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Gerald and Michael Constable Maxwell had the rare distinction of being brothers who fought in same fighter squadron (No.56) but in different wars, with Gerald fighting in the First World War and the much younger Michael in the Second.
What stands out most here is the massive increase in the complexity of aerial warfare in the twenty years between the two world wars. Gerald's war was one of standing patrols over the trenches; battles fought between generally quite similar aircraft, and with a feeling of some detachment from the fighting taking place on the ground.
By the time Michael had his spell in No.56 Squadron during the Battle of Britain things had already moved on massively - the standing patrols of 1917 had been replaced by radar guided interceptions, and the arrival of airborne radar was rapidly approaching. Michael's service career was much more varied than his brother's, including periods of defensive night fighting and offensive intruder missions over Occupied Europe and Germany.
This ability to compare and contrast the experiences of the two brothers makes this an unusually valuable addition to the biographical literature of the Second World War, making it more important than stand-alone biographies of either man would have been.
Chapters
I Early Years
II War
III France
IV Flight Commander
V Fighting Instructor
VI France Again
VII Flying Circus
VIII Between the Wars
IX Michael
X The Coming of War
XI 56 Squadron
XII Battle over Britain
XIII Victories and Circuses
XIV Back to War
XV 604 Squadron
XVI Intruder
XVII Victories over the Sea
XVIII Invasion
XIX Far East Command
XX Peace comes again
XXI Ampleforth
Aerial Victories of Gerald Constable Maxwell
Aeroplanes flown by Gerald Constable Maxwell
Author: Alex Revell
Edition: Hardcover
Pages: 255
Publisher: Pen & Sword Aviation
Year: 2010