Introduction

Roy Nesbit brings to bear all the insight gained from his flying experience and his skill as an aviation historian as he investigates the wartime disappearances he describes in this haunting book.

Stories of Disappearances

In vivid detail he retells the stories of two of the best-known disappearances — the pioneering aviator and renowned author Antoine Saint-Exupéry and the photo-reconnaissance ace Adrian Warburton. But he also explores several less well-known but equally dramatic cases — the crew of a Beaufort torpedo bomber that vanished off the coast of Greece, the loss of a Czech Hurricane pilot in Belgium, and the disappearance of a Lancaster crew during a raid on Germany.

Investigation and Reconstruction

In his search to discover the fate of these lost airmen, he reconstructs the circumstances of their final flights and their last moments in the air, and he puts together all the scattered pieces of evidence that have come to light since the war to explain their loss. His historical detective work emphasizes the uncertainties and terrible risks that were a routine element in operational flying 60 years ago.

Conclusion

The stories make compelling reading.