Latest releases by
aviation artist Robert Taylor of P-51 Mustangs of 357th fighter group in
aviation art print Struggle for Supremacy. All Robert Taylor's previous
P-51 Mustangs are sold out. Struggle for Supremacy is a must for aviation
art collectors. Art print available from the military art company.
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Desert Sharks by Robert Taylor.
Robert captures precisely the arid heat, dust and smoke of desert warfare, conveying an air of impending conflict. Neville Duke in his 112 Sqn P40-D Kittyhawk.
Signed limited edition of 90 prints. Paper size 21 inches x 15.5 inches (53cm x 40cm). Price £110.00 Signed by Squadron Leader Neville Duke, DSO, OBE, DFC*, AFC, CzMC (deceased) .
ITEM CODE DHM2626
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Dambusters - The Impossible Mission by Robert Taylor.
Dinghy Young, flying Lancaster AJ-A, heading through flak and machine gun fire towards the Mohne Dam at precisely 60ft, has just released his cylindrical, hydrostatically-triggered bouncing bomb – clearly visible against the huge splash created as it hits the water. The mighty Mohne Dam has but moments to live.
Limited Edition: Signed Limited Edition of 400 prints. Image size 30 inches x 15 inches (76cm x 38cm). Price £ Signed by Sergeant Raymond E. Grayston (deceased) and Squadron Leader George L. Johnson DFM.
Collectors Edition: Artist Proof Edition of 25 prints. Image size 30 inches x 15 inches (76cm x 38cm). Price £ Signed by Sergeant Raymond E. Grayston (deceased), Squadron Leader George L. Johnson DFM, Squadron Leader Les Munro DSO DFC RNZAF, Sergeant Frederick E. Sutherland RCAF, Flight Sergeant Grants McDonald RCAF, Corporal Beck Parsons and Corporal Kenneth Lucas.
Collectors Edition: Signed Limited Edition of 350 prints. Image size 30 inches x 15 inches (76cm x 38cm). Price £ Signed by Sergeant Raymond E. Grayston (deceased), Squadron Leader George L. Johnson DFM, Squadron Leader Les Munro DSO DFC RNZAF, Sergeant Frederick E. Sutherland RCAF, Flight Sergeant Grants McDonald RCAF, Corporal Beck Parsons and Corporal Kenneth Lucas.
Remarque Edition. Image size 30 inches x 15 inches (76cm x 38cm). Price £
Tribute Edition. Image size 30 inches x 15 inches (76cm x 38cm). Price £
ITEM CODE DHM2599
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Strike and Strike Again by Robert Taylor.
By the spring of 1945, Germanys once all-conquering submarine fleet, driven by allied forces from its bases in estern France, had fled to the relative safety of the Norwegian fjords - territory still remaining under German occupation since 1940. In one of Hitlers last stands, more than 100 U-Boats, merchant freighters, flakships, and other military vessels were hathered in the narrow fjords, laying up by day and sailing undercover of darkness. They were a menace that had to be dealt with. Tasked with the difficult job of eliminating this force were the Beaufighters and Mosquitos of RAF Coastal Commands Strike Wings based in Scotland. - Our job was to go after this shipping and sink it - recalled Wing Commader Colin Milson, C.O. of No. 455s Beaufighters. - The fjords were often just 200 - 300 yards across with cliffs rising vertically up 2000 feet, the deep water allowing the German shipping to get in beneath these high overhanging cliffs. This made for difficult and dangerous flying, exacerbated by the heavy flak and machine gun fire that always welcomed us.
RAF Aircrew Edition: Signed Limited Edition of 450 prints. Image size 28 inches x 16 inches (72cm x 41cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Flying Officer Harold Corbin CGM, Warrant Officer Les Doughty DFM and Flight Lieutenant Herbert Bert Graham.
RAF Aircrew Edition: Artist Proof Edition of 25 prints. Image size 28 inches x 16 inches (72cm x 41cm)
. Price £325.00 Signed by Flying Officer Harold Corbin CGM, Warrant Officer Les Doughty DFM and Flight Lieutenant Herbert Bert Graham.
RAF Victory in Europe. Signed Limited Edition of 400 prints. Image size 28 inches x 16 inches (72cm x 41cm). Price £250.00 Signed by Flying Officer Harold Corbin CGM, Warrant Officer Les Doughty DFM, Flight Lieutenant Herbert Bert Graham, Flight Lieutenant Ray Harington, Flight Lieutenant Des Curtis DFC, Flying Officer Maurice Webb DFM and Warrant Officer Bill Parfitt.
RAF Victory in Europe. Remarque Edition of 25 prints. Includes 7 signatures. Image size 28 inches x 16 inches (72cm x 41cm). Price £ Signed by Flying Officer Harold Corbin CGM, Warrant Officer Les Doughty DFM, Flight Lieutenant Herbert Bert Graham, Flight Lieutenant Ray Harington, Flight Lieutenant Des Curtis DFC, Flying Officer Maurice Webb DFM and Warrant Officer Bill Parfitt.
RAAF Edition: Signed Limited Edition of 150 prints. Includes 9 signatures. Image size 28 inches x 16 inches (72cm x 41cm). Price £275.00
ITEM CODE DHM2581
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The Battle for Britain by Robert Taylor.
A Battle of Britain Spitfire from 610 Squadron takes on a Me109 from I./JG3 in a head-on attack high over the south coast port of Dover, in the late morning of 10 July 1940.
Fighter Edition. Signed limited edition of 400 prints, with four signatures. Paper size 29 inches x 23 inches (74cm x 58cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Wing Commander Terence Kane, Group Captain Tom Dalton Morgan DSO, DFC*, OBE (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Richard L Jones and Squadron Leader Jocelyn G P Millard (deceased).
Limited edition of 30 artist proofs, with six signatures. Paper size 29 inches x 23 inches (74cm x 58cm). Price £395.00 Signed by Wing Commander Terence Kane, Group Captain Tom Dalton Morgan DSO, DFC*, OBE (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Richard L Jones, Squadron Leader Jocelyn G P Millard (deceased), General Gunther Rall (deceased) and Oberleutnant Gunther Seeger.
Knights Cross Edition. Signed limited edition of 300 prints, with six signatures. Paper size 29 inches x 23 inches (74cm x 58cm). Price £250.00 Signed by Wing Commander Terence Kane, Group Captain Tom Dalton Morgan DSO, DFC*, OBE (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Richard L Jones, Squadron Leader Jocelyn G P Millard (deceased), General Gunther Rall (deceased) and Oberleutnant Gunther Seeger.
Battle of Britain Edition. Signed limited edition of 200 prints, with fourteen signatures. Paper size 29 inches x 23 inches (74cm x 58cm). Price £395.00 Signed by Wing Commander Terence Kane, Group Captain Tom Dalton Morgan DSO, DFC*, OBE (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Richard L Jones, Squadron Leader Jocelyn G P Millard (deceased), General Gunther Rall (deceased), Oberleutnant Gunther Seeger, Major Hans-Ekkehard Bob, Oberleutnant Erwin Leykauf (deceased), Wing Commander George Grumpy Unwin, DSO, DFM* (deceased), Wing Commander George W Swanwick, Group Captain George H Westlake DSO DFC (deceased), Wing Commander Wilfred M Sizer DFC* (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Michael E Croskell, and Wing Commander Paddy Barthropp DFC AFC (deceased).
Battle of Britain Edition. Limited edition of 25 Remarques. Paper size 29 inches x 23 inches (74cm x 58cm). Price £
ITEM CODE DHM2278
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Knights Move by Robert Taylor
The awesome battleship Tirpitz under the command of Admiral Schniewind, in company with battleships Scheer and Hipper, setting sail during Operation Rosselsprung, destined for the open sea and the North Atlantic convoy traffic. Messerschmitt Me109s of JG5, based at Petsamo, provide overhead cover while flotilla escort vessels make up the fearsome armada. The magnificent Norwegian mountains provide a spectacular backdrop this comprehensively realistic and stirring World War Two image.
Limited edition of 500 prints,. Paper size 36 inches x 23 inches (91cm x 58cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Major Erich Rudorffer, Oberleutnant Ernst Scheufele (deceased), Fahnrich Arnold Schroeder (deceased) and Leutnant Zur See Willibald Volsing.
Limited edition of 30 artist proofs. Paper size 36 inches x 23 inches (91cm x 58cm). Price £395.00 Signed by Major Erich Rudorffer, Oberleutnant Ernst Scheufele (deceased), Fahnrich Arnold Schroeder (deceased), Leutnant Zur See Willibald Volsing, Oberst Hajo Hermann and Unteroffizier Heinz Kern.
Limited edition of 400 prints. Paper size 36 inches x 23 inches (91cm x 58cm). Price £250.00 Signed by Major Erich Rudorffer, Oberleutnant Ernst Scheufele (deceased), Fahnrich Arnold Schroeder (deceased), Leutnant Zur See Willibald Volsing, Oberst Hajo Hermann and Unteroffizier Heinz Kern.
Limited edition of 25 remarques. Paper size 36 inches x 23 inches (91cm x 58cm). Price £ Signed by Major Erich Rudorffer, Oberleutnant Ernst Scheufele (deceased), Fahnrich Arnold Schroeder (deceased), Leutnant Zur See Willibald Volsing, Oberst Hajo Hermann and Unteroffizier Heinz Kern.
Limited edition of 100 prints, with ten signatures. Issued with companion print. Paper size 36 inches x 23 inches (91cm x 58cm). Price £
ITEM CODE DHM2304
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Target Bearing 270 by Robert Taylor.
At sunrise on 12 November, 1944, led by Wing Commander James Tait, Lancasters of 617 Squadron RAF prepare to make their bombing run on the German battleship Tirpitz, lying in the Norwegian fjord at Tromso.
Signed limited edition of 400 prints, with four signatures. Paper size 30 inches x 24 inches (76cm x 61cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Flying Officer C B R Fish, Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased) and Squadron Leader E A Wass AE.
Limited edition of artist proofs. Paper size 30 inches x 24 inches (76cm x 61cm). Price £325.00 Signed by Flying Officer C B R Fish, Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased) and Squadron Leader E A Wass AE.
Signed limited edition of 100 prints, with twenty-five signatures. Paper size 30 inches x 24 inches (76cm x 61cm). Price £495.00 Signed by Warrant Officer B Burnett, Flight Lieutenant J Castagnola DSO DFC, Warrant Officer A W Cherrington, Flight Lieutenant D Cooper, Squadron Leader Lawrence Curtis DFC* (deceased), Squadron Leader L S Benny Goodman, Flight Lieutenant S V Grimes, Squadron Leader Mac Hamilton DFC*, Flight Lieutenant F E Howkins, Warrant Officer H Johnson DFM (deceased), Flying Officer A K Johnstone, Flying Officer B F Kent DFC, Flying Officer A J Lammas, Wing Commander G Mackie, Flight Lieutenant A M McKie (deceased), Warrant Officer J D Phillips, Flight Lieutenant H J Riding, Flying Officer J Soilleux, Group Captain J B Tait DSO*** DFC* ADC (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Fred Watts DFC (deceased) and Warrant Officer F L Tilley.
ITEM CODE DHM2305
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Strike and Return by Robert Taylor.
Winter in Northern Europe brings short days, long nights and, for the most part, appalling weather making navigation difficult and flying hazardous, even by todays electronically sophisticated standards. Throughout RAF Bomber Commands arduous six year World War II campaign, as if atrocious weather were not enough to contend with, day and night bomber crews faced interceptions by enemy fighters, constant flak over occupied territory, and the real and ever-present danger of mid-air collision. Add snowstorms, gale force winds, freezing temperatures and the comparatively rudimentary navigational aids available at the time, it seems a miracle they were able to continue at all. But continue they did, and whenever there was the slimmest chance of hitting an enemy target, unhesitatingly, the aircrews of Bomber Command took up the challenge. 460 Squadron, RAAF was typical of the bomber squadrons under overall command of Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris, squadrons manned by volunteer aircrews from Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Rhodesia, South Africa, and many other nations opposed to Hitlers Nazi Germany. To a man they knew the frightening odds against completing a tour of duty, yet many faked their ages just to join this elite band of wartime flyers. True to their squadron motto Strike and Return, the artist shows Lancasters of 460 Squadron RAAF, returning to RAF Binbrook in Lincolnshire following a daylight raid over Germany in the late winter of 1944. With the sun almost set, chill evening shadows lengthen on a magnificent winter landscape dusted with snow, Lancaster J-Squared leads the mighty bombers as they descend in the fading light.
Aircrew Edition. Signed limited edition of 400 prints, with four signatures. Paper size 31 inches x 24 inches (79cm x 61cm). Price £200.00 Signed bySquadron Leader Pat Carden DFC AE (deceased), Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased), Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC and Flying Officer Bill North.
Aircrew Edition. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs, with four signatures. Paper size 31 inches x 24 inches (79cm x 61cm). Price £325.00 Signed bySquadron Leader Pat Carden DFC AE (deceased), Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased), Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC and Flying Officer Bill North.
RAAF Edition. Signed limited edition of 250 prints, with six signatures. Paper size 31cm x 24 inches (79cm x 61cm). Price £250.00 Signed byFlight Lieutenant W E Jerry Bateman DFC, Flying Officer Hilary M Bayliss DFC, Flight Lieutenant Phillip J Coffey DFC DFM, Flight Lieutenant John R Gardner DFC, Flight Lieutenant R Gordon Goodwin DSO DFM and Flying Officer Lawrence W Woods DFC.
Collectors Edition. Signed limited edition of 250 prints, with nine signatures. Paper size 31 inches x 24 inches (79cm x 61cm). Price £275.00 Signed bySquadron Leader Pat Carden DFC AE (deceased), Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased), Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flying Officer Bill North, Group Captain Dudley Burnside DSO OBE DFC* (deceased), Squadron Leader Lawrence Curtis DFC* (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased), Wing Commander Ernest Rodley DSO DFC AFC AE and Flight Lieutenant Fred Watts DFC (deceased) .
Victoria Cross Edition. Signed limited edition of 50 prints, with seventeen signatures. Paper size 31 inches x 24 inches (79cm x 61cm) Sold out edition. Only one secondary market print available.. Price £820.00 Signed bySquadron Leader Pat Carden DFC AE (deceased), Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased), Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flying Officer Bill North, Group Captain Dudley Burnside DSO OBE DFC* (deceased), Squadron Leader Lawrence Curtis DFC* (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased), Wing Commander Ernest Rodley DSO DFC AFC AE, Flight Lieutenant Fred Watts DFC (deceased), Warrant Officer M Ben Brennan DFM AFM, Group Captain Leonard Cheshire VC OM DSO** DFC* (deceased), Flight Lieutenant James Castgnola DSO DFC, Wing Commander Roderick Learoyd VC (deceased), Warrant Officer Norman Jackson VC (deceased), Group Captain J B Tait DSO*** DFC* ADC (deceased), Group Captain Leonard Trent VC DFC ADC and Warrant Officer Bill Wilcox DFM.
ITEM CODE DHM2221
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Malta - George Cross by Robert Taylor.
Pilot Officer John Bisley of 126 Squadron in combat with Me 109s from JG-53 during one of the intense aerial air battles over Valetta in April 1942. Between the summer of 1940 and the end of 1942, Malta became one of the most bombed places on earth. The RAFs desperate fight to retain control of the diminutive Mediterranean island, and the defiant courage of the people of Malta, is one of the epic stories of World War Two.
Malta Edition. Signed limited edition of 250 prints.. Price £225.00 Signed by Flight Lieutenant Ken Evans DFC, Flight Lieutenant Ian MacLennan DFM, Flight Lieutenant Colin Parkinson DFC, Flight Lieutenant Jack Rae DFC* (deceased), Squadron Leader Arthur Roscoe DFC and Flight Lieutenant Allan Scott DFM.
Malta Edition Artist Proofs. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs.. Price £395.00 Signed by Flight Lieutenant Ken Evans DFC, Flight Lieutenant Ian MacLennan DFM, Flight Lieutenant Colin Parkinson DFC, Flight Lieutenant Jack Rae DFC* (deceased), Squadron Leader Arthur Roscoe DFC and Flight Lieutenant Allan Scott DFM.
Malta Edition with companion print. Signed limited edition of 250 prints.. Price £275.00 Signed by Flight Lieutenant Ken Evans DFC, Flight Lieutenant Ian MacLennan DFM, Flight Lieutenant Colin Parkinson DFC, Flight Lieutenant Jack Rae DFC* (deceased), Squadron Leader Arthur Roscoe DFC, Flight Lieutenant Allan Scott DFM, Billy Drake DSO, DFC - companion print, Mike Crossley DSC - companion print and Peter Twiss OBE DSC - companion print.
ITEM CODE RT0003
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Thunderheads Over Ridgewell by Robert Taylor.
In the early days of the USAAF daylight bombing campaign, before the arrival of long-range fighter escorts, rarely was a mission flown without Luftwaffe interception and the ever-present barrage of anti-aircraft fire. The Eighth Air Force crews literally fought their way through swarms of enemy fighters and thick flak to hit their targets, then fought their way home again. Seldom a formation returned without losses and casualties, but inexorably the American bomb groups struck deeper and deeper into enemy territory. Bomber crews lucky enough to survive a complete tour were few and far between. They knew this when they arrived in England at the start of their tour, and the awesome task they faced banded the flyers together like brothers. They flew and fought for each other, their country and liberty with determination and a camaraderie that only those who went through the experience could fully appreciate. In his tribute to the USAAF bomber crews, Robert Taylor has selected the 381st Bomb Group to represent, and pay tribute to all those who flew the perilous daylight raids out of bases in England into the heavily defended skies above enemy occupied Europe. Roberts emotive painting shows 381st Bomb Group B-17 Fortresses returning to Ridgewell on a summer afternoon in 1944 during a period when the Group reached the peak of it effectiveness- for several months it was the top ranked outfit in the Eighth. Between June 1943 and the end of hostilities the 381st completed 297 combat missions, hit almost every important target in German hands and was credited with the destruction of 223 enemy aircraft. One aircraft, more than any other, came to symbolise the great bombing campaign of the USAAF in Europe during World War Two, and in his spectacular new painting Robert Taylor captures the magnificence of Boeings legendary B-17 Flying Fortress. In his inimitable style the artist brings to life an exact wartime scene, a battle-damaged aircraft making apparent the fearsome task tackled daily by those who flew the hazardous missions to occupied Europe during the greatest air war ever fought.
Aircrew Edition. Signed limited edition of 400 prints. Image size 25 inches x 16 inches (64cm x 41cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Captain Turner G Brashear, Major Edward A Klein and First Lieutenant Vincent J Peters.
Mighty Eighth Edition. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. Image size 25 inches x 16 inches (64cm x 41cm). Price £395.00 Signed by Captain Turner G Brashear, Major Edward A Klein and First Lieutenant Vincent J Peters.
Mighty Eighth Edition. Signed limited edition of 250 prints. Image size 25 inches x 16 inches (64cm x 41cm). Price £250.00 Signed by Captain Turner G Brashear, Major Edward A Klein and First Lieutenant Vincent J Peters.
ITEM CODE RT0002
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Band of Brothers by Robert Taylor.
The mighty Lancaster, the mainstay of RAF Bomber Command, crewed by volunteers from Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Rhodesia, South Africa, and many other nations opposed to Nazi rule, flew day and night sorties whenever there was a chance of reaching the target. Their unflinching courage, and selfless devotion to duty paved the way for the D-Day invasion, and the ultimate liberation of Nazi occupied Europe. Embellished with Goerings infamous quotation No Enemy Plane Will Fly Over The Reich Territory, S for Sugar took her bombs to Berlin, Hamburg, Schweinfurt, Bremen, Hanover, Wurzburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, and other prime targets, flying the second greatest number of operational sorties of any bomber in the Command. Time and again Sugar brought her crew home, often limping back riddled with flak and bullet holes, occasionally on three engines, and once all the way back from the German capital with a badly damaged wing following a mid-air collision over the target. Robert Taylors emotive painting shows S for Sugar on the morning of 27th April, 1944 after her 95th sortie - a raid on the ball-bearing factory at Schweinfurt. As the battle-scarred bomber taxies in at RAF Waddington, other 467 Squadron Lancasters follow, heading for their dispersal points. Already the weary crews begin their informal debriefing. By the wars end this trusty bomber had completed no fewer than 137 operations over enemy territory, bringing her crew home every time. Now magnificently restored to her former glory, S for Sugar resides in the RAF Museum at Hendon, providing a lasting tribute to the gallant men of RAF Bomber Command. The famous aircraft was typical of, and ultimately came to symbolise, the men and machines of Royal Air Force Bomber Command. Flying initially with 83 Squadron Pathfinder Force, then 467 Squadron RAAF, Avro Lancaster serial number R5868, call sign S for Sugar, took part in almost every major attack on Germany between the summer of 1942 and the end of hostilities. With the life expectancy of a new Lancaster being just a few months, it was a miracle she survived the war.
RAF Aircrew Edition. Signed limited edition of 400 prints. Image size 24 inches x 16 inches (61cm x 41cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Michael Beetham GCB CBE DFC AFC FRAeS, Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flight Lieutenant Harry Hughes DFC DFM AE* and Flight Lieutenant John Petrie-Andrews DFC DFM.
Bomber Command Edition. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs, with ten signatures. Image size 24 inches x 16 inches (61cm x 41cm). Price £395.00 Signed by Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Michael Beetham GCB CBE DFC AFC FRAeS, Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flight Lieutenant Harry Hughes DFC DFM AE*, Flight Lieutenant John Petrie-Andrews DFC DFM, Air Marshal Sir John Curtiss KCB KBE, Squadron Leader E Gray Ward DFC, Squadron Leader Mac Hamilton DFC*, Squadron Leader Reg Lewis DFC, The Lord Mackie of Benshie CBE DSO DFC and Squadron Leader Harry Wright DFC*.
Bomber Command Edition. Signed limited edition of 250 prints. Image size 24 inches x 16 inches (61cm x 41cm). Price £ Signed by Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Michael Beetham GCB CBE DFC AFC FRAeS, Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flight Lieutenant Harry Hughes DFC DFM AE*, Flight Lieutenant John Petrie-Andrews DFC DFM, Air Marshal Sir John Curtiss KCB KBE, Squadron Leader E Gray Ward DFC, Squadron Leader Mac Hamilton DFC*, Squadron Leader Reg Lewis DFC, The Lord Mackie of Benshie CBE DSO DFC and Squadron Leader Harry Wright DFC*.
RAAF Aircrew Edition. Signed limited edition of 275 prints. Image size 24 inches x 16 inches (61cm x 41cm). Price £ Signed by :
Flying Officer Laurence W Baker,
Flight Lieutenant Albert R T Boys DFC,
Flight Lieutenant John A Colpus DFC,
Flight Lieutenant Maxwell G Johnson,
Flight Lieutenant William N Kynoch DFC,
Warrant Officer David Morland DFM,
Flying Officer Neville J Morrison,
Flying Officer John W Nedwich DFC,
Flying Officer Roy L Pegler,
Warrant Officer Raymond Sayer DFM,
Squadron Leader Thomas Scholefield DFC*
and
Flying Officer Albert Wallace.
ITEM CODE DHM2472
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Phantom Showtime by Robert Taylor
Irish and I came into the break smoking at 500 knots, below the level of the flight deck. I could see thousands of men watching from the catwalks. I made a six-G break turn with 90 degree angle of bank. We landed after one of my best passes of the cruise. - Commander Randy Duke Cunningham. Back on deck, first to shake the hands of Lt.Randy Cunningham and his Radar Intercept Officer, Lt (jg) Willie Irish Driscoll, was ordnancement Willie White: Mr. Cunningham, we got our MiG today, didnt we! It was January 19, 1972 aboard the USS Constellation in the Gulf of Tonkin. As Cunningham shut down the engines of his Fighting Falcons F-4J Phantom, Task Force 77 Commander Admiral Cooper congratulated Cunningham and Driscoll on achieving their first of five air victories They went on to become the US Navys only Aces of the Vietnam war.
Signed limited edition of 800 prints. Image size 27 inches x 16 inches (69cm x 41cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Commander Randall H Cunningham USN and Commander Willie Driscoll USN.
Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. Image size 27 inches x 16 inches (69cm x 41cm). Price £325.00 Signed by Commander Randall H Cunningham USN and Commander Willie Driscoll USN.
ITEM CODE DHM2469
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Strike and Strike Again by
Robert TaylorBy the spring of 1945, Germanys once all-conquering
submarine fleet, driven by allied forces from its bases in estern France,
had fled to the relative safety of the Norwegian fjords - territory still
remaining under German occupation since 1940. In one of Hitlers last
stands, more than 100 U-Boats, merchant freighters, flakships, and other
military vessels were hathered in the narrow fjords, laying up by day and
sailing undercover of darkness. They were a menace that had to be
dealt with. Tasked with the difficult job of eliminating this force
were the Beaufighters and Mosquitos of RAF Coastal Commands Strike Wings
based in Scotland. - Our job was to go after this shipping and sink it -
recalled Wing Commader Colin Milson, C.O. of No. 455s Beaufighters. - The
fjords were often just 200 - 300 yards across with cliffs rising
vertically up 2000 feet, the deep water allowing the German shipping to
get in beneath these high overhanging cliffs. This made for
difficult and dangerous flying, exacerbated by the heavy flak and machine
gun fire that always welcomed us.
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| The Battle for Britain by Robert Taylor
With the Battle of Britain in its early stages, on the morning of
Wednesday 10th July 1940, a convoy of slow-moving cargo ships heading
along the south coast came under attack from a formidable force of Dornier
Do17 bombers, escorted by five squadrons of fighters. RAF Fighter
Command scrambled several squadrons to meet the oncoming force in an
effort to protect the shi[s, and a massive dogfight involving more than a
hundred planes developed in the region of Dover. Ripping into
oncoming bombers, the RAF fighters attacked head-on - a hazardous tactic
requiring great courage, but highly effective in unnerving bomber crews,
causing the to swerve out of formation and abandon their target.
Head-on collisions were not uncommon. The great battle raged well
into the afternoon, and by evening the insurgents had been driven back to
their bases in France to lick their wounds. Only one direct hit was
scored by the enemy, when a 700 ton sloop was sunk. The Luftwaffe
lost nineteen aircraft, and although the RAF had seven aircraft damaged,
it lost only one pilot that day.. |
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Strike and Return by Robert Taylor
Winter in Northern Europe brings short days, long nights and, for
the most part, appalling weather making navigation difficult and flying
hazardous, even by today's electronically sophisticated standards.
Throughout RAF Bomber Command's arduous six year World War II campaign,
as if atrocious weather were not enough to contend with, day and night
bomber crews faced interceptions by enemy fighters, constant flak over
occupied territory, and the real and ever-present danger of mid-air
collision. Add snowstorms, gale force winds, freezing temperatures
and the comparatively rudimentary navigational aids available at the
time, it seems a miracle they were able to continue at all. But
continue they did, and whenever there was the slimmest chance of hitting
an enemy target, unhesitatingly, the aircrews of Bomber Command took up
the challenge. 460 Squadron, RAAF was typical of the bomber
squadrons under overall command of Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris;
squadrons manned by volunteer aircrews from Britain, Australia, New
Zealand, Canada, Rhodesia, South Africa, and many other nations opposed
to Hitler's Nazi Germany. To a man they knew the frightening odds
against completing a tour of duty, yet many faked their ages just to
join this elite band of wartime flyers.
True to their squadron motto "Strike and Return", the
artist shows Lancasters of 460 Squadron RAAF, returning to RAF Binbrook
in Lincolnshire following a daylight raid over Germany in the late
winter of 1944. With the sun almost set, chill evening shadows
lengthen on a magnificent winter landscape dusted with snow, Lancaster J-Squared
leads the mighty bombers as they descend in the fading
light.
Malta - George Cross by Robert Taylor
Tribute to the gallant pilots who fought against such overwhelming
odds, and the people of Malta, depicts Australian John Bisley of 126
Squadron dog-fighting with an Me109 from JG-53 during one of the intense
aerial battles over Valetta in April 1942. Signed by pilots who fought
and won the Battle of Malta.
The Maltese people had withstood the siege with such resolve, King
George VI, by way of recognition, awarded the island of Malta the George
Cross - the highest decoration for civilian gallantry. Crucial to the Allies in their battle with the Axis forces in North
Africa, Malta's naval dockyards and airfields provided the only base
from which ships and aircraft could attack the convoys supplying
Rommel's desert forces. The German High Command, fully aware of
its importance, made every effort to bomb the island out of
existence. By April 1942 the RAF was down to just six serviceable
Spitfires and Hurricanes, Allied convoys were being decimated unopposed,
and Malta was in danger of starvation. Two and a half years of
relentless bombing had blitzed the dockyards out of operation, prompting
Axis Commander-in-Chief Field Marshal Kesselring to tell Hitler that
Malta was neutralised. But the Field Marshal failed to take into
account the heroism of a tiny force of RAF fighter pilots, the British
Merchant Navy, the decisive role played by the British aircraft carriers
Eagle and Furious, the American carrier Wasp, and the iron will of the
people of Malta. In the spring of 1942, when Spitfires flown from
the decks of carriers HMS Eagle and USS Wasp, arrived at the island's
battered airstrips, the battle took a new turn. At last, though
still heavily outnumbered, the volunteer pilots from Britain, Australia,
America, Canada, New Zealand and other Commonwealth countries were able
to put up a meaningful defence. Never again would the Axis raids
be met only with token resistance, and gradually the Spitfires began to
dominate the sky above the beleaguered island. They had arrived in
the nick of time.
Thunderheads Over Ridgewell by
Robert Taylor Robert's emotive painting shows 381st Bomb Group B-17
Fortresses returning to Ridgewell on a summer afternoon in 1944 during a
period when the Group reached the peak of its effectiveness - for
several months it was top ranked outfit in the Eighth. Between June 1943
and the end of hostilities the 381st completed 297 combat missions, hit
almost every important target in German hands, and was credited with the
destruction of 223 enemy aircraft. One aircraft more than any other came
to symbolise the great daylight bombing campaign of the USAAF in Europe
during World War Two, the B-17 Flying Fortress.
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| Band of Brothers by Robert Taylor
The painting shows S for Sugar on the morning of 27th April, 1944
after her 95th sortie - a raid on the ball-bearing factory at Schweinfurt.
As the battle-scarred bomber taxies in at RAF Waddington, other 467
Squadron Lancasters follow, heading for their dispersal points. Already
the weary crews begin their informal debriefing.
One famous aircraft was typical of, and ultimately came to
symbolise,
the men and machines of Royal Air Force Bomber Command. Flying initially
with 83 Squadron Pathfinder Force, then 467 Squadron RAAF, Avro Lancaster
serial number R5868, call sign S for Sugar, took part in almost every
major attack on Germany between the summer of 1942 and the end of
hostilities. With the life expectancy of a new Lancaster being just a few
months, it was a miracle she survived the war.
The mighty Lancaster, the mainstay of RAF Bomber Command, crewed by
volunteers from Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Rhodesia, South
Africa, and many other nations opposed to Nazi rule, flew day and night
sorties whenever there was a chance of reaching the target. Their
unflinching courage and selfless devotion to duty paved the way for the
D-Day invasion, and the ultimate liberation of Nazi occupied Europe.
Embellished with Goering's infamous quotation "No Enemy Plane Will
Fly Over The Reich Territory", S for Sugar took her bombs to Berlin,
Hamburg, Schweinfurt, Bremen, Hanover, Wurzburg, Munich, Stuttgart,
Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, and other prime targets, flying the second greatest
number of operational sorties of any bomber in the Command. Time and again
Sugar brought her crew home, often limping back riddled with flak and
bullet holes, occasionally on three engines, and once all the way back
from the German capital with a badly damaged wing following a mid-air
collision over the target.
By the war's end this trusty bomber had completed no fewer than 137
operations over enemy territory, bringing her crew home every time. Now
magnificently restored to her former glory, S for Sugar resides in the RAF
Museum at Hendon, providing a lasting tribute to the gallant men of
RAF Bomber Command.
Phantom Showtime by Robert TaylorThe painting shows Cunningham's F-4J Phantom, feet above the murky
waters of the Gulf of Tonkin, passing the USS Constealltion at 500 knots.
The mighty carrier was running out of water in the small Gulf as
Cunningham called up Air Boss requesting the traditional victory roll.
"Negative, land immediately." was the terse reply. The mood
aboard however was one of celebration for the crew of VF-96s Phantom, call
sign 'Showtime 112'.
Signatories: Commander Randall H Cunningham and Commander Willie
Driscoll. "Irish and I came into the break
smoking at 500 knots, below the level of the flight deck. I could see
thousands of men watching from the catwalks. I made a six-G break turn
with a 90 degree angle of bank. We landed after one of my best passes of
the cruise." Cdr Randy 'Duke' Cunningham.
Back on deck, first to shake the hands of Lt Randy Cunningham and
his Radar Intercept Officer, Lt (jg) Willie 'Irish' Driscoll, was
ordnanceman Willie White: "Mr Cunningham, we got our MiG today,
didn't we!"
It was 19 January, 1972, aboard the USS Constellation in the Gulf of
Tonkin. As Cunningham shut down the engines of his 'Fighting Falcons' F-4J
Phantom, Task Force 77 Commander Admiral Cooper, ship's CO Captain Ward,
squadron commanders, and the rest of VF-96's crews were there to
congratulate Cunningham and Driscoll on achieving their first kill. It was
the first of five air victories, Cunningham and Driscoll becoming the US
Navy's only Aces of the Vietnam war.
After the usual vision-blurring catapult off the deck, Cunningham's
F4J headed for the North Vietnamese airfield at Quang Lang, suspected of
basing MiG-21s. His three-ship section was tasked to intercept any MiGs
that threatened the reconnaissance RA-5C Vigilante mission as the force
approached the enemy airfield.
As the RA-5C came under sever fire from AAA and SAMS, Cunningham
dodged two missiles, plunging downward from 15,000 feet in the process.
Spotting two Bai Thiong-based MiG-21s below, he tracked them just above
the jungle tops, closing to within a range of his heat seeking
Sidewinders. The MiG pilot broke hard, throwing off the missile, and
Cunningham immediately gave his attention to the second enemy fighter.
Firing a second Sidewinder, the missile scored a direct hit, blasting off
the entire tail section of the MiG, sending it crashing straight into the
ground in a ball of fire.
Cunningham was now fired up and ready for more, but the dependable
Driscoll called attention to the low fuel state from the back seat, and
they turned back toward Laos for the long flight back to the
Constellation. |
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