The Fighting Colours of Richard J. Caruana. 50th Anniversary Collection. 2. Malta George Cross

Maltese aviation artist and historian Richard J. Caruana, who started his career just over 50 years ago, celebrates this special milestone with a work dedicated to his country’s struggle for survival during the Second World War.

Three air battles during that conflict were decided in the air and changed the course of history: the Battle of Britain, the Battle of Malta, and the Battle of Midway. The heroic resistance of this tiny Mediterranean Island denied Rommel and his troops vital supplies, with the result that by the end of 1942 Axis forces had been driven out of North Africa

This, in turn, provided the Allies with an opportunity to launch the first invasion of mainland Europe, on what Churchill described as ‘Europe’s soft underbelly’: Sicily. When the Allies won a firm foothold on the Italian Island, Malta could finally breathe a sigh of relief and it became a stepping stone for the movement of thousands of troops, aircraft and naval forces to the new frontline in Italy. A short narrative gives an outline of the Battle’s history which is then illustrated with close to 200 colour profiles and other drawings. This book is a veritable successor to the author’s best-selling ‘Malta G.C. – Victory in the Air’, published in 1996 which is now out of print.