The War Diaries of Colin Dunford Wood, Volume 2: India, Egypt, China & Burma, 1941-44

Following on from Volume 1, this is a fascinating and unique first-hand account of war in the air with the RAF in Burma and along the Burma Road to China, flying Lysanders and Hurricane Mk IIs alongside the American Volunteer Group, the 'Flying Tigers'. During the chaotic British withdrawal in early 1942, the rapidly depleted RAF units frog-leapt from one makeshift landing ground to another under constant harassment by Japanese Zeros and Navy 'O's. A year later he returned to Burma with a detachment of Hurricanes in support of the disastrous Arakan Campaign.In between being shot down by friendly fire and flying the last Hurricane out of Burma before the advancing Japanese, Colin Dunford Wood details life in India, with a trip to Egypt just before El Alamein to train on the new Hurricanes IIDs.Colin had an extraordinary war. He was only one of two survivors of 60 Indian army recruits who joined the RAF in WW2 where, despite his poor eyesight and having to cheat on his medical, he went on to fight in four theatres of war: the North-West Frontier, Iraq, Burma and Germany.These diaries are a vivid portrait of war across several continents and campaigns. Rather than follow the ordered chronology of the tidy historian, who has points to make and theories to prove, the narrative follows the haphazard progress of war on the ground and in the air - encompassing fear, boredom, incompetence, luck, romance, and horror - all interlaced with a self-deprecating humour that kept the man sane.