This is a second-hand hardcover book.

Condition: The dust jacket has light fading and surface rubbing, and creasing to the flaps. There is heavy age spotting to the inside of the front and back cover and to the first and last 3 pages; the rest of the pages are clean and bright. There is light age spotting to the edges of the compressed pages. The rest of the book has no faults.

The dimensions: 217 x 305 mm Pages: 168 Publisher: Hutchinson & Co Publication date: 1984 first edition

An Illustrated History of the New Zealand Spitfire Squadron By Kevin W. Wells

485 SQUADRON R.N.Z.A.F. was formed on 1st March, 1941 at Driffield in Yorkshire and for six weeks the New Zealand pilots flew worn out Spitfires as they learned to fly as a team. Of the twenty-five pilots, only eight had already flown with operational Squadrons, some had gained their `wings' after being granted short service commissions in the Royal Air Force before the out-break of war and the balance had come straight from the initial courses at No. 2 Flying School, Woodburn, Blenheim. Several New Zealand ground crew were also posted to the Squadron on its foundation.

The Squadron was granted operational status on 12 April, 1941 and although its first duties were confined to monotonous convoy escort patrols over the North Sea, before the end of the war it had flown 10,717 sorties, destroyed 63 enemy aircraft with 25 `probables', and 32 damaged. In its short employment against ground targets, its pilots had destroyed some 10 vehicles and 5 railway engines.

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