honed their skills in the Spanish Civil War. On the Greek side, though, aces such as Marinos Mitralexis, with his audacious ramming of an Italian bomber on the fifth day of the war, ensured that morale in the RHAF remained high. Though the RAF pitched in with whatever help it could provide in machines and manpower, the aerial war was unequal from the first. By the end of 1940 the RHAF was seriously depleted, though individual pilots and crews continued to fight valiantly. The end came in April 1941 when Hitler sped to the rescue of the Duce. The Luftwaffe blasted out of the sky what remained of the RHAF and whatever RAF units remained to help out its last stand. A single mira (squadron), with just 5 Avro Ansons escaped intact to Egypt, where British forces were bracing for Rommel's onslaught. Out of this small squadron grew three full mirai, whose pilots, now equipped with modern aircraft, played a decisive part in the Allied victory at El Alamein. Until Greece was liberated in October 1944 the RHAF units in the Allied air forces ranged over targets in the Aegean Sea, Italy and Yugoslavia. The RHAF was little affected by a communist-inspired mutiny in the Greek forces in Egypt that briefly threatened to neutralize the Greek contribution. After the end of World War II the RHAF was called upon to confront the threat of an attempted communist takeover of Greece and played a major part in overcoming the rebellion and saving the country for the West. Meticulous research interwoven with first-hand accounts makes this a fitting tribute to the skill and heroism of the Greek airmen and a valuable account of a neglected aspect of WWII air warfare.
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  1. Print length
    192 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Pen and Sword Aviation
  4. Publication date
    April 29, 2022
  5. Dimensions
    6.24 x 0.6 x 9.21 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1399019759
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1399019750
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Carr's vital volume remains the definitive English-language study of Hellenic air power in World War II. And I loved it."
Cybermodeler

"...an interesting part of history you don't often read about."
Historical Miniatures Gaming Society

About the Author

John Carr has enjoyed a career as a journalist, correspondent and broadcaster (The Times, Wall Street Journal Europe, Vatican Radio), mainly in the Mediterranean and particularly Greece, where he now resides.

John Carr has enjoyed a career as a journalist, correspondent and broadcaster (The Times, Wall Street Journal Europe, Vatican Radio), mainly in the Mediterranean and particularly Greece, where he now resides. He is the author of 'On Spartan Wings: The Royal Hellenic Air Force in World War II'; 'Spartas Kings'; 'The Defence and Fall of Greece 1940-41'; 'RHNS Averof' and 'Fighting Emperors of Byzantium', all published by Pen & Sword.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pen and Sword Aviation (April 29, 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1399019759
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1399019750
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.7 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.24 x 0.6 x 9.21 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 35 ratings

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Sir John Carr

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
35 global ratings
My father, a former RHAF and RAF pilot, is completely engrossed in this book.
5 Stars
My father, a former RHAF and RAF pilot, is completely engrossed in this book.
My 98 year old father is transfixed, reading about his own exploits and those of his friends and comrades.
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Top reviews from the United States

VikingBerserker
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read!
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2012
Verified Purchase
Recently released in the US, the book follows the RHAF from the days leading up to the Italian invasion, to the post year period when the later renamed Hellenic Air Force or HAF participated in the Korean War with C-47's modified to carry 5k of bombs.

At the time of the Italian invasion, the RHAF had a total of 221 aircraft from various countries, purchased (for money or tobacco) from:

France: Breguet XIX (18 ) , Potez 25 (15) , Potez 63 (11), Bloch 151 (9)
Germany: Do-22 (12 - seaplanes and those converted to land), Hs 126 (16), Ju-52 (3), Ju G24 (4)
UK: Fairey III Seaplanes (9), Avro Anson (9), Bristol Blenheim (12), Fairy Battle (12), Gloster Gladiator (2), Hawker Horsley (6), Avro Tutors (20), Avro 626 (22)
Poland: PZL-24 (35)
Czechoslovakia Avia B534 (6)

After the fall of Greece, 13 Mira (Light Bombing) was the only full squadron that was able to escape from Greece (to Crete) and then later evacuated to Egypt when Germany invaded there. Under the RAF, 335 & 336 Pursuit Mira's were created and manned by the Greeks who escaped the German onslought. By the end of the war, these 3 Squadrons had flown almost 23,000 Combat hours. In total, it was suspected that the RHAF had confirmed kills of 70 with another 23 probable - most which appear to be Italian.

The book is 169 pages long divided into 16 Chapters, 2 Appendix's, and 20 photographs and is a fairly easy read. For such a short book is goes into depth the problems they faced throughout the war, from the problems they had with the RAF (they apparently were a rowdy lot) and even covering a number of mutinies (helped along by Stalin) that occurred during the war.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and could not put the darned thing down and had it read within 24 hours. It is a great book on an air force that has not had a lot written about it. I give it 9 Baklavas out of 10. The really good ones, not the crappy Wal-Mart kind!
17 people found this helpful
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Bill McVey
4.0 out of 5 stars Hellenic Valor
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2022
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John Carr author of "On Spartan Wings" has avoided what I term as a "tribal boast" in the telling of The Royal Hellenic Air Force's fight against Mussolini's Regia Aeronautica (1940-41). Undefeated by Italy, Greece pushed back hard into Albania (Italian Territory). Once Hitler realized Greek resolve, Germany invaded from Bulgaria to "support" Mussolini.

I am reminded of Poland's resistence to German panzers until Stalin invaded from the west to force a Polish surrender. I found it ironic that the most numerous of Greek fighters used by the RHAF were the outdated but surprisingly effective Polish PZL24.

Despite Greek valor, the Germans and lack of military ware (though Great Britain assisted as best they could)
forced a surrender to Germany. I found it humorous that the Greeks would not surrender to Italy until Duce found out and protested. Evacuations to Crete than Egypt ended the RHAF fight as an organized airforce.

Much courage and resolve remained as was the case for pilots of other defeated allies . However post-surrender Greek pilots seemed to have been plagued by lack of discipline, intra-service rivalry and "infighting". Mishaps and accidents were almost continous resulting in what one suspects might have been a purposeful confinement by the RAF, to a "back-water" operations area. The RAF was well aware of the exceptional loss of aircraft due to a variety of avoidable reasons. The author also spends considerable effort explaining the subversive Communist threat which added to the perceived unreliability of Greece's pilots flying with the British roundel depite individual heroics.

The Author concludes bringing the Greeks into their post (civil) war era and provides a short epilogue. Perhaps more sources would have been of benefit however the author despite journalist skills may not have been able locate due to those very dangerous and chaotic years of the RHAF. One will also find that in a provided appendix, targets and losses of the RHAF 1941-44 are provided. This read is worth a place on the shelf for one with an interest in the Mediterranean theatre
One person found this helpful
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Jason Wisniewski
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommended look at Greek Air Force in World War II
Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
Along with the Finns opposing the Russians in the “Winter War”, the story of Greece versus Italy ranks as one of the best “David-versus-Goliath” tails of the Second World War. Initially outnumbered by almost three to one, the Royal Hellenic Air Force (RHAF) fought back fiercely against the attacking Regia Aeronautica (Royal Italian Air Force) and scored some spectacular successes, flying outdated equipment such as the Polish-built PZL P-24, French built Bloch MB 151, and British built Gloster Gladiator. In one well known incident, for example, First Lt. Marinos Mitralexis ran out of ammunition while intercepting a formation of all-wooden Cant Z 1007 bombers and downed one by sawing its tail off with his propeller. John Carr, in his “On Spartan Wings: The Royal Hellenic Air Force in World War Two” does an excellent job telling this and other exploits of the RHAF. The book is chronological in format, starting with the start of powered flight in Greece before moving on to the opening shots of the Second World War. He discusses the RHAF’s air operations when Italy invaded Greece, before Greece turned the tables and pushed the Italians back into Albania. It then moves on to the campaign against the Germans in April 1941, when the Greek air force (as well as that of its British ally) were largely wiped out on the ground by the larger and better equipped Luftwaffe. Finally, the rest of the book covers the efforts of the Greeks in Allied service for the rest of the war, in North Africa and beyond. The book comprises of sixteen chapters and includes 20 photographs. It is highly recommended.
3 people found this helpful
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The Starosta of Isborsk
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2017
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A rare history, told more from the political point of view that from the participants in the air actions
One person found this helpful
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Kiriakis Hristoforatos
4.0 out of 5 stars Great book about the history of the Hellenic (Geek) Air ...
Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2015
Verified Purchase
Great book about the history of the Hellenic (Geek) Air force and its pilots during the WW2. It has a British point of view of history and politics, which at many points is very different then the point of view of history in Greece or the rest of the world.
One person found this helpful
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Justin
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2016
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Bought it for my Greek uncle who was in the Greek Air Force. He loves it.
2 people found this helpful
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robert young
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2017
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Top reviews from other countries

Amazon customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Item received quickly and as described.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 17, 2024
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Thank you.
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Enrico Assorati
2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
Reviewed in Italy on October 29, 2022
Verified Purchase
I was disappointed, finding a book laden with anedoctes, which dilute the analysis of the subject. There are errors too, like describing the CR.42 as four gun fighters. And the victory tallies are obviously vastly exaggerated, in the way pilots do, but historians should verify the numbers they give.
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A. Polychronis
5.0 out of 5 stars Nice read!!
Reviewed in Germany on March 18, 2017
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Good written story of the Greek Air Force during the Italian-Greek War. The reader gets a pretty nice idea of how it was to fly and fight during those early days of WW2, specially under the hard conditions of the Albanian Front.
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jeyesse
5.0 out of 5 stars A good read
Reviewed in France on February 21, 2017
Verified Purchase
Bought for a Greek WWII veteran who thoroughly enjoyed this book. Well informed and well written.
The book arrived well on time and in excellent condition. Thank you.
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david barlow
5.0 out of 5 stars Best book on the Greek Air Force in WW2 that I have ever read
Reviewed in Australia on April 16, 2014
Verified Purchase
Probably the only book in existence that covers this subject. Having said that, it does do a great job on a relatively unknown subject. I only got a copy to look up a specific incident that I hoped it would have info on and I was not disappointed.
One person found this helpful
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