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The Luftwaffe had done everything in its power to pummel London into submission but they failed. By the end of September 1940 their losses were mounting. For weeks since the early days of September, London had been the main target for the Luftwaffe and during that time Luftwaffe High Command had grown increasingly despondent as their losses steadily mounted. Far from being on the brink of collapse RAF Fighter Command, though vastly outnumbered, had shown an incredible resilience. The fighting had reached a dramatic climax on Sunday 15th September when, bloodied and bruised, the Luftwaffe had lost the upper hand on a day of intense combat that had culminated with a humiliating retreat. Almost every day that had passed since then had seen the Luftwaffe do everything in its power to pummel London and regain the initiative, but the daylight raids were becoming increasingly costly. On Friday 27th September, 80 days after the Battle of Britain had officially begun, the Luftwaffe came once more, this time concentrating on the fastest bombers they had - Ju88s and Bf110s. And they came in force, principally targeting London and Bristol. Anthony Saunders' superb painting depicts one of these raids, this time by bombers from KG77 as they head over the Medway Estuary, east of the City of London, in an attempt to attack the capital's warehouses and docks. Among the many units defending the capital that day was 92 Squadron from Biggin Hill and Anthony portrays the Spitfire of Pilot Officer Geoffrey Wellum in his dramatic piece. With a deft flick of the rudder Wellum banks his fighter away to port seconds after sharing in the destruction of a Ju88. It was just one of more than 50 German aircraft destroyed by the RAF during the day.
Decisive Blow by Anthony Saunders. September 1940 and they came in their hundreds, the black crosses under their wings clearly visible to those on the ground who listened in silence as the menacing drone of a thousand engines filled the clear blue summer sky. As Goering's Luftwaffe attempted to deal the killer blow to British defences, huge formations of Heinkel, Dornier and Junker bombers lumbered over sleepy English fields towards London. Surrounding them were their escorts, the formidable Messerschmitt Bf109 fighters. Diving our of the sun, 11 Group's fighter squadrons pounced, with the Spitfires going for the Bf109s while the Hurricanes fell on the slower moving bombers. Looking up on the swirling melee above, onlookers below could only watch in awe as the sky was filled with criss-cross patterns of creamy white vapour and spiralling trails of ominous, darker smoke. A parachute here and there caught the eye as the white silk drifted slowly down to the fields below. Hugely outnumbered, the men of RAF Fighter Command were supported by volunteer airmen from fifteen nations, and as more squadrons joined the fray the battle raged towards the capital until the Bf109s turned for home. The Few were finally turning the tide of the Battle of Britain.

Fields of Glory by Richard Taylor. They came from every corner of Britain. And mostly they were young. These fresh faced fighter pilots, joined by an ever-growing band of volunteer airmen from the British Commonwealth and those who had managed to escape from the occupied countries of Europe would, over the summer of 1940, not only hold the world's most powerful air force at bay, they would defeat it. Richard Taylor's stunning piece graphically conveys the conflicting realities of those deadly aerial encounters over southern England during 1940. As the sound of Merlin engines briefly interrupts the tranquility of a sleepy English village, its residents are determined to carry on with everyday life. In the skies overhead the bitter battle will shortly be reaching its crescendo but, for today at least, the fighting is over as Flight Sergeant George 'Grumpy' Unwin, one of the Battle of Britain's top Aces, and the Spitfire pilots of 19 Squadron return from yet another encounter with Goering's much-vaunted Luftwaffe.

Return From the Fray by Richard Taylor. Pictured above the beaches of Normandy shortly after D-Day in June 1944, Spitfire Mk IX MK392 was the personal aircraft of Wing Commander Johnnie Johnson, carrying his initials JE-J instead of the usual squadron codes. He went on to become Britain's highest scoring ace against the Luftwaffe with 34 claimed victories with many other probable victories.

Tribute to Air Vice Marshal James Edgar 'Johnnie' Johnson by Ivan Berryman. (C)

Items Signed by Flying Officer Ken Wilkinson (deceased)