The Sky Warriors

About the Book

  The war year of 1942 is coming to a close. Two bomber pilots face their indoctrination in unfriendly skies. One is British, the other, American.

  However, before the battle is joined there is a Christmas of 1942 to celebrate, and goodbye to family and girl friends to savor. A last dance to attend with pals, a few days to spend in familiar home towns.

  The chance of dangerous war missions-perhaps death-helps promote a reunion with an estranged girl friend for the American pilot. A romantic interlude and resolve to maintain a vow, to be together in spirit, in heart, in love, until the war left them alone. She is a nurse at the local hospital, and already has plans in motion to enlist as an Army Nurse.

  For the RAF pilot, a journey home and a sentimental walk around his home town. And there is a new clarity of sharing and love between father and son. War brings them to a clear understanding of the importance of the other. And as the influence of war on the old town is noted by the young pilot, it also leads to a brief encounter with a former female classmate.

  Then time whisks both men into the shooting war as they are transported to battle bases located in the Far East. Each under their own flag, they find themselves amid tea plantations and copra "farms" on the island of Ceylon. Beyond the horizon is Singapore, the rich rubber and tin empires on the Malay peninsula-and the enemy, fanatical Japanese. That enemy pushing to expand sources of raw material to feed Pacific conquests.

  Both pilots go on air missions and witness the reality of war. Friends are wounded or lost. Distances across water and jungle are long and tedious. These normal challenges to fliers are added to an enemy whose language does not contain the word retreat. So both American and British squadrons, exhausted veterans, gladly accept a remarkable slow down of operations as year 1943 begins. A temporary respite as operations switch from defensive to aggressive mode.

  Eventually the RAF pilot meets his USAAF counterpart while on their way to spend a recreation leave at a rest camp/hospital complex in the mountains. The hospital has American, British and Australian nurses on staff.

  The U.S. pilot visits a wounded squadron member at the hospital and meets an Australian and an American nurse there. The British pilot meets an American nurse in the recreation center and they enjoy a friendly, light date. At least it is for the American nurse. The RAF pilot finds himself captivated.

  Unknown to the RAF pilot, the American nurse is the girl friend of the U.S. bomber pilot he has just befriended. The nurse has followed her American pilot to the Ceylon area of operations

and written to his APO to inform him of her location. At the moment, the American pilot has not received that information and is not aware his girl friend is nearby at the hospital.

  As his fantastic furlong ends, the British pilot leaves the rest camp and returns to his RAF base. The U.S. pilot has one more day at the camp. On his final night, he and the ward nurse he spent the day with sleep together. While leaving her quarters in the morning, he blunders into the arms of his American girl friend, whom he believed was still in the states.

  The two have words. The faithful nurse tells her errant boy friend of the date she had with the British pilot, even if it was quite innocent. Now she announces she feels free to pursue that relationship to a higher level. Innocently she mentions the pilots name. Her cheating boy friend plans on meeting the RAF pilot again.

  Later, the two pilots meet at the RAF base while preparing for a rescue mission. The U.S. pilot tells the RAF pilot to back away from the American nurse. But the nurse has already written to the RAF pilot and wants to meet him in the capital city of Colombo.

  The planned rescue mission near the island o

About the Author

Cody Grant attended school in Greater Detroit. A graduate of Wayne State University and of Central Michigan University. That was followed by military service in the Air Force. He has traveled the Middle and Far East, and lived in Scotland, England and Canada. After military duty he was employed by Chrysler Engineering in Highland Park, Michigan. Then he accepted the post as Director of Operations for Lynwood School District in California. The position of Superintendent for the Port of San Diego followed. Other novels are: The Sky Warriors; Expectations Never Die; Divorce of the Land. The author lives in San Diego.