Nigel Julian Author

Hub Zemke Jr, author of the foreword to this book, is the son of Hubert Zemke who commanded the 56th Fighter Group during the Second World War. Peter Randall is the owner and founder of the website littlefriends.co.uk, one of the earliest sites on the Internet dedicated to the US 8th Army Air Force Fighter Command, and recognised as the most comprehensive on-line database for this specialised subject. Peter, motivated by the lack of detailed information contained in the early published 8th Air Force fighter unit histories, began collecting records of serial numbers, unit and pilot allocations and their respective fates, culminating in the online publication of his unique and exemplary website. Nigel Julian, as the son of a Royal Air Force pilot and Caterpillar Club member, grew up surrounded by aviation themed books, resulting in a lifelong passion for the history of the air war over Europe. Encouragement from 56th Fighter Group veterans and their families eventually resulted in the formation of the 56thfightergroup.co.uk website. Besides becoming a focus point for the Group’s former members and their relatives, it has also provided the current 56th Fighter Wing with an insight into their unit’s extraordinary and historic legacy.