Reviewed anonymously in the attached column are two books, I Was a Nazi Flyer, the diary of Gottfried Leske, and The Airmen Speak, which is a compilation of war stories told by assorted fighter pilots of the Royal Air Force:
“Comparing a Nazi’s private diary with broadcasts prepared for public consumption by British Fliers is perhaps unfair to the Nazi. But there are points in common. Both German and British are thrilled at dangerous assignments and pull wires to get them. They both relish fights: ‘Come on, you beauty,’ says an RAF pilot, slapping his Hurricane under the belly, ‘plenty of Huns today, please!’ But the British have a totaly different attitude about the war; they are, strangely enough, more confident than the Germans and much less temperamental. The British respect their opponents but don’t hate them; the Nazi sneers at his – he also sneers at his Italian comrades in flight. The RAF boys don’t talk about how tough they are; the Nazi talks of nothing else. Only time will tell which is the tougher.”
– from Amazon:
