Caldwell was Australia's highest scoring fighter pilot in World War 2. Detailing his rise from a raw pilot to dedicated Wing leader and covers his exploits away from flying that led to a court martial.

Cocos Islands Mutiny (The)

Through extensive research the author has uncovered an extraordinary story, one the military has sought to keep secret. While the battle of the Coral Sea raged, gunners of the Ceylon garrison Artillery on the Cocos Islands attempted to arrest their British commanding officer and compel him to surrender to the Japanese. One soldier was killed and another wounded, but the mutiny failed and seven men were condemned to death. Ultimately three soldiers were hung; becoming the only Commonwealth troops to be executed for mutiny in World War 2. 248pp.

Convoys up the Track' is the story of 121 Australian General Transport Company (AIF) which served a vast expanse of Australia from Adelaide to Eucla, Mount Gambier to Oodnadatta, Alice Springs to Larrimah and Darwin from Truscott in North-West Australia to Mount Isa in Queensland from 1941-1946.

Early in World War II Australia and no east-west or north-south trunk roads; its rail system was hampered by breaks in rail gauges; there was no continuous rail connection between the southern states and Darwin and coastal shipping services were slow, inefficient and vulnerable to Japanese attack. Army transport units were responsible for the mammoth haulage of essential supplies, equipment and personnel. They were the vital link between the railheads of Alice Springs , Mount Isa and Larrimah. Their work has been hailed as one of the greatest transport efforts of World War II.

The book tells the life of the convoys drivers, the north-south and east-west roads, black American drivers, loads carried (including troops-in-transit), the progression from petrol-driven trucks and semi-trailers to Mack-Lanova diesels and more. There are humorous tales, names of all Unit members and over 300 photographs of historical interest.

"In October 1966, 28 soldiers were chosen to form Australias first specialist Reconnaissance Platoon in the Vietnam War. One of this platoons section commanders was a 20-year old regular soldier called Bob Kearney, who led a series of deadly patrols, operating in isolation and extreme danger ahead of the main Australian forces. This is the story of Bob and his unit's tale of courage, terror, madness and survival, told by fellow Vietnam veteran Peter Haran, best-selling author of Trackers and Robert Kearney."

An irreverent account of police life in Darwin from 1939-46

Juliet Wills

Heading for the supposed safety of Australia, the ill-fated DC3 flew straight into the path of three Japanese Zeros returning from a raid on Broome. Under heavy fire Smirnoff, the Russian pilot, landed the badly damaged plane on an isolated beach on the far north west coast. Here, for the first time, is the full story of what really happened to Smirnoff's lost diamonds.

222 pages

'... deserves a place with the other standard encyclopaedias Australians keep on their shelves. It will be a valued travelling companion for visitors to the battlefields of Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific.' - Professor Robert O'Neill, Oxford University
'I keep this book within easy reach.' - Dr Peter Stanley, Australian War Memorial
'I have used this book often, finding it to be a valuable, comprehensive and reliable guide to Australian battles over the past two centuries.' - David Horner, Professor of Australian Defence History, Australian National University
The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles contains concise descriptions of all the major battles that have taken place in Australia or in which Australians have been involved over more than 200 years - from frontier clashes between Aborigines and Europeans, participation by colonial forces in Britain's small wars in the 19th century, through to the World Wars and other conflicts of the 20th century, up to and including involvement in East Timor.
Arranged chronologically, over 300 battles are detailed - at sea, on the ground and in the air. A ready reference is provided, listing the date and location of each event, and the main units and commanders involved. Based on studies of historical records and first-hand accounts, and illustrated with explanatory maps, contemporary drawings and photographs of the fighting in progress, a concise and readable account of the course of the battle and its outcome is given.
Compiled by one of Australia's leading historians, The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles is both an invaluable reference for the military specialist and an illuminating guide for general readers unaware of the breadth and history of the Australian experience of combat.

Michael Veitch's life-long obsession with the aircraft of the Second World War led him to conclude that every single person who flew, or flew in them has at least one extraordinary story to tell. With most of these veterans in their eighties, he knew that it was a matter of urgency to find them now, before their personal stories disappear for ever.

So, over the course of a year, Veitch interviewed over 50 former aircrew across Australia, many of whom had never spoken about their experiences before, even to their families. The result is Flak – a collection of vivid, unforgettable stories from RAAF veterans about their experiences of combat in World War II. It is also an account of the strange, sometimes obsessive journey of the author himself, as he explores a passion held since childhood.

From bomber pilots to fighter aces, from rear gunners to bomb aimers, from stories of death and fear to tales of humour and comradeship, Michael has helped unearth the extraordinary stories of ordinary men living and fighting in extraordinary times.

Fly: True Stories of Courage and Adventure from the Airmen of World
Author:  Michael Veitch

'Fly is an absorbing read thanks to the amazing and previously untold stories Veitch collected from aging pilots, navigators and gunners.' HERALD SUN

All over the world during World War II, thousands of young men who had never so much as been near an aeroplane left offices, farms and classrooms to learn to fly and fight in the greatest conflict the world has ever seen.  They fought over deserts, cities and jungles, in-single-engine fighter aircraft, heavy bombers, transport planes and flying boats.  How do they feel about their dramatic days in the air?  What is it they remember, and what do they choose to forget?

In these candid and moving stories, Michael Veitch, writer, broadcaster and aeroplane fanatic, uncovers some of the untold stories of World War II: Australian, British and even German.  He captures the events that defined a generation of men before these stories are lost forever.

Geoff Litchfield flew the high performance Supermarine Seafire and the Hawker Sea Fury, the de Havilland Vampire, Sea Venom and Meteor, surviving 350 day and night deck landing and 205 catapult launches.

A rich record of WWI as found in service newspapers, magazines, and bulletins. David Kent. 216 pp.