This is the second volume in the story of the British South Africa Police Reserve Air Wing. This unit was manned by civilians and they provided their own aircraft. They were initially formed to assist Rhodesia's police force when it came to medical emergencies or lost people or even some crimes in the sparsely populated countryside where it could be many miles between neighbors, much less the nearest town. This increased as the insurgency against the government grew.

Eventually, several of the aircraft were armed with either door guns on a specially made mount or, as you see in the cover photo, with gun pods that fit under the wings. These aircraft were eventually used to keep track of the movement of insurgents and to relay their positions back to the nation's security forces. In the later years, these armed aircraft were also used to attack insurgents who attacked these far flung farms and homesteads. Eventually the insurgency was successful and became the nation of Zimbabwe, at which time the air wing pretty much lost all its funding and so was eventually disbanded.

This volume continues where the other left off completing the story. Most of the narrative consists in stories from the various members of the unit and some of their more interesting exploits. There is an extensive appendix section that provides information on the members and their aircraft divided by Copper #, aircraft registration and crew names. In addition we have the usual well chosen period photos, maps, and color profiles for which Helion books are renown. It all makes for a book that I am sure you will enjoy reading.

April 2024

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