On a Wing and a Prayer

This is a book that captures the horrors of World War II as witnessed by a young RAF bomber pilot. "On A Wing and a Prayer" takes you through the authors upbringing in Aberdeen as well as raid by raid through his tour of duty This book takes you through the author's upbringing in pre-war Aberdeen to his eyewitness account of a raid by a German bomber on the shipyards in the city on 12 July 1940. It describes how he came to join the RAF followed by his training in England, the USA and Canada before becoming operational. It then takes you, raid by raid, through the author's tour of operational duty over the period, September 1944 - April 1945. This included an incident on the night of 23 October 1944 during a raid on Essen, when 'friendly' bomb released from another Lancaster tore away 28ft of the starboard wing including the aileron. For retaining control of the badly damaged aircraft and landing it at base he was commissioned 'in the field' by the Commander of No. 1 Group the following day. It is primarily a bomber pilot's story and includes his sober reflections on controversial issues in which he was involved such as the bombing of Dresden. However, it is also about the shared experience of the author and his crew and the risks they had to face. It was this experience that enabled them to assess each other's worth and through this knowledge to build up their mutual affection and respect. Accordingly when they eventually met up again after a gap of 37 years it was an emotional and joyous occasion.