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On Active Service: a range of books about the 3 Services in W W 2. A Digger History site. |
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RAAF Saga, the 1944 book about the RAAF at war |
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Sub category index
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R A A F S A G A |
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R.A.A.F. DIRECTORATE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS ROYAL AUSTRALIAN AIR FORCE by the AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL, CANBERRA, A.C.T., 1944 |
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TO THE MEMORY OF FALLEN COMRADES |
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"They gave their lives. For that public gift they received a praise which never ages and a tomb most glorious-not so much the tomb in which they lie, but that in which their fame survives, to be remembered for ever when occasion comes for word or deed . . ." |
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EDITORS' GEN. |
| "RAAF SAGA" follows in echelon with "These Eagles" and "RAAF Log", as Christmas book, 1944, but peels off and does a few victory rolls of its own. Like its robust cousins, "H.M.A.S. Mk 111" the story of the Royal Australian Navy at war, and "Jungle Warfare" the story of the Australian Army's land fronts, it breathes the spirit of victory.
"RAAF Saga" is like a veteran "gong"-winner with years of tough going and breathless incident to draw from. The Service and the blokes in it have been able to dig into this pile of gen. and present some amazing stories. The editors were never worried as to what to put in the book-they were often worried as to what to leave out; there were so many stories that deserved a place for posterity. THE EDITORS. |
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Into the night by Colin Colahan |
| Set up, printed and bound in Australia by Halstead Press Pty Limited, 9-19 Nickson Street, Sydney, 1950. Registered in Australia for transmission through the post as a book. |
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END PAPERS |
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Front and rear end papers identical. |
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MESSAGE FROM THE CHIEF OF AIR STAFF |
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| SINCE I wrote the foreword to "RAAF Log", last year's predecessor to this volume, the whole complexion of the war has changed. Today it is positively healthy. The very bad days are over and the Allies by brilliant planning and determined, sustained assaults are now closing in for the kill both in the East and the West. Thus, all who read these pages may do so with a strong sense of
optimism, and a conviction that something big has been accomplished. Men of the R.A.A.F. have made a grand contribution to the combined effort of the United Nations-an effort which now makes victory certain. They have fought with spirit and resolution on all fronts. They have built up traditions of service and courage which will never die. But we must not rest. 'There is so much to be done-and done urgently -before our foes are finally defeated. Hard fighting is ahead of our aircrews; hard work faces the rest of us. Let the stories in "RAAF Saga", even though they cannot purport to be any more than isolated instances of the achievements and heroism of our men, stir us all to say we will give of our best to the end.
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