Typhoon and Tempest Aces of World War 2
Hawker Typhoon and Tempest: two aircraft types with widely differing reputations.
The former was a technical nightmare redeemed as a ground attack machine, whilst the latter proved to be the most superlative low and medium level fighter to see service with the RAF, and arguably any air force, during the latter stages of World War 2.
With 246 enemy aircraft destroyed by the Typhoon and 239 by the Tempest, over 40 aces flew one or both types in combat, and men like 'Foob' Fairbanks and Johnny Baldwin attained double-figure scores with the Hawker fighters. This is the story of those pilots and their exploits with these aircraft.
Son of a Typhoon pilot, Chris Thomas is arguably Britain’s best authority on the Typhoon/Tempest family, having served as Air Britain’s specialist on the type for over two decades.
Based in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, Chris Davey has illustrated more than 20 titles for Osprey’s Aircraft of the Aces, Combat Aircraft and Aviation Elite Units series since 1994. He is one of the last traditional airbrush artists in the business and has become Osprey’s artist of choice for both USAAF fighters and RAF subjects, proving his undoubted skill when dealing with large aircraft subjects such as the Halifax and Sunderland.