Spitfire
by Parke F. Smith
In a voice both timeless and distinctly greatest generational, Parke F. Smith writes about being the last US pilot accepted into the ranks of the RAF through a training exchange program at War Eagle Field, Los Angeles. After completing their course, he sailed to England on board the HMS Queen Elizabeth, swore allegiance to the King, and was offered a coveted spot training as a fighter pilot. From 1942 to 1946, Smith flew 129 missions in North Africa, Italy, and over the North Sea, before returning home. He made it back, unlike so many of his friends and comrades, and it is to them he dedicated his writing.
Smith’s war stories are only the half of it. Skilled at conveying the human connection and camaraderie that forms in war’s trenches and skies, Smith has a way of revealing enduring truths through anecdotes made even more humorous from his perspective as a total outsider. Ultimately, Smith’s is a story about finding home – no matter how foreign – and fighting for it with all you’ve got.
Not only did Smith love the Spitfire aircraft, his true gift was how he lived his life: fiercely determined and passionate. A real spitfire. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to experience new, first-hand accounts of WWII.
“Parke’s time with the RAF is delightfully told and full of amusing anecdotes … He was a brave and gallant airman who flew nearly 200 hours on fighter operations and was Mentioned in Dispatches form distinguished service.”
—Sir Ian MacFadyen, Air Marshal, KCVO CB OB
On May 25, 2023, Preston Smith gave a fascinating lecture about his father’s service as the last U.S. pilot accepted into the ranks of the RAF during World War II. In a voice both timeless and distinctly greatest generational, Richmonder Parke F. Smith wrote about being the last U.S. pilot accepted into the ranks of the RAF through their training exchange program at War Eagle Field, Los Angeles.
On 7th November 2023, Members and their guests joined us for a three-course Club lunch with wines, followed by an entertaining talk by a Club Member Preston Smith, who spoke about his father’s book, Spitfire: An American WWII Fighter Pilot in the RAF.
Article: This Richmonder was a Pilot for the Royal Air Force
