Denis Barnham

“One of the classic first-hand pilot accounts of World War II . . . covers . . . the siege and the Axis aerial onslaught on the island.”—The Spitfire Site
 
Malta Spitfire Pilot is the journal of Flight Lieutenant Denis Barnham. Having joined the RAF at the outbreak of war, Denis grew from an inexperienced young pilot into a battle-hardened Spitfire ace—most of which occurred in the 200 grueling operational hours that followed his arrival on the embattled island of Malta, in a period of just ten weeks in the spring and summer of 1942.

 Malta was of great strategic importance to the Allies and was pivotal to their success in North Africa as it provided the perfect launching pad for aircraft to attack Axis supply ships in the Mediterranean. As a direct result, the island, in turn, suffered intensive aerial bombardment by the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica. This memoir was written by the author as he and his fellow pilots battled against terrible odds and under constant attack. It is one man’s dramatic and moving account of the air battle to save Malta.
 
 “Much has been written on this subject, but the author records his experiences in a personal way, rather than strategy . . . It is well worth reading his comments on action in one of the most bombed islands of the war.”—Aeromilitaria

Frontline Books

Malta Spitfire Pilot: A Personal Account of Ten Weeks of War, April–June 1942