Warburtons War

Although Adrian Warburton (known to all as Warby) became one of the most highly decorated pilots of World War II, he began his military career as a below-average misfit with 22 Squadron of Coastal Command and was sent to Malta to avoid trouble in the UK. Known at first as a loner, when given his command, the spectacular results he achieved enabled his unconventional behavior to be over-looked. Fearless in the air, the maverick ace shot down nine enemy aircraft and won fame in Malta for his invaluable photo reconnaissance work at Taranto, Sicily and North Africa. On April 12th, 1944 Warburton departed in an aircraft on an unusual mission over Europe. Both plane and pilot disappeared without trace, giving rise to a host of rumors that his disappearance was intentional. For almost 60 years the mystery remained unsolved, until a painstaking international search unearthed the truth. Based on interviews with nearly 150 of Warby's colleagues, and updated by historian Chris Goss with recently unearthed information, Warburton's War paints a picture of a fascinating man, who with 350 operational missions from Malta alone became a living legend and an enigma among the aces of WWII.