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  • Victor Boys

  • True Stories from Forty Memorable Years of the Last V Bomber
  • By: Tony Blackman
  • Narrated by: Roger Davis
  • Length: 10 hrs and 36 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (49 ratings)
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Victor Boys cover art

Victor Boys

By: Tony Blackman
Narrated by: Roger Davis
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Summary

The Handley Page Victor was the third of the three V Bombers and the longest lasting, serving in the RAF until 1993, and still doing invaluable service in the first Iraq war. Moreover, in 1982, it was the only Victor tanker fleet based on Ascension Island that made possible the Vulcan Black Buck bombing of Port Stanley airfield and the long-range reconnaissance of Argentina by Nimrods. Victor Boys tells the story of all the great things that were achieved, recounted firsthand by the operators themselves, aircrew, and ground crew.

Starting with accounts by test pilot Johnny Allam, who undertook the major development of the aircraft, through its work as a nuclear bomber during the Cold War, testing Blue Steel in Australia, to its superb work during the Falklands war and later as a first class air-to-air refueling tanker and vital support tool for fighters and other aircraft.

Published to coincide with the Victor's 60th anniversary, the stories are collated and set in context by Tony Blackman, ex-chief test pilot of Avros who helped develop the Vulcan and initiated the development of the Victor K2 tanker. For him, initially, the Victor seemed a competitor but he now readily admits what a wonderful aircraft the Victor became.

©2012 Grub Street Ltd (P)2016 Grub Street Ltd
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

What listeners say about Victor Boys

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  • Overall
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    5 out of 5 stars

A V-good listen, first hand anecdotal accounts.

Would you consider the audio edition of Victor Boys to be better than the print version?

Not seen the print edition but at least there is emphasis in the audio narration which is probably accurate.

What did you like best about this story?

It brought the aircraft to life, I want to build a model of it now...

Which character – as performed by Roger Davis – was your favourite?

Roger Davis' narration is not in character as such, (daft question really), but his narration is an easy listen.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

You feel great empathy for the crews, especially the one's who didn't make it home.

Any additional comments?

It really made me appreciate the value of the tanker fleet and how valuable they were, especially in the Falklands and first Gulf War.

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5 people found this helpful

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Very very interesting indeed

Well, this is the second in the series of 3 books written about the V force aircraft operators. This one so far has hit the spot along with the Vulcan Boys audiobook too. I didn't know much about the technical side of the Victor whether that be as a bomber aircraft which it was originally designed for or the tanker version that came into force. The Victor had always infused me and as a young schoolchild seeing them go in and out of the former RAF St Athan in South Wales for paint jobs and deep engineering jobs of which i had the pleasure of having a sneaky look around some of them after my father finished paint sprays on them. Sadly the last time i saw one of these crescent-winged beauties was in the early 90s after it flew out of the former RAF Lyneham where it was grounded for a few days after taking part in the static display for Lyneham Families Day and this would have been at the end of The Gulf War 1 where it did sterling work in refuelling other jets that were operated during this conflict

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A history of the mighty HP Victor.

An interesting tale all round. Test flying of the Victor,explaining some of its quirks,the leap in performance to the Conway engined K2, it was an awesome aeroplane, as well as being stunningly beautiful.The mental gymnastics required in the tanker force when plans went awry taking the Vulcan to bomb Port Stanley. A fascinating tale,highly recommended.
I've discovered any book with Tony Blackman as author will be worth a read if you are an aviation buff.

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Very detailed

Excellent history of the victor aircraft operation, very well narrated and bought back good memories of my career at RAF Marham

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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50s phenomenon

spectacular book. superb stories told from a different perspective, from the design to it's creation, different variations, the Falklands to the Iraqi wars.

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I thoroughly enjoyed it....

The author walks us through the life and significant moments throughout the HP80' existence.

Narration was on the whole good also.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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A book of pride to all involved with aircraft boys

I've now listened to 5 of the Boys books and can see how they were and are unsung hero's to get these iconic machines in the air and defend our rights

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