Many of the airmen of the First Word War who challenged both the enemy and death did not survive. These are their stories.
In the clinging mud and trench warfare of WWI, it was soon clear that the cavalry — the elite of the elite — would be of little use.
The dashing men and officers of the cavalry searched for a way to be front and center in the conflict, and found it in the new air forces being established on both sides of the Western Front. Soon lances and sabres were replaced by silk scarves and machine guns. Combat on horseback was replaced by dogfights in the air — one-on-one and in great flying formations — always between warriors. No technology changed more in the five years of the war, and none would have a bigger impact.
From Great Britain to Canada to Australia and New Zealand, new heroes took the honour and dash of the cavalry to the air in flying machines — which would change the face of war forever.

Norman Leach is the author of the bestselling Passchendaele: Triumph and Tragedy on the Fields of Flanders. He served as historical advisor on the Paul Gross feature-film production of Passchendaele. His other publications include: Great Military Leaders: Charismatic Canadian Commanders; Canadian Battles: Canada's Role in Major World Conflicts; Broken Arrow: America's First Lost Nuclear Weapon; and Canadian Peacekeepers: Ten Stories of Valour in War-Torn Countries. He is the recipient of no less than 5 Crystal Book Awards from the University of Lethbridge. Saskatchewan-born, Norman Leach graduated with a degree in Strategic Studies from the University of Manitoba, and he gives speeches around the world on Canadian military history. He has been awarded both the Canadian 125 and Alberta Centennial Medals, and has also been named an honourary peacekeeper by the Canadian Armed Forces

Norman Leach's profile page

John Melbourne is Honorary Colonel of 410 Tactical Fighter Operational Training Squadron, 4 Wing, Cold Lake, Alberta. Honorary Colonel Melbourne joined the RCAF in 1953 and served for more than a decade in uniform, primarily in Search and Rescue operations. He is a past President of the Royal Canadian Air Force Association.

John Melbourne's profile page

This timely book provides an excellent view of aviation during World War I.

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