Airmen of Arnhem

By Martin W. Bowman

Martin Bowman presents us here with an unparalleled account of events as they unfolded in the skies above Holland during Operation ‘Market-Garden’ in September 1944. ‘Market-Garden’ was a heroic failure conducted at great cost; combined losses - both airborne and ground forces - in killed, wounded and missing amounted to more than 17,000.

‘Market’, the airborne part of the operation, spanned ten Allied lifts in a calamitous nine days of operations, often in foul weather. Over the course of Operation ‘Market’, 4,050 aircraft saw employment; most of them towed the 1,205 Hamilcar and Horsa gliders and were confronted by an unknown number of Luftwaffe aircraft.

Stories of individual heroism punctuate this narrative, such as that of David Lord, a RAF Dakota pilot who was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. Tales such as these humanize a period of wartime history that is often reduced to mere facts.

There is no doubting the gallant and valorous contribution of the airmen of Arnhem - the RAF Dakota, Stirling, Halifax, Albemarle, Horsa, Hamilcar and Glider Pilot Regiment crews together with those of the USAAF C-47 Troop Carrier Groups of the IX US Troop Carrier Command, the Waco and Horsa gliders, and the B-24 Liberator resupply crews. All of their incredible, illuminating and often understated accounts of extraordinary courage, camaraderie, shared terror and encounters with the enemy offer a more personalized view of ‘Market’ and are complemented by the author’s background information that give an overall picture of each air operation.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pen and Sword
• Release date: Jan 19, 2020
• ISBN: 9781526746122

Martin W. Bowman

MARTIN W. BOWMAN is the author of over 100 books on military and commercial aviation as well as photographic books on a variety of subjects. He has participated in German and USAFE air/land and night air/drop missions on C-160 and C-130 Hercules aircraft, and is a frequent contributor to aviation journals in Great Britain, the USA and Australia. In 1999 he was appointed an official researcher for DERA.