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Flight Lieutenant Ludvik Martel (deceased)

Flight Lieutenant Ludvik Martel (deceased)

Ludwik Alfred Martel was born in 1919 in Piotrkow in central Poland. Yearning to fly, Martel took a gliding course and in 1937, having compled education in a state technical school in Lodz, enlisted in the Polish Air Force. Martel was a cadet pilot when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. aftre a brave resistance the personnel of the Polish Air Forcel were ordered to make for neutral Romania. Martel escaped from the Romanian internment on September 29, and Martel travelled to France via the Balkans. There the Polish Armed Forces were being re-formed under General Sikorski. Posted to Britain, Martel was assigned to 54 Squadron Martel arrived in England in early 1940 and was commissioned in the RAF in May and transferred to the PAF on August 6. He joined 54 Squadron on August 10, 1940, during the height of the Battle of Britain. Shortly afterwards on the 28th October Martel was transferred to 603 Squadron, based at Hornchurch, flying Spitfires. He claimed a Bf 109 destroyed over the English Channel on 5 October. and a few days later he was forced down by an Me109, suffering shrapnel wounds. He was posted to the Polish 317 (City of Wilno) Squadron on 19 March 1941. He was rested on 28 January 1942, going to 58 OTU, as an instructor, before returning to 317 Squadron on 25 August. On 13 March he was posted with other Polish pilots to form the Polish Fighting Team, otherwise known as Skalskis Circus. They operated in the Western Desert from 17 March to 12 May and destroyed 30 enemy aircraft. He damaged a FW 190 on 4 April and destroyed a Bf 109 and damaged a Mc 200 on the 20th. He returned to 317 Squadron on 22 July 1943. He was posted to 16 FTS, Newton on 20 August but went back to 317 Squadron on 4 November, as a Flight Commander. Tour-expired, he was posted to HQ PAF on 12 September 1944.. Martel was released from service as a flight lieutenant. For a time he flew crop-spraying aircraft in East Africa and then in London he ran a successful property maintenance business. He was a prominent member and trustee of the Polish Air Force Association, looking after the welfare of its veterans and promoting fellowship with the Royal Air Force Association. Martel was decorated with the Virtuti Militari (5th Class) and with the Polish Cross of Valour. Sadly, we have learned that Ludvik Martel passed away on 25th April 2010

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This Week's Half Price Aviation Art

A pair of F18 Hornets overfly the Nimitz-class carrier USS Dwight Eisenhower (CV-69) with the surface combatant USS Arleigh Burke (DDF-51) off her port bow.

USS Dwight Eisenhower by Ivan Berryman. (Y)
Half Price! - £55.00 		Flight Lieutenant Ian <i>Widge</i> Gleed is depicted in his personal Hurricane 1 P2798 (LK-A) of 87 Sqn shooting down a Messerschmitt Bf.110 on 15th August 1940. Just visible beneath the cockpit of the Hurricane is his mascot, Figaro, shown kicking a swastika. His aircraft was also easily identifiable by the red flash on its nose, a feature that was retained even when P2798 was painted all black for its night fighter role. Gleed scored many victories before being shot down and killed whilst flying a Spitfire Vc in the Western Desert in April 1943.

Tribute to Flt Lt Ian R Gleed by Ivan Berryman. (P)
Half Price! - £700.00 		Tribute to the ground crew of Bomber Command. Ground crew inspect and prepare the engines of a Stirling bomber as it is refuelled in preparation for that nights mission.

Stirling Work by Ivan Berryman. (Y)
Half Price! - £50.00 		Two F14 Tomcats of VF-1 pass in close formation over the stern of the veteran USS Ranger (CV-61)

USS Ranger by Ivan Berryman.
Half Price! - £50.00

AH-1 Whiskey Cobras of the US marine Corps in Action, Kuwait, February 1991.

Cobra Attack by David Rowlands. (Y)
Half Price! - £50.00 		A pair of 272 Squadron Bristol Beaufighters roar over the extensively rebuilt battleship HMS Valiant as she lies at anchor at Alexandria late in 1941, accompanied by the cruiser HMS Phoebe and Valiants sister ship HMS Queen Elizabeth (in the extreme distance)

HMS Valiant and HMS Phoebe at Alexandria, 1941 by Ivan Berryman (Y)
Half Price! - £50.00 		A pair of Focke Wulf 190A4s of 9./JG2 Richthofen based at Vannes, France during February 1943. The nearest aircraft is that of Staffelkapitan Siegfried Schnell. The badge on the nose is the rooster emblem of III./JG2 and the decoration on Schnells rudder shows 70 of his eventual total of 93 kills.

Looking for Business by Ivan Berryman. (F)
Half Price! - £70.00 		On the night of 7th-8th June 1944, a Lancaster of No.207 Sqn piloted by Wing Commander John Grey was part of a force of 112 bombers and 10 Mosquitoes sent to attack a tank storage park near Cerisy-la-Foret. With the D-Day landings just 48 hours old, it was considered too risky to leave the tank park intact, should the Germans try to launch a counter thrust from this position, just 20 miles from the French coast near Bayeux. Shortly after crossing the coast, Greys aircraft was attacked by a JU.88 and both the mid upper gunner Sutherland and tail gunner McIntosh opened fire on their pursuer and sent it down in flames. No sooner had they recovered from this fright when a second JU.88 closed in on them. Again, both gunners combined their fire and destroyed the enemy aircraft in mid air. Grey pressed on to the target where their bombs fell on the enemy tank depot, also destroying some fuel dumps and an important road junction. Returning to the French coast to begin their journey home, they were attacked yet again, this time by a Messerschmitt Bf 110. With machine-like precision, McIntosh and Sutherland opened fire together, claiming their third victim in a single night. For this extraordinary feat, both gunners were awarded the DFC.

Gunners Moon by Ivan Berryman.
Half Price! - £40.00

Latest Aviation Art Releases

The formation of six New Zealand squadrons within the RAF in the early part of WW2 acknowledged the contribution and commitment of the Commonwealth to the campaign against the Nazi invasion of Europe. Among these was 489 Sqn, based at Dallachy in Scotland, whose Beaufighter Mk Xs flew missions against Axis shipping in the North Sea as well as other missions along the Scandinavian coast. Here, two 489 Sqn Beaufighters run up their engines prior to a sortie in the Winter of 1943/44.

Kiwis at Dallachy - Tribute to No.489 Squadron by Ivan Berryman.		 The Winter of 1943-44 saw Hawker Typhoons operating from Tangmere, equipped with 500lb or 1000lb bombs against radar installations and V1 sites in northern France. Wing Commander J R Baldwin is depicted getting airborne with others of his squadron for just such a mission early in 1944, before the squadron moved to Needs Oar Point in readiness for the D-Day landings.

Winter Warriors by Ivan Berryman.		 Having been initially intercepted by just three aging Gloster Gladiators, who gallantly gave both the Germans and Italians the impression of a much bigger resistance in the skies above Malta, the Italian Air Force was suddenly confronted by the more capable Hawker Hurricanes of 261 (F) Sqn, commanded by Sqn Ldr D W Balden. The previously unescorted bombers of the Regia Aeronautica suddenly required the presence of fighters to protect the marauding bombers, as depicted here, where Macchi 200s of 6° Gruppo 1° Stormo, reel around the sky to chase off the Hurricanes from the attacking Savoia Marchetti SM.79s above Grand Harbour in the Summer of 1940.

The Struggle for Malta by Ivan Berryman.		 Savoia-Marchetti SM.79s, of the 281a Suadriglia based in Libya in 1940, begin their journey home after another successful mission against Allied shipping in the Mediterranean. Nearest aircraft is 281-5, that of Capitano Carlo Emanuele Buscaglia.

Hunters Homeward Bound by Ivan Berryman.

Among the most celebrated of Italian bomber pilots was Capitano Carlo Emanuele Buscaglia, seen here claiming another victim in his Savoia-Marchetti SM.79, 281-5, of the 281a Suadriglia based in Libya in 1940. Their daring daylight attacks on Allied shipping in the Mediterranean caused havoc with the convoys that plied between Malta and Allied territories, with thousands of tonnes of shipping being sent to the bottom.

Defender of the Med by Ivan Berryman.		 Josef Kiss is depicted attacking a flight of Caproni Ca.III bombers above the Alps in a Hansa-Brandenburg C.1 of Flik 24 in 1916. He and his observer, Georg Kenzian successfully forced down two of these aircraft and returned to base safely, his own aircraft riddled with over 70 holes sustained during the combat. The Austro-Hungarian ace was to end the war with a total of 19 confirmed victories.

Battle Above the Alps by Ivan Berryman.		 For over five years the young men of RAF Bomber Command fought a long, unceasing and always bitter struggle against the mighty war machine of Nazi Germany. Magnificently brave, they endured fearful odds, frightening losses and some of the most terrifying flying conditions imaginable, but they persevered unflinchingly. The extraordinary heroism of those men is reflected by the twenty-three Victoria Crosses awarded during that time. And one aircraft above all others came to symbolise that gallantry, the mighty Lancaster. Robert Taylor's moving tribute to that famous bomber, <i>Winter Homecoming</i>, is surely one of the most beautiful aviation landscapes in existence. With great skill the artist has managed to portray the contrasting moods of wartime England within a single canvas. As dawn breaks over a tranquil English landscape, the crisp winter air echoes to the sound of hard-working Merlin engines. The glinting rays of the rising sun reveal the damaged Lancaster, its inner port engine smoking as the battle-weary pilot struggles to keep his aircraft flying. Probably there are injured men on board. Long overdue, the straggler has fallen far behind the main returning force, only the dogged tenacity of her pilot and crew have kept them going. They could easily have fallen prey to prowling Luftwaffe night fighters, but this time they've been lucky, they will make it home - just.

Winter Homecoming by Robert Taylor. (GS)		 For those on the ground there were few sights more stirring than a B-17 Fortress on its final approach from a combat mission, and Robert Taylor's outstanding painting <i>Winter's Welcome</i> is no exception. This now legendary image conjures up those exhilarating final moments as an exhausted pilot and his crew bring their mighty warbird safely home to the welcoming winter countryside of East Anglia. It has been another tough and arduous mission and damage is clearly visible, but with engines throttled back, and wheels and flaps down, the tired captain coaxes his aircraft gently down the glide path towards touchdown. On the ground below a pair of startled pheasants take to the air as the mighty machine thunders overhead, and local farm workers gaze up in respect and wonder.

Winter's Welcome by Robert Taylor. (GS)

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Ivan Berryman


Robert Taylor
David Pentland
Graeme Lothian
 

Nicolas Trudgian
Gerald Coulson
Brian Bateman
Anthony Saunders

News :
7th April 2011 : Robert Taylor - Victory Over Dunkirk.

We have obtained two prints of this long sold out edition by Robert Taylor and they are available to purchase from our online shop now! This much sought after edition is signed by Robert Taylor and Bob Stanford-Tuck.

Rare
Edition

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