On the ground the airborne logisticians at the battle of Arnhem fought to the bitter end, indistinguishable from their paratroop comrades. In the air, their deeds and sacrifice were shining examples of duty done under the most desperate circumstances. Witness the account of Flight Lieutenant H J King, navigator of Dakota KG 374 of 271 squadron RAF, Down Ampney:These men were not volunteers like aircrew. They received no flyingpay, yet were, without doubt, superb in their fulfilment of duty even though KG 374 was burning for the whole period over the dropping zone. Arnhem - The Fight To Sustain tells the stirring story of the men and the methods employed in sustaining 1st Airborne Division. It is the first account of forming corps of today's Royal Logistic Corps in action together.Following extensive research the story draws heavily on contemporary documents and eyewitness accounts and is lavishly illustrated.

On the ground the airborne logisticians at the battle of Arnhem fought to the bitter end, indistinguishable from their paratroop comrades. In the air, their deeds and sacrifice were shining examples of duty done under the most desperate circumstances. Witness the account of Flight Lieutenant H J King, navigator of Dakota KG 374 of 271 squadron RAF, Down Ampney:These men were not volunteers like aircrew. They received no flyingpay, yet were, without doubt, superb in their fulfilment of duty even though KG 374 was burning for the whole period over the dropping zone. Arnhem—The Fight To Sustain tells the stirring story of the men and the methods employed in sustaining 1st Airborne Division. It is the first account of forming corps of today's Royal Logistic Corps in action together.Following extensive research the story draws heavily on contemporary documents and eyewitness accounts and is lavishly illustrated.

Over sixty years ago a battle took place that, if it had succeeded, could have shortened the Second World war by six months. The operation to take the bridges at Arnhem was given the code name 'Operation Market Garden', Market being the air side of the operation and Garden the subsequent ground operation. The main problem was communications between the ground forces and the re-supply aircraft of the Royal Air Force. Its their efforts and the courage on evident display at Arnhem that the book is based upon. Over a period of seven days troops of the 1st Airborne were taken by the RAF in towed gliders and then in subsequent days showed courage of the highest order to make sure that the ground troops were supplied with ammunition and food to sustain them in their efforts to take the bridges at Arnhem. Their efforts were costly, 309 aircrew and 79 Air Dispatchers were killed and 107 aircraft, which included the men and aircraft who supported the main re-supply armada. One of the re-supply aircraft, flown by F/Lt David Lord DFC, was shot down. Lord was later awarded the Victoria Cross. His courage and dedication are exemplary of the efforts of the men of Transport Command to make sure the men on the ground were re-supplied. The men of the Air Dispatchers, or AD's as they were known, must always be remembered when regarding Arnhem. Their efforts to make sure the supplies were released from the aircraft, and on to the besieged men on the ground, was a vital factor in getting vital supplies to the troops successfully. This is their story, vividly told, and serves a commemorative purpose, memorialising both the events and, most importantly, the men who participated.

Explore this gripping day-by-day combat narrative of the infamous battle for a bridgehead over the Rhine.

"This guide focuses on the fighting at the bridge in Arnhem itself and the approaches to it ... [It] is designed to offer, as necessary background information, an overview of why the battle took place and an outline of the main events. That done, it then sets out to guide the visitor on a tour of the particular action at the Arnhem Bridge and the battles in Arnhem covering some of the key sights and occurrences"--Preface.

The Sunday Times #1 Bestseller The great airborne battle for the bridges in 1944 by Britain's Number One bestselling historian and author of the classic Stalingrad 'Our greatest chronicler of the Second World War . . . his fans will love it' - Robert Fox, Evening Standard 'The eye for telling detail which we have come to expect from Antony Beevor. . . this time, though, he turns his brilliance as a military historian to a subject not just of defeat, but dunderhead stupidity' Daily Mail On 17 September 1944, General Kurt Student, the founder of Nazi Germany's parachute forces, heard the growing roar of aeroplane engines. He went out on to his balcony above the flat landscape of southern Holland to watch the air armada of Dakotas and gliders carrying the British 1st Airborne and the American 101st and 82nd Airborne divisions. He gazed up in envy at this massive demonstration of paratroop power. Operation Market Garden, the plan to end the war by capturing the bridges leading to the Lower Rhine and beyond, was a bold concept: the Americans thought it unusually bold for Field Marshal Montgomery. But could it ever have worked? The cost of failure was horrendous, above all for the Dutch, who risked everything to help. German reprisals were pitiless and cruel, and lasted until the end of the war. The British fascination with heroic failure has clouded the story of Arnhem in myths. Antony Beevor, using often overlooked sources from Dutch, British, American, Polish and German archives, has reconstructed the terrible reality of the fighting, which General Student himself called 'The Last German Victory'. Yet this book, written in Beevor's inimitable and gripping narrative style, is about much more than a single, dramatic battle. It looks into the very heart of war. 'In Beevor's hands, Arnhem becomes a study of national character' - Ben Macintyre, The Times 'Superb book, tirelessly researched and beautifully written' - Saul David, Daily Telegraph 'Complete mastery of both the story and the sources' - Keith Lowe, Literary Review 'Another masterwork from the most feted military historian of our time' - Jay Elwes, Prospect Magazine 'The analysis he has produced of the disaster is forensic' - Giles Milton, Sunday Times 'He is a master of his craft . . . we have here a definitive account' - Piers Paul Read, The Tablet

On the ground the airborne logisticians at the battle of Arnhem fought to the bitter end, indistinguishable from their paratroop comrades. In the air, their deeds and sacrifice were shining examples of duty done under the most desperate circumstances. Witness the account of Flight Lieutenant H J King, navigator of Dakota KG 374 of 271 squadron RAF, Down Ampney: These men were not volunteers like aircrew. They received no flyingpay, yet were, without doubt, superb in their fulfilment of duty even though KG 374 was burning for the whole period over the dropping zone. Arnhem - The Fight To Sustain tells the stirring story of the men and the methods employed in sustaining 1st Airborne Division. It is the first account of forming corps of today's Royal Logistic Corps in action together. Following extensive research the story draws heavily on contemporary documents and eyewitness accounts and is lavishly illustrated.

“The fighting spirit of Allied paratroopers comes through with exciting clarity” in this account of two separate invasions of Germany in World War II (Kirkus Reviews). A main selection of the Military Book Club In September 1944, as the Allies drove across Europe after Normandy, British field marshal Bernard Montgomery launched Operation Market Garden to secure the lower Rhine—Germany’s last great natural barrier in the west—and passage to Berlin. Though Allied soldiers outnumbered Germans two to one, they suffered devastating casualties and were forced to retreat. Then, in March 1945, Montgomery orchestrated another airborne attack on the Rhine, called Operation Plunder. This time the Allies overwhelmed the German defenses, secured the eastern bank, and began their final march into the heart of the Third Reich. Including detailed maps and personal accounts from those on both sides of the battle, this “vivid war story” examines Allied attempts to breach Germany’s borders, and illustrates how lessons learned from failure helped form the second plan of attack—and seal Germany’s defeat (Publishers Weekly).

Jonathan Fennell captures for the first time the true wartime experience of the ordinary soldiers from across the empire who made up the British and Commonwealth armies. He analyses why the great battles were won and lost and how the men that fought went on to change the world.