This is a truly comprehensive account of the Blenheim's origins, development, and operational history.

Airfix has been commercially producing plastic kits since 1952 and its models have been made by successive generations of young boys and men alike. In the 1960s, a talented graphic artist called Roy Cross was commissioned to paint some of the box art for Airfix, and for a ten-year-period he provided many of the glorious paintings seen on the boxes, setting new standards for realism and accuracy. Many are still being used today, a full four decades later. Inside the pages of this book are some of Roy's best artworks, shown here in full format and in superb detail, with many reproduced here in book form for the very first time. As well as his vintage box art, Roy has included many sketches and alternative versions of his Airfix box art. After Roy left Airfix in 1974, the company went through a turbulent time. The present owners are Hornby, who have ambitious plans for Airfix and the other brands it acquired including Scalextric and Corgi. The decade that Roy Cross worked for Airfix, though, could be classed as their vintage era, with some of their finest models being produced then in their millions, ready for eager youngsters to build up into detailed miniature models of their favorite aircraft, ships and locomotives.

As the result of instructions given to British aircraft manufacturers, the R.A.F. took delivery of a passenger aircraft that was to become the prototype of the successful Blenheim bomber. This book describes the raids undertaken by these planes during the Second World War.

'DESERVES TO JOIN REACH FOR THE SKY AND THE LAST ENEMY AS ONE OF THE GREAT RAF BOOKS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR' - ANDREW ROBERTS As I write, I can clearly recall the stinging heat of aburning Blenheim, smells, tastes, expressions, sounds of voices and, most ofall, fear gripping deep in me. Flying Officer Alastair Panton was just twenty-three when his squadron deployed across the Channel in the defence of France. They were desparate days. Pushed back to the beaches as the German blitzkrieg rolled through the Low Countries and into France, by June 4th 1940 the evacuation ofthe Allies from Dunkirk was complete. A little over two weeks later France surrendered. Flying vital, dangerous, low-level missions throughout the campaign in support of the troops on the ground, Panton's beloved but unarmed Bristol Blenheim was easy meat for the marauding Messerschmitts. At the height of fighting he was losing two of his small squadron's crews to the enemy every day. Discovered in a box by his grandchildren after his death in 2002, Alastair Panton's Six Weeks of Blenheim Summeris a lostclassic. One of the most moving, vivid and powerful accounts of war inthe air ever written. And an unforgettable testament to the courage, stoicism, camaraderie and humanity of Britain's greatest generation. 'THE BEST ACCOUNT OF THE CHAOS AND CONFUSION OF WAR OUTSIDE THE PAGES OF EVELYN WAUGH' BORIS JOHNSON 'ONE CAN'T HELP FEELING AWE AND REVERENCE. THERE ARE ENOUGHEDVENTURES HERE FOR A LIFETIME' LOUIS DE BERNIERES 'SIMPLY WONDERFUL. ONE OF THE BEST ACCOUNTS OF WWii I HAVE EVER READ' JOHN NICHOL

Bristol Blenheim Boiten The Blenheim was revolutionary when it first entered service in 1935. Although often under-rated, itwas faster than many contemporary fighters, featured retractable undercarriage, variable pitch prop s, and was an all-metal monocoque design. During WWII the Blenheim was the only British airplane to fight in all theaters and in all commands. This superb volume charts the development and operationalhistory of this revolutionary airplane, and is extensively illustrated in 2 archive photographs. Hd bd., 8 1/2"x 11", 192 pgs., 2 bandw ill.