a wide and complex range of views about the war. Challenging of perceptions of the War in the Air One of the most notable things about Winged Victory is how it challenges the common perception of the war in the air during the First World War, especially when compared with other contemporary fiction. Unlike most other "air" novels of the time (e.g. Biggles ), it fits neatly into the canon of so-called "Disenchantment" novels, which while well regarded in the present day, were largely ignored. While it acknowledges that there are high scoring aces, who seem invulnerable (notably the character of "Mac"), most of the characters find the war interminably unpleasant, alternatively horrid and dull, enlivened only by regular nihilistic drinking binges. Equally, it acknowledges the serious flaws in allied aircraft by 1918. While many more modern sources (including Wikipedia) list the Sopwith Camel as an excellent, almost unsurpassed aircraft, Yeates, via Cundall, complains that it was too slow, and could not climb high enough - flaws so serious that Cundall's squadron is regularly assigned to ground attack, being covered by SE5as. The desired aircraft is neither the Camel, not its replacements the Sopwith Snipe or Sopwith Salamander (wrongly assumed by Cundall to be a new fighter variant instead of a ground attack aircraft), but instead the all-but forgotten high flying Sopwith Dolphin. This tellingly reveals that excellent pilots such as Yeates and his contemporaries in 46 squadron valued height, and the concurrent ability to strike unseen, running counter to the common image of swirling dogfights. Trivia The title, "Winged Victory", was not Yeates' choice - it was forced on him by his original publisher, who wanted the book to appear more patriotic and exciting. Yeates' original choice of title was the much more apt, bleaker "Wingless Victor". Yeates was credited with five enemy aircraft shot down in World War I (2 + 3 shared). Some of the characters of the book have real names of pilots who served in 46 Squadron at the time, like ace George Edwin Thomson (21 enemy aircraft shot down, called "Tommy" in the book, and who is transferred to Home Establishment before April 1918), Harry Noel Cornforth Robinson (called "Robinson" in the book, 10 aircraft destroyed), and Horace Gilbert Wanklyn Debenham ("Debenham" in the book, six enemy aircraft destroyed). There are some with names very similar to real names, like Flight Commander "MacAndrews (Mac)"