Battle of Britain Day 15 September 1940

by Alfred Price

Battle of Britain Day is the only full-scale work on the events of this pivotal day in the Battle of Britain. The text is based on eyewitness testimony and official records.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, War, Aviation

192 pages, Paperback

First published September 6, 1990

About the author

Alfred Price seved for 16 years as an aircrew officer in the Royal air Force where he specialised in electronic warfare and air fighting tactics.

He left the RAF in 1974 and thereafter he worked full time as a writer on aviation subjects.

He holds a PhD in history from Loughborough University and is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

Reviews

[Cold War Conversations Podcast · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the opening paragraph you are up in the skies of southern England in 1940 battling the Luftwaffe.

Despite being written 25 years ago this a classic and exciting account of 15 September 1940, commemorated each year as ‘Battle of Britain Day’.

It details the background to this climax of the Battle of Britain and captures the air battles excellently as well as the civilian and political viewpoints via the eyes of more than sixty eye witnesses.

Whilst some might find Price’s language a bit florid I for one believe that he delivers in a way that accurately embodies the urgency and sense of history occurring to those involved.

A must read for military history fans as well as the general reader wanting to learn about this momentous day in British history.

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is a good look at September 15, 1940, which eventually becaame Battle of Britain Day in the U.K. I don't pretend to be an expert on planes and flying during WWII, but the author tried to give an even-handed overview what occurred that day. Both sides lost men and planes that day, but not nearly as many as claimed by the British and Germans. In addition, the author makes it clear that while Group 11 was stretched to its limit, Fighter Command could have brought in replacements from other groups to carry on the fight. All in all, this was an informative book about an intense day in the history of WWII.

[Martin Mostek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting a well readable account and brief assessment of day of intense air fight over London and SE England. Yes, thats that day when Prime Minister Churchill visited command post of Air Vice-Marshal Price and in a moment of heavy clashes of RAF a Luftwaffe PM asked about reserves available and was told that there were none. But really there were no other fighters and pilots in whole UK? Not exactly of course. How it really was, what happened both in cockpits and in streets bellow and various other things you can find in this little book. Recommended read.

[Jeff Parry · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Good Snapshot of One Day's Fighting

This is a very detailed book on the events of 15th September 1940. It brings to life a significant day in British history but serves to debunk the myths that have grown up around it. It showed Hitler and his Luftwaffe that the RAF was not the beaten force they believed. It showed the world that the German Luftwaffe was far from invincible. It was the end of the beginning and the beginning of the end.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I bought this book on impulse, being curious about the effects of air warfare over London at this particular point in WWII. I'm not at all interested in military history, wartime battle tactics, or the machinery of war; yet I appreciated this book. The author interwove among the battle statistics enough humanity (via both citizens and fighter pilots) that the book held my interest. At best, I have a pretty average knowledge of WWII, but this book gave me some important insights that I'm not sure I would have gained otherwise.

[Tony Moss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tony Moss

Alfred Price has written an excellent book on a small window of the The Battle of Britain. It is very well researched and gives the reader a very good perspective of the perils facing Britain at this time.

[Alan Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr Price is by far my favorite historian covering air warfare. As with this entry, he demonstrates a deep understanding of the subject, unparallelled access to the participants, and a flair for narration that surpasses even most fiction writers.