Squadron Leader D.W.A. Stones D.F.C and Bar. by Adrian Burt, www.burtsbookclub.co.uk This is a very personal account of a young pilot's war. I first met Donald Stones at a fancy-dress party sometime in 1980. He would have been about 60 years old. The thing that struck me was the black eye-patch that he had made to go with the Pirate costume he was wearing. It was not until I met him again later that I realised that he really was a pirate; he was still wearing the eye-patch. He had lost his eye in an accident towards the end of the war. I was about 26 years old then and in the dismissive arrogance of youth thought him a slightly eccentric older man. It was a little while before I realised that he was a renowned Battle of Britain fighter-pilot, a true hero who had shot down five enemy aircraft before he was nineteen old. I hear my children and their generation using words like epic, hero, and legend to describe many people and events that they come across on a daily basis. Donald could rightly have justified using any of these terms to describe his life. He was a hero. His was an epic story. The Battles he fought have passed into legend. It was at his stag party the night before he married Beryl, the mother of my best friend, that I realised what a remarkable man he was. As we sat sharing a pint in the RAF yacht club at Hamble, looking for some point of common interest I started discussing Hanna Reitsch, the female Nazi test pilot came to mind. She was famous for flying a modified V1 doodle-bug to find out why the gyroscopic guidance system would not control the craft. She also flew a Fiesler Storch into Berlin with the intention of saving Hitler. It was when Donald casually mentioned that he knew her I realised he had a story to tell. Donald bought an old caravan, installed it at the bottom of the garden and proceeded to write his story, by hand. He published his memoirs as 'Bograt' and later the extended 'Dimsie', the title of which referred to his RAF nickname. I bought a copy of each. They tell the remarkable story of the heroic boy who at the age of 19 had shot down five enemy aircraft over France, and four plus probable kills during the Battle of Britain. He became an acting Squadron leader before his 21st birthday. My wife recently wrote an e- book, 'No Resistance, a very French Affair, ' that required some research in to the process of joining the RAF just before the war. I remembered Donald's book and pulled it out for the first time for many years. As I was browsing through it the thought occurred to me that it was sad that his story and so many like his were destined to be forgotten. Donald at least managed to make a mark by publishing his autobiography. At the end of 'Bograt' he wrote: "To those few who survive, and to the many who did not return from battle.... My respects." Donald passed away in October 2002. He left two things to remember him by. The books, and a bronze Labrador. This book charts the life of this remarkable man from his first solo flight leading up to the Battle of Britain to his meeting with General Idi Amin when he was selling jet fighters in Africa. I will be donating 10% of any profits generated to The Battle of Britain Memorial Fund. You can visit the bronze statue of the squadron dog at the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel Le Ferne, CT18 7JJ Kent. When he visited the memorial, he observed that the young pilot looking out to sea seemed lonely. The help he gave in raising the funding for the dog demonstrates the humour he brought to any adversity. He was at risk of losing the sight in his remaining eye but he used to joke about the distant baying of the guide-dogs hunting him down. I hope you enjoy reading his remarkable story as much as I enjoyed working on the manuscript.