Hurricanes to Russia - ’Operation Benedict’, and No. 151 Wing, RAF, 1941, in Support of the Arctic Convoys, during World War II. R.A.F. in Russia & Royal Air Force 1939-1945 vol. 2 (Extract) - D Richards;H St Saunders;Hubert Griffith

An extraordinary RAF and Soviet cooperation in wartime

In the opening stages of the Second World War in Europe, as Russia became an British Ally, it was considered vital to both protect the strategic port of Murmansk from air attacks upon arriving maritime supply convoys and also to train Soviet pilots on British fighter aircraft. The RAF created No. 151 Wing, comprised of two fighter squadrons: No. 81 Squadron and No. 134 Squadron. The unit flew Hawker Hurricane Mk IIB fighters. A total of 39 Hurricanes were initially delivered to the Russian forces-some arriving in crates via the first Arctic Convoy (Operation Dervish) and assembled on-site, while 24 were flown directly to their new bases and owners from the aircraft carrier HMS Argus. Once established, operations by RAF pilots were undertaken from Vaenga airfield, inside the Arctic Circle. Within five weeks of active operational sorties, 151 Wing claimed 16 Axis aircraft destroyed, 4 probables, and 7 damaged. They suffered minimal casualties with just one pilot lost together with two ground crew killed in an accident. As winter approached the British pilots had trained their Soviet counterparts to fly and maintain the Hurricanes and by the close of the year, the RAF personnel were evacuated back to Britain. The principal work in this Leonaur edition was written by an officer present with the expedition and is supported by an overview introduction and an extract from the official history which places the activities of 151 in the broader context of this theatre of the early period of the war.

Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket.