This is the fifth volume in a series of books covering the use of aircraft in various countries in North Africa and the Middle East between 1909 and 1955. This one covers basically two air arms, that of Iraq and that of Egypt, arguably the two most modern forces in this region in the years immediately before the start of WWII in Europe.

Iraq was a nation in constant turmoil (sound familiar?). Changes in government in the late 30s were fairly frequent and the military was often involved. Iraq initially got their aircraft from the UK, but there were tensions between the two nations as there were still a fair number of British in the country and for the most part, they were not wanted. During this period, the British turned over several bases to the Iraqis, but not all of them. It was during this period that Iraq turned to Italy for its aircraft. This resulted in the purchase of several offensive types including SM.79 bombers and Breda Ba.65 attack aircraft. These planes gave Iraq a fairly potent offensive force for the region. It also made the British fairly nervous.

Meanwhile in Egypt, much of the same scenario was taking place. The Egyptians, for the most part, did not want the British in their country, but needed them to help run the military until enough officers reached a high enough rank to take over. While the Army was in a pretty good position by the late 30s, the same could not be said for the Air Force which hadn't been around for too many years. They relied on not only British equipment, but also men to help train pilots and ground crews. Eventually the situation got better as time went on, including a number of more modern (but still not the most modern) aircraft and a greater number of pilots. As with Iraq, the Egyptians often had more aircraft than pilots and found that getting spares was not the easiest thing. Still, the looming Second World War resulted in a fairly large influx of equipment just prior to the start as the British were paranoid about protecting the Suez Canal and being 'surrounded' by Italians.

Typical of everything military, and especially in this part of the world, politics played a fairly major role in the scheme of things. There were often times when less capable but more politically connected people were put in places of seniority until their lack of competence forced them out. Also the officer corps of both nations tended to be a lot more political, something that, at times, caused issues.

The authors of this series have very much done their homework in regards to these two air arms. We can get a look at not only the equipment and men who flew the planes, but also the politics behind the choices as well as the way the two services were run. When you add in some superb period photos, a fair number of color profiles and the smooth flowing prose, it makes for a nice addition to what is becoming a great series. Very much worth picking up.

February 2022

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