Shropshire Blue: A Shropshire Lad in the RAF, Volume 1, Preparation for Flight

'It kept me amused, entertained and interested right to the end.' A flight with the Red Arrows sparks in Ron Powell a desire to tell the story of his early life and 32-years in the Royal Air Force, from engineering apprentice to group captain (full Colonel) pilot. The result is Shropshire Blue: A Shropshire Lad in the RAF. This first volume opens with him growing up on the English/Welsh border, where his interest in the RAF is sparked by a headstone in a local cemetery. He joins the Service as a Halton apprentice, suffering under a harsh regime preparing him to parade before HM The Queen just five weeks later. It’s a duty he performs eleven times during his three year apprenticeship. On graduation, he works on Vulcan nuclear bombers poised to fly into the heart of the Soviet Union, and conveys the power and menace of these amazing aircraft, while painting a vivid portrait of life on a Cold War airbase. And then, after selection as a potential pilot, he begins officer training. Once again, the regime is harsh, but he knuckles down, relating many humorous, episodes on the way to gaining his commission. The cover design is by Martin Butler. Ron has also written a second volume of Shropshire Blue about his flying training; an illustrated history of events in the skies over Britain in 1940, The Battle of Britain, Hitler's First Bloody Nose; a novel set in the same period, Wings Over Summer; and a sequel, Wings Over Malta. You can find out more about his RAF career and his writing on his website, ronpowell.co.uk.