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Biggles #23
Biggles Sees It Through
The Air Ministry have allowed Biggles, Algy, Ginger and Smyth to accompany a party of volunteers to help Finland in their struggle against Soviet aggression. Whilst on a reconnaissance flight, Biggles finds a dying Polish scientist called Petolski, who had been working on important experiments with metal alloys for aircraft. He had the results of seven years' labour in a portfolio with him and rather than let the research fall into German hands, (Poland having been invaded by Germany), he has hidden it.
192 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1941
28 people are currently reading
84 people want to read
About the author
W.E. Johns
609 books115 followersInvariably known as Captain W.E. Johns, William Earl Johns was born in Bengeo, Hertfordshire, England. He was the son of Richard Eastman Johns, a tailor, and Elizabeth Johns (née Earl), the daughter of a master butcher. He had a younger brother, Russell Ernest Johns, who was born on 24 October 1895.
He went to Hertford Grammar School where he was no great scholar but he did develop into a crack shot with a rifle. This fired his early ambition to be a soldier. He also attended evening classes at the local art school.
In the summer of 1907 he was apprenticed to a county municipal surveyor where he remained for four years and then in 1912 he became a sanitary inspector in Swaffham, Norfolk. Soon after taking up this appointment, his father died of tuberculosis at the age of 47.
On 6 October 1914 he married Maude Penelope Hunt (1882–1961), the daughter of the Reverend John Hunt, the vicar at Little Dunham in Norfolk. The couple had one son, William Earl Carmichael Johns, who was born in March 1916.
With war looming he joined the Territorial Army as a Private in the King's Own Royal Regiment (Norfolk Yeomanry), a cavalry regiment. In August 1914 his regiment was mobilised and was in training and on home defence duties until September 1915 when they received embarkation orders for duty overseas.
He fought at Gallipoli and in the Suez Canal area and, after moving to the Machine gun Corps, he took part in the spring offensive in Salonika in April 1917. He contracted malaria and whilst in hospital he put in for a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps and on 26 September 1917, he was given a temporary commission as a Second Lieutenant and posted back to England to learn to fly, which he did at No. 1 School of Aeronautics at Reading, where he was taught by a Captain Ashton.
He was posted to No. 25 Flying Training School at Thetford where he had a charmed existence, once writing off three planes in three days. He moved to Yorkshire and was then posted to France and while on a bombing raid to Mannheim his plane was shot down and he was wounded. Captured by the Germans, he later escaped before being reincarcerated where he remained until the war ended.
He went to Hertford Grammar School where he was no great scholar but he did develop into a crack shot with a rifle. This fired his early ambition to be a soldier. He also attended evening classes at the local art school.
In the summer of 1907 he was apprenticed to a county municipal surveyor where he remained for four years and then in 1912 he became a sanitary inspector in Swaffham, Norfolk. Soon after taking up this appointment, his father died of tuberculosis at the age of 47.
On 6 October 1914 he married Maude Penelope Hunt (1882–1961), the daughter of the Reverend John Hunt, the vicar at Little Dunham in Norfolk. The couple had one son, William Earl Carmichael Johns, who was born in March 1916.
With war looming he joined the Territorial Army as a Private in the King's Own Royal Regiment (Norfolk Yeomanry), a cavalry regiment. In August 1914 his regiment was mobilised and was in training and on home defence duties until September 1915 when they received embarkation orders for duty overseas.
He fought at Gallipoli and in the Suez Canal area and, after moving to the Machine gun Corps, he took part in the spring offensive in Salonika in April 1917. He contracted malaria and whilst in hospital he put in for a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps and on 26 September 1917, he was given a temporary commission as a Second Lieutenant and posted back to England to learn to fly, which he did at No. 1 School of Aeronautics at Reading, where he was taught by a Captain Ashton.
He was posted to No. 25 Flying Training School at Thetford where he had a charmed existence, once writing off three planes in three days. He moved to Yorkshire and was then posted to France and while on a bombing raid to Mannheim his plane was shot down and he was wounded. Captured by the Germans, he later escaped before being reincarcerated where he remained until the war ended.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 30, 2022
3.6 out of 5. Read more for historical interest than for the story. It was written in 1941 when the Germans and Russians had a non-aggression pact and before Russia was invaded and joined the allies. So I was interested to see how they would be portrayed (They are portrayed as reasonably inept, but they are not portrayed in the dismissive, casual racist manner that WE Johns reserves for people of colour).
It’s the usual Boy’s Own adventure story where Biggles and his chums constantly walk out of airplane crashes with a minor scratch, and their success is dependent on extreme luck and bizarre coincidences. In this one, which takes place in the vast expanses of Russia, they succeed because they randomly bump into Von Stalheim THREE times! An easy read.
It’s the usual Boy’s Own adventure story where Biggles and his chums constantly walk out of airplane crashes with a minor scratch, and their success is dependent on extreme luck and bizarre coincidences. In this one, which takes place in the vast expanses of Russia, they succeed because they randomly bump into Von Stalheim THREE times! An easy read.
April 18, 2024
Probably 3.5 stars really, entertaining in a light way, certainly plenty of action & twists, to the point of being a bit farfetched but Biggles is Biggles, & a product of his time so you can't look at it with modern prejudices & interpretations etc. I did enjoy it, technically not great writing or literature, but then what really defines literature. Some say Harry Potter is not, ( though the writing is better), but in my view anything that gets kids to read & keep on reading is!
So that includes The Secret &, Famous Five, The Bobbsey Twins, The Wind in the Willows etc, all series & books I read, along with Biggles as a child of the 50's & 60's, and the values in these books, were good values as well, fair play, honesty, determination, doing what's right, not easiest & so on.
So, while this is not the best of the Biggles books I have read so far, I still enjoyed it, and it follows the rules of the most successful mass entertainment writers, familiar characters, similar plots and a good ending for the right side, as per Zane Grey, Louis L'Amour, Agatha Christie, Jim Butcher, Lee Child & all. Biggles will always be Biggles, hopefully. Let no one from the modern, non comprehending woke brigade ever get to try & "sanitize " him. Re writing books to suit current fashion or guilt complexes, or because of lack of comprehension is the worst thing to do, IMHO.
Rest easy Dr Seuss, some of us saw a lot more in you, and what you were trying to do than some "people".
So that includes The Secret &, Famous Five, The Bobbsey Twins, The Wind in the Willows etc, all series & books I read, along with Biggles as a child of the 50's & 60's, and the values in these books, were good values as well, fair play, honesty, determination, doing what's right, not easiest & so on.
So, while this is not the best of the Biggles books I have read so far, I still enjoyed it, and it follows the rules of the most successful mass entertainment writers, familiar characters, similar plots and a good ending for the right side, as per Zane Grey, Louis L'Amour, Agatha Christie, Jim Butcher, Lee Child & all. Biggles will always be Biggles, hopefully. Let no one from the modern, non comprehending woke brigade ever get to try & "sanitize " him. Re writing books to suit current fashion or guilt complexes, or because of lack of comprehension is the worst thing to do, IMHO.
Rest easy Dr Seuss, some of us saw a lot more in you, and what you were trying to do than some "people".
December 27, 2019
I am surprised this book isn't named Biggles in Finland, because that is what it is. As part of a volunteer group, Biggles & Co are in Finland to help with the defense against the invading Russians.
The volunteer group seems to have been based on Flying Regiment 19 which was about 20 planes from Swedish Air Force "surplus" and manned by volunteers. Their planes were Gloster Gladiators, just as in the book.
The book story involves secret papers that have to be transported from Russian territory to England, and it involves Biggles' arch enemy Erich von Stalhein. I just checked a list and he's apparently in 20 of the novels. You got to wonder how good Biggles' really is at defeating Herr von Stalhein.
As for the quality of the book, it's fair. Better than some, worse than some.
The volunteer group seems to have been based on Flying Regiment 19 which was about 20 planes from Swedish Air Force "surplus" and manned by volunteers. Their planes were Gloster Gladiators, just as in the book.
The book story involves secret papers that have to be transported from Russian territory to England, and it involves Biggles' arch enemy Erich von Stalhein. I just checked a list and he's apparently in 20 of the novels. You got to wonder how good Biggles' really is at defeating Herr von Stalhein.
As for the quality of the book, it's fair. Better than some, worse than some.
April 26, 2026
I read a lot of Biggles books growing up, and now I have decided to re-read some of them for nostalgic reasons. I thoroughly enjoyed “Biggles sees it through”. Biggles, Algy, Ginger and Smyth are stationed in Finland in 1940. Soon they find out that some documents (important for the war effort) need to be retrieved from the Soviet side of the border, before the Soviets and the Germans (with von Stalhein) get to them.
There is non-stop action, where they find the documents, lose them, find them again etc. This is one of the better Biggles books I have read, and I can see why I was such a big fan of them growing up.
There is non-stop action, where they find the documents, lose them, find them again etc. This is one of the better Biggles books I have read, and I can see why I was such a big fan of them growing up.
September 4, 2024
Same of the classic old scrapes, just with a new location. Probably 3.5 stars. I did love how Biggles and his friends eventually got fed up with the ludicrous chase across the wasteland after a packet of papers. Are these getting a bit same-y? Not sure, will have to read some more.
January 4, 2022
Decided to keep reading through these books i got for my nephew , this one is based in Finland , wasn't the greatest read , youngsters may enjoy it
August 23, 2023
Another classic Biggles story, set during the Russo-Finnish war which made it a bit different in places.
January 19, 2024
Typical Biggles. Adorable as ever and Ginger's the star
Read
December 7, 2024i really enjoyed this! but i did also make a note on my phone to list every single time the papers changed hands and it's about five hundred words long
October 24, 2021
The usual high jinks!
So many twists and turns, and not only of Ginger’s stolen gladiator… Biggles up to some good in Finland ticks all the boxes for us fans, ie the elite.
So many twists and turns, and not only of Ginger’s stolen gladiator… Biggles up to some good in Finland ticks all the boxes for us fans, ie the elite.
December 22, 2025
I am reviewing the series as a whole, rather than the books individually
The Biggles series is great adventure fiction: we get high stakes, aerial action (in most of the books), and a hero who is endlessly loyal, competent, and calm under pressure.
I love the dogfights, recon missions, and wartime scenarios.
Where the series falls short is character depth. Some attitudes and simplifications reflect the period in which the books were written. There are very definitely dated elements, but considering the era the books were written - overall the series performs well. More than a few of the stories defy plausibility, but who doesn't love to curl up with a good adventure book or 10?
“Never say die.”
The Biggles series is great adventure fiction: we get high stakes, aerial action (in most of the books), and a hero who is endlessly loyal, competent, and calm under pressure.
I love the dogfights, recon missions, and wartime scenarios.
Where the series falls short is character depth. Some attitudes and simplifications reflect the period in which the books were written. There are very definitely dated elements, but considering the era the books were written - overall the series performs well. More than a few of the stories defy plausibility, but who doesn't love to curl up with a good adventure book or 10?
“Never say die.”
July 18, 2016
The Biggles adventures were the top when I was kid and craved for the hyped stories about valiant pilot. I decided to reread some and this book was the first choice. Biggles and his crew were stationed in Finland as volunteers in order to help in fight against Soviet invasion. They accidentally stepped or rather flew over the polish scientist who happen to hide some of his research result somewhere in wilderness and fun was ensured. The scientist died and Biggles and his crew went to find those, however Biggles old nemesis Erich von Stalhein happened to be in the area as well and had the same interest. People were running around, shooting, being caught and escaped. The jokes were made and of course some traitors uncovered and Erich ridiculed in the process.
September 28, 2014
I'll let Biggles summarise:
"...this business is getting me dizzy. It's uncanny; it's crazy; it's one of those stories that goes on and on always coming back to the same place. Writers have made a big song about Jason and the Golden Fleece. Pah! Jason did nothing. He ought to have had a crack at this job. I don't often give way to despair, but by the anti-clockwise propeller of my sainted aunt, I'm getting to the state when I could throw myself down and burst into tears."
Just so.
"...this business is getting me dizzy. It's uncanny; it's crazy; it's one of those stories that goes on and on always coming back to the same place. Writers have made a big song about Jason and the Golden Fleece. Pah! Jason did nothing. He ought to have had a crack at this job. I don't often give way to despair, but by the anti-clockwise propeller of my sainted aunt, I'm getting to the state when I could throw myself down and burst into tears."
Just so.
August 29, 2015
For the whole time I didn't know, whether to bite the edges of the book from nervosity what would go wrong this time, or to laugh at the jokes the characters were making.
October 6, 2022
Just the job if yoy like this sort of thing. How Biggles and his colleagues survive this adventure does rather stretch credibility though! The hardback Canelo edition is a pleasure to read.
April 14, 2023
No Time to Rest
The author W.E. Johns, doesn’t give the reader time to breath. The book is one exciting event after another. It is difficult to put the books down.
The author W.E. Johns, doesn’t give the reader time to breath. The book is one exciting event after another. It is difficult to put the books down.
June 28, 2016
En nog een verhaal met Erich von Stalhein.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews