Steve Bond is back with the final volume in this popular series. Unlike his previous three tomes, with their focus on air/rotorcraft, this book is uniquely dedicated to the personnel of the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) themselves. Each chapter will concentrate on the memories of contributors who served in a range of roles, including those below the flight deck. Accounts will focus on the everyday life upon an aircraft carrier as well as the extraordinary challenges faced during operations. There is a fascinating chapter covering exchange services with the RAF and other navies including the French and US; and also insight into the Indian navy’s experience with the Sea Hawk and Sea Harrier.

Within the previous volumes, we met some remarkable characters and there is a chapter devoted to people’s memories of them. The closing section entitled ‘Thoughts’ sees contributors reflect on their FAA career with many deeply moving responses and discourses on the future of the service.

The book is heavily illustrated throughout in colour and black and white with personal photographs from the contributors, artwork and tongue-in-cheek cartoons for which the FAA is famous. Volume Four is the perfect conclusion to the ongoing post-war story of a truly astounding branch of the armed forces.

A life-long aviation professional and historian, Dr Steve Bond has spent over 40 years working in the industry. He served in the Royal Air Force for 22 years as an aircraft propulsion technician, with tours on many different aircraft, and was part of the Eurofighter Typhoon project team in the MoD. Steve then spent 13 years with City University London as a senior lecturer and course director. He developed and ran the world’s  first MSc Air Safety Management programme for aviation professionals and continues to lecture on the subject. He has a PhD in Air Safety Management, is a chartered engineer and a fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society. He is also a Freeman of the Honourable Company of Air Pilots and author of many magazine articles and books.