Produced with the full support and co-operation of the Royal Air Force and British Aerospace, BATTLE FOR THE SKIES is the two-volume definitive history of the R.A.F., from the early days of the Air Battalion and the Royal Flying Corps right up to its front line role today.
One of the most detailed and visually compelling aviation series ever made, BATTLE FOR THE SKIES includes the pick of historic archive footage from around the world – much of it previously unreleased – as well as exclusive interviews with R.A.F. aircrew and newly filmed combat sequences featuring classic R.A.F. aircraft of all eras with stunning close up air-to-air photography and in-cockpit cameras.
BATTLE FOR THE SKIES – UNDER DISTANT SKIES explores in depth the history of the R.A.F. from its early days before and during WW1, to the outbreak of war in 1939. It also looks at the role of Fighter Command and Bomber Command through to their merger in 1968. It traces the origins of the RAF back to the formation of the Air Battalion in 1911 and looks at the development of British combat aircraft during the Great War. Between the wars, the R.A.F. found a role for itself patrolling the outposts of Empire but it was during the Second World War that it enjoyed it ‘finest hour’. Its fighter pilots literally saved the nation in 1940 during ‘The Battle of Britain’ while its bomber crews struck deep into the heart of the Reich.
Along with significant rare and previously unseen film footage, highlights include superb re-enactments of classic dogfights between a Spitfire and Bf 109; Hawker Hunter and MiG15; a Sopwith Camel and Fokker Triplane, and great new film of a surviving Lancaster bomber in flight.
