George "Grumpy" Unwin and his doggie friend, Flash, pose for the camera at Duxford, 1940.  Unwin was a career RAF serviceman, selected prewar from among ground crew trainees to train as a pilot.  He served as a fighter pilot through the Battle of France and the Battle of Britain, switching later from single-seat fighters to Mosquitos.  He remained in the RAF after the war, flying combat missions in Britain's Malaya campaign.  Having started as a trainee technician, he retired from the RAF as a Wing Commander in 1961.  George Unwin died in 2006, aged 93.  Best regards, JR.

Grumpy and Flash.

Douglas Bader and Czechoslovak RAF pilot Alexander Hess pictured outside the mess at Duxford aerodrome, 1940.  Hess is wearing (right breast) the Czechoslovak Pilots Badge.  Earlier examples of this badge, manufactured in Czechoslovakia pre-war, were usually attached to the uniform by means of hook attachments.  Later examples, manufactured in England for Czechoslovak pilots serving with the RAF, were often sewn on to the uniform with small loops of thread.  Best regards, JR.

Battle of Britain comrades, Bader and Hess.

Operations Room, Duxford Aerodrome, 1940.  In rooms like this, RAF ground controllers collated observer, rader and other intelligence, using it to direct RAF fighters onto incoming German raiders.  Best regards, JR.