They had joined an organisation that advertised itself as 'the best flying club in the world'. Now the young pilots of 409 Squadron are flung into battle over Germany where their training, tactics and aircraft are all found sadly wanting. The spirit of the gentleman amateur flickers and dies in the harsh glare of searchlights over the Ruhr. We see the reality of war: chaos, cock-up and comradeship in equal measure. Derek Robinson reinforces his reputation as the best aviation fiction writer in the business with this tragi-comic story.