Title: Fighting spirit : 75 years of the RNZAF /
Authors: McClure, Margaret.
Publisher: Random House,
Year: 2012
Subjects: New Zealand. History.; Air forces New Zealand History.
Abstract: This book begins with the excitement of the Britannia, New Zealand's first military aircraft, and traces the struggles that culminated in the RNZAF's founding as an independent force in 1937. It covers the development of the air force through World War Two and the Cold War; an increasing range of roles, such as search and rescue; the disbanding of the air combat force; and state-of-the-art technology - along with stringent cutbacks - in the new millennium. New Zealand's air and ground staff have spanned the world, from Antarctica to Afghanistan. Their exploits have ranged from the dropping of a treacletin bomb over Samoa to flying Lancasters in the night skies over Germany, operating Hercules in the Gulf War, and training in reconnaissance with unmanned aerial vehicles today.
Contents: Britannia 1913-1938 -- Sacrifice in Europe 1939-1945 -- The war against Japan is our war 1941-1945 -- The postwar Air Force 1946-1954 -- Fighting the Cold War in South-east Asia 1955-1972 -- Quantum leap 1955-1972 -- Guarding the seas 1973-1984 -- Turbulence 1985-2001 -- New directions 2002-2012