Normandy '44: D-Day and the Battle for France, by James Holland.

I've just finished this book, which I borrowed from our local library when I saw it on the shelf. Holland states from the get-go that it's not a comprehensive review of the campaign, since it would take far too large a number of volumes to cover. Even so, he's done a pretty good job of covering the campaign in considerable detail. Some of the detail is graphic, since the Normandy campaign saw bitter fighting, so caution is advised if letting younger readers have access to the book.

It includes accounts of several episodes I didn't know about, or in scant detail. A number of the actions would translate very well for WW2 rules such as Chain of Command or I Ain't Been Shot, Mum. There are a couple of small errors in the text, which is down to an American not having quite the grasp of British culture. Two of the photographs are mislabeled. One of a British 5.5 inch howitzer is described as a 155mm gun, and King Tigers are incorrectly identified as Panthers. Working in the writing/publishing industry as I do, it's quite possible the fault for these latter mislabeling isn't down to the author but rather the publisher's research staff.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/normandy-44/james-holland/9781787631274

Gaming-wise, I'm in something of a lull. I find my interest in wargaming has waned lately, although I still like to read books and visit the various hobby blogs and websites. Nowadays I feel more involved in setting up my model railroad layout than getting figures on the table. I might play the next Dux Britanniarum game sometime over Xmas. We'll see.

Rutbah Wells & the Iraq "Sideshow," 1941

One of the pleasures I get from being a writer of historical fiction is through researching a topic. Research always throws up surprises. On this occasion there's a definite crossover into my wargaming hobby.

I'm currently researching the Middle East, specifically Iraq, and discovered the tale of the Vickers Vernon bomber/transport aircraft that flew the first established airmail route from Cairo in Egypt to Baghdad in the newly-minted Kingdom of Iraq. That in turn led to a little-known sideshow event to World War Two - the Iraqi insurgency of 1941.

Vickers Vernons at RAF Hinaidi near Baghdad.

The Vernon was the streamlined version of the Great War vintage Vickers Vimy and entered service in 1921. With a crew of three, it could carry eleven passengers or a mix of passengers and mail. Its range was 278 nautical/320 miles at a cruising speed of 65 knots/75 mph. The capacity to carry a (for the time) large number of personnel made it the aircraft of choice for the first recorded air lift in history. In February 1923, 500 British troops were conveyed to Kirkuk in Iraq by Vernons of 45 and 70 Squadrons RAF in order to put down a Kurdish revolt.

The Vernon's range was pretty good for that day and age, but it still necessitated special measures to enable the aircraft to cross safely the wastes of what was then Transjordan and Western Iraq. Aircraft on the fortnightly mail run carried spare landing gear wheels, tents, bedding and goat-skins full of water. The establishment of landing strips with fuel dumps was required, as was a deep and straight furrow ploughed into the hard stony ground of the region for several hundred miles to aid navigation. These landing strips were located every 25 miles or so along the furrow. One was established at Rutbah Wells, in western Iraq.

Rutbah (aka Rutba, aka Ar-Rutba) was an old fort on the banks of a wadi, and it guarded the nearby oasis. It happened to be located 265 miles from Amman, Transjordan, so made a good landing spot for the Vernons after a day's flight. The route was eventually transferred from RAF control to Imperial Airways.

Rutbah aerodrome, sometime in the early 30s, showing the Furrow navigation aid and a Rolls Royce armoured car on airfield defence duty.

The region was a notorious hotspot for bandit activity. Rose Wilder, journalist daughter of Laura Ingalls Wilder, wrote an account of her own journey in the region which included standing guard armed with a rifle in their camp at night as protection against predatory tribesmen. In 1927 the new Iraqi government built a modern fort (shown above and below) to protect the aerodrome. Note: The top photo caption reads Syrian Desert - this was something of a contemporary catch-all term for the region. The fort had a central tower with a navigation light, a radio beacon with a limited range of anything up to 180 miles, and a detachment of Iraqi police to guard it.

Rutbah Wells, early 30s. An Imperial Airways aircraft basks in the sunlight. The white circle with dots around it is a buried fuel dump typical of those used along the airmail route.

Rutbah Wells fort gained importance when the Mosul-Haifi oil pipeline was built nearby in the early 1930s. With the Royal Navy dependent on Middle Eastern oil and the increasing mechanisation of the British army it's no wonder the region took on an increased significance for British imperial interests.

The Anglo-Iraq War broke out in 1941 when resentment of British control of the oil led to open conflict.With a pro-Nazi insurgent government trying to take control of the country Britain moved fast to protect her interests. Although the army had left by 1937 two RAF airfields remained operational and these, along with the Royal Navy, provided the means for rapid deployment into the country.

The war lasted less than a month (2–31 May 1941) but saw some interesting military vehicles and aircraft deployed by both sides. The Rolls-Royce armoured car was increasingly obsolete by Western Desert standards yet proved valuable in rapid strikes against the insurgency in Iraq. The Bristol Blenheim soldiered on in the light bomber role. Gloster Gladiators, Hawker Hart and Audax light bomber/observation aircraft flew on both sides, and the Breda 65, Me 109 & 110 and He. 111 flew for the insurgents.

Rutbah Wells fort, 1941. The town is beginning to form on the road west of the fort.

For a remote outpost Rutbah saw a lot of action. Bristol Blenheims took part in air raids on Rutbah fort, as show in a photo reconnaissance image above.

Me109 in Iraqi Airforce colours.

 Even the equipment used by the infantry harked to a bygone age.

British troops looking across the Tigris to Baghdad at the end of the insurgency, 1941.

Then...

Rolls-Royce armoured cars prepare to move out against Iraqi insurgents. Note the Lewis guns and Boyes AT rifles.

And now...

Iraqi Army forces rolling in the tracks of the Rolls-Royce ACs as they operate in the vicinity of Rutbah Wells. Not a great deal of difference.

Sad to say fighting is still ongoing in the region of Rutbah, as Iraqi army forces combat the ISIL insurgency. Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose...

Modern Rutbah.

Urban sprawl has claimed the old landing ground, but the fort is still there (location circled in red) and in use, although it has lost the triangular enclosure on its eastern wall. A former US Marine who served in Iraq was posted to Rutbah in 2008, and recalls seeing equipment with British markings still in use inside the fort.

So, the early days of those pioneering flights lends itself to a Back of Beyond style game, with rattly Model T Fords bearing fearless lady journalists, or an army/police attempt to reach a downed air crew before bandits get to them. It also makes for an interesting 'sideshow' to World War Two, using equipment which was outdated elsewhere in the conflict. Something for a wargamer interested in the unusual to ponder on.

For myself, I'm going to confine my activities to writing my novel.

Further reading about the early days of the Transjordan-Baghdad route:

'Flying the Furrow,' Saudi Aramco World.

A Good Haul of Books.

My wife and I took a day off from what seems like perpetual house-hunting to run some errands, one of which was a stop off at our excellent local library. I'd forgotten this month marks their annual surplus books sale, so we couldn't resist taking a look at what's on offer and... I found these. The Time-Life books Epic of Flight: The Giant Airships, full of information and nice illustrations about that noblest of aircraft; two issues of Model Railroader from 2009 and 2013, with useful info on how to model buildings; and the star of this little show - Yep, Donald Featherstone's Wargaming Airborne Operations, published in the UK way back in 1977, although this is the American edition dated 1979.

I was looking along a row of books stacked under one of the tables when I spotted the edge of the model paratrooper illustration peeping out. Call it long-ingrained pattern recognition, but I knew at once I was onto something hobby-related. I drew it out and - voila! This is one of those Featherstone books I'd always heard of but had never seen, and now I own it! (Cue manic cackle...)

Eben Emael under assault.

It's in excellent condition. Aside from rules governing airborne operations on the tabletop, it contains a potted history of airborne forces, both paratroops and glider-borne, notes on tactics, resupply logistics, and accounts of the great airborne operations of WW2, Crete and Market Garden.

There are plenty of photos of games in progress, along with maps and diagrams. Some of the figures and models depicted look rather dated now in this Golden Age of ours, but this book has a heck of a lot of use for the gamer interested in the topic. I've got a few of The Don's books, and this is a worthy addition to the set.

Beginning the Deck House

After gluing the decking onto the Aerial Flyer yesterday I was relieved to see it hadn't warped too much overnight. A sanding-down fixed most of the problems. Those small gaps that are left will disappear with a thin coat of watered-down spackle, which will also give the planking a scrubbed look suitable for a well holy-stoned Naval deck. I did intend to build the tail-plane after this but will leave it for last.

I drilled a half-inch-deep hole in the deck of each sponson, put a blob of glue in each and inserted lengths of plastic tube until they sat flush with the deck, ready for the pintel-mounted weaponry to sit in. With those done, I moved on to the last major part of the construction - the deck house.

I made the angled inner supports from craft sticks glued directly to the deck, with shorter lengths for fore and aft bracing. The walls are basswood. It's light and, with the bracing to back it up, strong enough for the purpose.

The windows are a composite of materials. The first step is a blob of diluted Aleen's tacky glue, colored with a little sky-blue acrylic paint and smeared to give the impression of reflected sky. Sections of clear acrylic plastic were stuck on this while wet, and frames of thin card glued on top. These will have rivets applied later. On reflection (pun not intended!) I should have painted the frames before putting them on. Ho hum. When it comes to painting the Flyer I might make them bronze or brass. We'll see how it goes.

The next step will be the after end of the deck house and its roof.

Hobart's 79th Armoured Division at War

Last Christmas my lovely wife gave me a Kindle for a present, which I like very much. I have a number of military books on it, and the latest addition to my collection is Richard Doherty's Hobart's 79th Armoured Division at War: Invention, Innovations & Inspiration, published by Pen and Sword (May 19, 2014).

I came across it whilst browsing Amazon on my Kindle on Christmas Eve. The book's currently available at $1.99 and is well worth getting. Percy Hobart was a gifted if somewhat abrasive person, but no one else could have raised and trained the "Funnies" to such a pitch of excellence. The 79th trained for D-Day all over the UK, and I know a couple of the sites they used quite well. I've just finished the chapters relating to the division's experiences in Normandy, and the sheer heroism of those men is breathtaking. Many of the actions described would make ideal scenarios for Chain of Command. I'm currently reading about the 79th's exploits at Cap Gris Nez during the "Great Swan" across France.

Of course, the book has got me thinking in terms of gaming 1944 NW Europe...