FERRY PILOT'S NOTES
RAF Transport Command
For Official Use Only
ROYAL AIR FORCE, London, July 1944
A very rare original July 1944 edition of the Royal Air Force Transport Command Ferry Pilots Notes. This edition was produced in very limited numbers and was issued to the pilots of RAF Transport Command. The hardback ring-binder includes a series of cards for more than 60 individual aircraft. Each card includes details of specifications, flight and handling characteristics of the aircraft. Ferry pilots had to deliver a wide range of many different types, and these cards were designed to be 'a memory aid for use after the pilot has been converted to the particular type of aircraft'. Cards or amendments for newly introduced or modified aircraft could easily be added to the ring-binder as the war progressed. This set of cards covers a wide range of types of British and American aircraft in service in 1944, including the Anson, Blenheim, Beaufighter, Barracuda, Corsair, Dakota, Fortress, Hurricane, Halifax, Hudson, Lancaster, Liberator, Mustang, Mosquito, Mitchell, Swordfish, Spitfire, Stirling, Tomahawk, Typhoon, Wellington, Wildcat, and many more.
The manual is signed on the inside of the front cover by 'F/L J. M. Taylor, No. 124874, (3 F.U.). RAF No. 3 Ferry Unit was formed at Oujda in Morocco (about 370 miles NE of Casablanca, near the Algerian border) in September 1944. RAF Oujda was used by both the RAF and the USAAF during the North African campaign. From 1943 onwards Oujda airfield was mainly used by RAF Transport Command as part of the Casblanca - Algiers route. No. 3 F.U. was disbanded at Blida in Algeria in January 1946.
RAF Transport Command: was established in March 1943. Initially it ferried aircraft from factories to operational units and performed air transport duties. Later it took over the role of dropping paartroops. As the war progressed, units of RAF Transport Command were established in all theatres of war, including North Africa and the mediterranean.
Condition:
In very good condition. The ring-binder cover in good condition with general signs of use and some marks. The treasury-tag binding is secure. The cards are in very good condition. Signed on the inside of the front cover by 'F/L J. M. Taylor, No. 124874, (3 F.U.).
Published: 1944
Blue hardback binder cover with yellow titling
Dimensions: 110mm x 150mm
Pages: 95
