M.E. K?hnert

Most books in English about flying in the first world war are written from an allied viewpoint. This is a translation of a German book describing life in a fighter squadron on the other side. The names and squadron numbers have been changed but the book rings absolutely true.

The humanity of the pilots, comrades lost and buried - or in one case, lost in a crash in a lake - and the detail of daily life are all fascinating. A squadron of ten pilots, for instance, had a team of 68 mechanics and another ten cooks and administators.

The story of how the squadron was disbanded at the end of the war is very poignant and makes one wonder what became of the pilots - mostly in their late teens or very early twenties in 1918. Another fascination is the view of the 'Great War' as it was seen in the nineteen thirties. A modern history is coloured by the perspective of World War II, whereas this does not look back thourgh that particular lens.… (meer)