'Til We Meet Again: Recapturing Moments of the RCAF in World War II (1991) By John McQuarrie & David O'Malley
 
Today, military pilots flying their high-tech, computer-driven aircraft will fly all the squadron's aeroplanes. During the Second World War, however, aircrews of a fighting squadron were assigned to a particular airframe for the duration of a tour of operations, normally 30 combat missions, or until the aircraft became a casualty. As a result, the crews developed a highly personal and intimate relationship with the beautiful machines they flew. While one Lancaster was just like all the others rolling off the assembly line, each would go on to develop its own particular character as its flying time mounted. Often, it was the crew's familiarity with their own aeroplane that meant the difference between life and death. It became second nature for the crew to recognise certain sounds and motions: the shudder of the retracting undercarriage, the flutter of an aileron; the rush of slip-stream blasting by the opening bomb-bay doors; or the slightly different beat of the starboard inner engine in relation to the other three big Rolls-Royce V-12 powerplants that drove the magnificent Lancaster. As man and machine logged time together, the aircraft seemed to respond more quickly and eagerly to the demands of her crew. When the marriage of men and machines was good, the chances for survival in the vicious arena of enemy flak, cannon fire, and bullets were greatly increased.
 
Hard Cover with Dust Jacket
174 pages
In Good Condition