Been There, Done That: Through Treacherous Skies Paperback – Jan 25 2006

The story of a young couple in war torn England will touch the heart and bring to mind the realities of war.
It is a story suitable for the young as well as the more seasoned military historian.
It is an engrossing and memorable story of World War 2
ISBN: 0-920002-32-3
Publisher: Canada’s Wings
Year of Publication: 1984
Author:
Hardcover: Yes
Dimensions: 10.5″ w x 8.5″ h
Pages: 108
Comments: 1941 to 1984. Covers operations overseas in WWII on the Hampden, Halifax, Lancaster. Post War on the Lancaster, C-119, C-130, T-33, Huey and Kiowa. Many period photos, mainly B & W, of squadron personnel and aircraft.
GLEN HANCOCK | CHARLEY GOES TO WAR
1 October 2004 | Memoir | $27.95 CAN | $22.95 US
1894031954 | Trade paperback
Charley Goes to War is an account of the Second World War told through the experiences of an RCAF airman from Wolfville, Nova Scotia. Glen Hancock takes us from the streets of Wolfville on September 4, 1939, to Canada’s training camps, and from there to his first operation out of No. 408 Goose Squadron until the final defeat of Nazi Germany and his return to Canada in 1945.
Hancock’s memoir maintains a refreshing balance between the headline events of the war and daily life in training and on air force bases. The feel of the uniforms, the specifics of insignia, RCAF lingo and all the nuts and bolts of serving queen and country are made tangible in these pages. Hancock also details the less talked about highlights of volunteering: the perks of first class train travel, the guilty pleasure of being able to see the Canadian countryside and the sites of English and European history, and his opportunity to attend the University of Edinburgh.
On his often interrupted journey toward becoming an airman, Hancock trained at bases across Canada including Prince Rupert, Brandon, Ottawa and Torbay, before traveling by boat from New York to Scotland in 1944 and eventually operating out of No.408 Goose Squadron at Linton-on-Ouse in Yorkshire. Charley Goes to War combines a wizened retrospective on the highlights of the Second World War with a sharply individual sense of what it meant at the time. Hancock describes the formation of his bomber crew, operational procedure, his first “sortie,” the equipment and everyday life on the squadron in a style both humorous and elegant.
Despite the atmosphere and ideologies upon which the war was based, Hancock recognizes that many who fought were not entirely cognizant of the holocaust while it was going on. In a chapter entitled “The Horror of Belsen Death Camp” Hancock relives the trip he made to Belsen immediately after its liberation in 1945 and his witnessing of the Nazi’s extermination project at the heart of the struggle to which he and so many other men and women were devoted.
Good afternoon to All
I do hope I am doing this correctly, as I am not very computer literate
My name is Brian Cunningham, and my Dad, William John Cunningham was a rear gunner with 408 Goose from around 1942 to 44, I believe.
I have a few pictures, and one of them is with his crew
Mid upper gunner Clark
Navigator Smith
Pilot Cooke
Bomb aimer Fergnson
Wireless Ops Nogan
Any info on my Dad or his crew would be very much appreciated
Thanks
Brian Cunningham
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am sorry if this is the wrong email address for this email, but perhaps I could ask you to kindly forward it to the correct member of your team if you feel it is appropriate to do so?
As many of your association members will predominantly be ex aircrew, evaders or prisoners of war, I thought you may be interested in a new book produced by Schiffer Publishing, which is available at the end of this month.
The book covers the evolution, formation and role of the secret wartime organisation known as MI-9 and its US mirror organisation MIS-X. These two organisations were responsible for the invention, production and distribution of a huge variety of ingenious evasion and escape devices issued to allied air crew and Special Forces to enable them to evade capture after being forced down, or cut off behind enemy lines in occupied Europe, hopefully to evade and safely return to their Squadrons and Regiments to continue the struggle against Axis powers.
The book concentrates not specifically on MI-9 or MIS-X – although their histories are covered – but on the innovative and rare devices themselves, and includes over 700 unique images of these immensely rare devices.
Please see attached the press release for the book.
If you are able to share this with your team, I think that many of them will find the diverse nature of the book; its linkage to the previous careers of many of your members (possibly their own bail outs or evasion and escape training), and the parallel interest generated in the variety of everyday items which were ‘loaded’ with evasion and escape items for covert shipment into prisoner of war camps in Europe, very interesting and relevant.
These escape items included pens, pencils, razors, shaving brushes, tooth brushes, combs, cigarette lighters, books, mirrors, games, sporting goods, dart boards and numerous other everyday items. So the book should find a wide readership due to the diverse contents included.
So I hope you may be able to share information on this book with your members and that they may perhaps find the book of interest – especially since as an ex member of HM Forces, I will donate a percentage of all sales to the RAF museum who provided invaluable help in the writing of the book.
The book is published this month by Schiffer publishing in USA and can be found on their own website, on Amazon or the Schiffer website.
http://www.schifferbooks.com/evasion-and-escape-devices-produced-by-mi9-mis-x-and-soe-in-world-war-ii-5811.html
http://www.amazon.com/Evasion-Escape-Devices-Produced-MIS-X/dp/0764348396
The UK distributors are Gazelle Books (POC is Melanie Warren). (Gazelle Publishing) website:
https://www.gazellebookservices.co.uk/GazelleBooks/sresult.pgm
Best regards and thanks
Kind regards
Phil Froom
Author
Vancouver Public Library would like to purchase 1 copy of
408 Squadron RCAF: THE ROCKCLIFFE YEAR, 1949-1964
Can you supply or advise as to where I could purchase this book.
Dianne,
Vancouver Public Library
Acquisitions Division
350 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, BC
604 331-4024
V6B 6B1
Could you please tell me if it is at all possible to purchase 2 copies of ‘Been There, Done That’, the Memoirs of Ron Butcher DFC, as a matter of urgency for birthday presents.
Thank you. Anne Evans
This book appears to be readily available via http://www.amazon.ca or http://www.abebooks.ca