Description
Lion of the Skies tells the unique story of the only Sikh airman to fly with the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Air Force during the First World War. It is the remarkable account of one man’s struggle to enlist, against discrimination, and of his service as a fighter pilot over the battlefields of Flanders. Hardit Singh Malik started his life in Britain as a fourteen-year-old public school boy, who progressed to Balliol College, Oxford, before attempting to join the RFC, but he was denied a commission. Keen to participate in the war, he served with the French Red Cross in 1916 as an ambulance driver and then offered his services to the French air force. Ultimately, one of his Oxford tutors wrote on his behalf to a former head of the RFC and secured him a cadetship. One of the things that set him apart was that, being a devout Sikh, he wore a specially designed flying helmet that fit over his turban. Malik claimed two kills in the war until he was shot down, crashing unconscious to the ground behind Allied lines, his Sopwith Camel riddled with over 400 bullet holes.
Author: Stephen Barker
Publisher: Harper Collins India
ISBN-13: 9789394407992
Language: English
Binding: Hardbound
Product Edition: 2022
No. Of Pages: 229
Country of Origin: India
International Shipping: No
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