Commemorating the Battle of Britain - 70 Years Ago

[Kai]

To those of you that don't know, this month is the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

To commemorate this, the BBC has been running a series of programmes dedicated to honouring the men who fought in this historic, and pivotal battle of WW2.

If you have the ability to watch this particular programme;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00txy2q/The_Battle_of_Britain/

Please do - it makes for fantastic viewing, and honestly, from 10 minutes in to right to the end, i was near to tears at the bravery, selflessness and cameraderie shown by our brave pilots.

To the 3000 pilots who took part, whether you're British, Australian, Canadian, Czech, Polish or French - THANK YOU.

I've got my foxyproxy back up and running, so if any of you wish to watch this programme and you're outside the UK, please PM me for details in order to watch it:

 

[SWD Fredester 3]

Nice post Kai. Time flies, I still remember some of the stories I heard as a little boy after WWII about the Spitfire pilots and their command of the sky. They opened the door for the 8th air force and the B17's to fly.

 

[Kai]

I thought i'd lighten the mood a little, with this clip from the 1969 Movie 'The Battle of Britain' - you gotta love the polish!

[video=youtube;yXf1bhEEXd0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXf1bhEEXd0[/video]

 

[GrimJack]

The Polish pilots weren't just some of the best, they were *the* best. 303 squadron had the highest kill numbers in the BoB, and they came late to the party, a month after the start.

Of course, they had reason to be motivated, after all Poland had already been invaded and was brutally occupied by the German war machine. Add to that the extremely good training they had undergone prior to the war, and you have angry, capable men wielding exceptional tools against people they hate - a winning combination, if you're at war!

 

[Keros]

Nothing brings about moral like seething hatred for your enemy and the tools with which to defeat them. And moral is possibly the most effective tool to winning a war.