Biggles makes good company while traveling, this time on the flight (and more importantly perhaps the delay) home from some days in Glasgow.
This time the setting is World War II and the book was first published in 1943 and therefore it was aimed at an audience for whom the war was not yet won. Some of the background events, like the occupation of the whole of France by German forces must have been happening while Johns was working on the manuscript, and there is almost a pathos about it being in the moment.
Also there is a subtly about the enemy, the action takes place on the ground in enemy territory and yet it seems there are plenty of people falling over themselves to help Biggles and co so that we have to draw the conclusion that the people are distinct from their fascist leaders - this hardly needs saying today but we are travelling back in time to 1943 as both reader and writer and so the strength with which this point is made is encouraging.
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