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RAF Print List - Robert Taylor
Robert Taylor Prints  Royal Air Force  RAF Print List |
[UP] - Spitfire - Hurricane - Mosquito - Typhoon - Lancaster - Stirling - Sunderland - Canberra - Hercules - Harrier - Beaufighter - Blenheim - Kittyhawk - Phantom - Wellington - Halifax - Gladiator - Swordfish - Camel - Bristol F2B - Lysander - Tempest - Sea Fury - Hawk - Sea King - Horsa |
Robert Taylor listing of all RAF aviation prints. Full list of Aviation art prints available from Aviation Artist Robert Taylor. Published by the Military Gallery and available from Cranston Fine Arts. |
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Desert Sharks by Robert Taylor. Robert captures precisely the arid heat, dust and smoke of desert warfare, conveying an air of impending conflict. Neville Duke in his 112 Sqn P40-D Kittyhawk. |
The Hard Way Home by Robert Taylor. The Battle of Britain had been won by the young fighter pilots of Fighter Command, but now it fell to another band of young men to wage total warfare against the Nazi war machine - the aircrew of RAF Bomber Command. And like the fighter pilots of the Battle of Britain, the young men who flew with Bomber Command came not just from Britain, but from all over the Commonwealth, and from the countries of occupied mainland Europe. Every man was a volunteer, prepared to endure the deadly flak and prowling night fighters, to say nothing of the savage and bitter cold, in order to wage their relentless attack on the military and industrial targets of the Third Reich. The aircraft that carried these young men to war were numerous, but bearing the brunt of the RAFs incessant campaign were two heavy bombers, the stalwarts of Bomber Command - the Lancaster and the Halifax. Between them they accounted for over three quarters of all the bombs dropped by the RAF, and Halifaxes alone accounted for a total of 73,312 operations, nearly a fifth of all missions carried out by Bomber Command. |
Winter Homecoming by Robert Taylor. (GS) For over five years the young men of RAF Bomber Command fought a long, unceasing and always bitter struggle against the mighty war machine of Nazi Germany. Magnificently brave, they endured fearful odds, frightening losses and some of the most terrifying flying conditions imaginable, but they persevered unflinchingly. The extraordinary heroism of those men is reflected by the twenty-three Victoria Crosses awarded during that time. And one aircraft above all others came to symbolise that gallantry, the mighty Lancaster. Robert Taylor's moving tribute to that famous bomber, Winter Homecoming, is surely one of the most beautiful aviation landscapes in existence. With great skill the artist has managed to portray the contrasting moods of wartime England within a single canvas. As dawn breaks over a tranquil English landscape, the crisp winter air echoes to the sound of hard-working Merlin engines. The glinting rays of the rising sun reveal the damaged Lancaster, its inner port engine smoking as the battle-weary pilot struggles to keep his aircraft flying. Probably there are injured men on board. Long overdue, the straggler has fallen far behind the main returning force, only the dogged tenacity of her pilot and crew have kept them going. They could easily have fallen prey to prowling Luftwaffe night fighters, but this time they've been lucky, they will make it home - just. |
This Sceptred Isle by Robert Taylor. For nearly a thousand years the white cliffs of southern England had taunted many a foreign army. These fortress walls of chalk, however, were defended by the moat-like waters of the Channel, and together they had shielded the British from her enemies. Alongside Drake they had defied the armies of Spain and her great Armada and, in 1805, had halted the march of Napoleon's Grand Armée. No enemy force since that of William the Conqueror in 1066 had successfully managed to cross the Channel in anger but, in May 1940, one of the most powerful armies the world had ever seen arrived at Calais. An invasion by Hitler's all-conquering Wehrmacht was imminent - or so it seemed. To cross the Channel and breach the English defences, the Luftwaffe simply had to gain control of the skies, and with massively superior numbers the outcom seemed inevitable. The fate of Britain lay in the hands of less than 3,000 young airmen from Fighter Command - Churhill's 'Few'. By July the most famous air battle in history was underway and, over the next three months under tranquil summer skies, the 'Few' battled to defend their Scpetred Isle. Impossibly outnumbered and flying daily to the point of exhaustion, by October these courageous young men had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, emerging defiantly victorious. The threat of invasion might be over but a terrible price had been paid - during that long battle for the survival of Britain 544 had been killed and 422 wounded; and of those who survived a further 814 would be killed before the end of the war. This painting pays tribute to the valiant 'Few', portraying a fleeting moment of calm for the pilots of 74 (Tiger) Squadron during the height of the Battle of Britain. With his commanding officer Sailor Malan (ZP-A) to his right, Acting Flight Lieutenant John Freeborn (ZP-C) takes time to reflect on another day of intense combat while passing over the white cliffs and the familiar lighthouse at Beachy Head, as the squadron cross the English coast to head for home. |
Glorious Summer by Robert Taylor Throughout the long hot summer of 1940 the destiny of the British Isles, indeed the future of Europe, lay in the hands of a small band of young RAF fighter pilots. Against them stood the vast aerial fleets of an all-powerful Luftwaffe, gloating and confident from its victories in Poland, France and the Low Countries. Lying in wait across the Channel, anticipating an easy victory by its air force, were the armies of the most powerful tyrant the world had ever known. With Europe already succumbed to Nazi rule, Britain was alone, the last bastion among the free nations to stand against an evil empire bent upon world domination. The battle, the first ever to be fought entirely in the air, would change the course of history, whatever the outcome. Outnumbered more than five to one at the outset, the odds were so heavily stacked against the RAF, the task looked hopeless. But as the ferocious aerial battles continued through the long summer months, the tactical skills, devotion and raw courage of the RAF's young flyers, gradually turned the tide. By September end, the battle was won and the defeated Luftwaffe retired to its plundered territories to lick its wounds. Image shows nearest, young Pilot Officer Geoffrey Page, later to become one of the RAFs most highly decorated fighter aces, powers his Mk I Hurricane over the country lane at the edge of the airfield, as he and his fellow No 56 Squadron pilots make their third scramble of the day. |
Bader Bus Company by Robert Taylor. (GS) On Saturday, 9 August 1941 the unthinkable happened: the legendary Fighter leader Douglas Bader failed to return from a mission over northern France. Immediately, without thought for their own safety, the fiercely loyal pilots of his Tangmere Wing set out on a sweep to search for him, hoping that he may have successfully baled out into the Channel. By nightfall, however, there was no sign of him and everyone feared that their famous Wing Leader might have been lost. A few days later, however, the good news filtered into Tangmere; Bader, renowned as the Fighter Ace with artificial legs, had survived, albeit as a prisoner of war. |
Out of the Night - The First To Go In by Robert Taylor. Silently out of the night they came. With flaps deployed, three timber and plywood Horsa gliders swept swiftly down through the night skies, rapidly closing with their objective - Pegasus Bridge over the Caen Canal. On board, with tension etched deep into their blackened faces, men from the Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, part of the British 6th Airborne Division, braced themselves for landing. They, and sappers from the Royal Engineers, were about to become the first fighting force to land in France on D-Day. They were about to make history. |
Hurricane Attack by Robert Taylor. (GS) Few flew the Hurricane better in combat than Squadron Leader John Grandy, Commanding Officer of 249 Squadron. Robert Taylor's iconic painting Hurricane Attack portrays him about to pounce on a Bf110 over the Isle of Wight in August 1940. |
The Biff Boys by Robert Taylor. On the morning of 30th November 1917, Lieutenant Andrew McKeever, a Canadian serving with 11 Squadron RFC, together with his observer/gunner Lieutenant Leslie Powell, climbed into their Bristol F2b Fighter and took off alone; their task to fly a solo reconnaissance patrol over Cambrai, where the decisive battle involving tanks for the first time in history was raging on the ground below - it was to prove a remarkable day. As they flew over the enemys lines they encountered a pair of German two seater observer aircraft, protected by no fewer than seven enemy Albatross DV scouts. Armed with a forward firing .303 Vickers machine gun and a ring mounted Lewis gun in the back seat, McKeever skilfully manoeuvred his aircraft to engage one of the enemy scouts, and destroyed it. As he turned to get back to the Allied lines, five of the remaining enemy Albatross fighters dived on his tail, but Lt Powell rapidly downed two of them in quick succession with deadly fire from his Lewis gun. Continuing the duel with the remaining Germans, McKeever managed to destroy a further Albatross when suddenly his observers Lewis gun jammed. The pair seemed doomed, however McKeever, showing great courage and initiative, feigned disaster by rolling his aircraft over, plummeting it towards the ground. Fooled by the manoeuvre, the German aircraft climbed away, and McKeever levelled out just twenty feet above the ground and flew back to safety. Remarkably, all of McKeevers thirty one victories were achieved at the controls of the Bristol F2b Fighter, making him the highest scoring ace with 11 Squadron, and of any pilot flying two seater aircraft during the First World War. |
Halifax Legend by Robert Taylor RAF Pathfinder founder and Commander signs print featuring the four engined Halifax bomber. |
Towards Night's Darkness by Robert Taylor. Sometimes it was five, every so often it might be six, occasionally it was three, but usually it was seven men who flew together as a crew with RAF Bomber Command. They formed the closest of bonds, forged through an anvil of freezing temperatures, deadly flak and prowling night-fighters but, with an average age of only 22, their odds of survival were slim. By 1943 the life expectancy for bomber aircrew was just 5 missions - only one in six were expected to survive their first tour of 30 operations. The chances of surviving a second tour were even slimmer. Of the 125,000 men who flew with Bomber Command during World War II, more than 55,000 were killed. Whilst the 'Few' of Fighter Command had undoubtedly defeated the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, it was the 'Many' of Bomber Command who were to play the pivotal role in delivering to the Allies ultimate victory in Europe. But it came at a terrible cost: on one raid alone - the Nuremberg raid of 30th/31st March 1944 - 543 aircrew were killed, more than Fighter Command lost during the entire Battle of Britain. Robert Taylor's evocative new painting is a moving tribute to these men of Bomber Command. As the setting sun casts a golden glow, a group of Lancasters from 576 Squadron gather into formation after departing from their Lincolnshire base at the start of a raid into Germany in late 1944. The lead aircraft UL-I (LM227) was one of only a handful of Lancasters to complete 100 operational sorties. Between them the pilots of Bomber Command won 23 Victoria Crosses during WWII, and countless others were highly decorated for courage and commitment. Several of these veterans have now joined together to sign this commemorative limited edition to honour all those who served with Bomber Command. They include some of the RAF's most inspirational leaders - men such as James 'Tirpitz&;39; Tait, who was awarded no less than four DSOs to become one of the most highly decorated RAF airmen of WWII. Although sadly no longer with us, we are privileged that he was able to personally sign the prints during his lifetime, creating a truly historic collectors edition. |
Late Arrival by Robert Taylor. A lone Hurricane of 87 Squadron returns to base at Exeter, at the end of a grueling day of combat during late August 1940. |
Gloster Gladiator by Robert Taylor. A Mk.II Gladiator of No.615 (County of Surrey) Squadron, based at Abbeville, northern France, April 1940. |
Fastest Victory by Robert Taylor Taking his Hurricane off from Speke, a raiding JU88 crossed the airfield in front of Denys Gillam, who promptly shot it down. It was the fastest air victory of the war, and probably of all time. |
Hornchurch Scramble by Robert Taylor. On August 12th, 1940 the Luftwaffe turned their full attention to the RAF's forward fighter bases and radar stations with the intent to obliterate them once and for all. The outcome of the Battle of Britain hung in the balance. It was late in the afternoon of Sunday, 18 August 1940. The previous week had seen the hardest days of fighting in the Battle of Britain as the young pilots of the RAF Fighter Command had engaged in deadly duels with the Luftwaffe. Bystanders gazed cautiously upwards at the weaving contrails in the clear blue skies over southern England as they anxiously awaited the outcome. For just a moment, all was at peace: A gentle breeze floated across the airfield at RAF Hornchurch as the exhausted young pilots of 54 Squadron could rest for a few brief minutes and reflect on their own previous two encounters with the enemy that day. The Luftwaffe had thrown everything at them in the past few days, but today had been the toughest of them all. And then the calm was shattered by the shrill tones of the alarm, the Luftwaffe had launched another huge raid of over 300 aircraft across the Channel, and it looked like Hornchurch was the target. Hornchurch Scramble, portrays the moment as 54 Squadron's commanding officer, Squadron Leader James Leathart, taxis out at Hornchurch to prepare for take-off. Quickly following, the aircraft of New Zealander Colin Gray is guided out from dispersal by his ground crew. Gray would claim 3 Bf110s in the encounter and would eventually become the top scoring New Zealand Ace of the war. |
Sea King Rescue by Robert Taylor. Piloting a Sea King helicopter of 820 Naval Air Squadron, Prince Andrew was first to lift off survivors after the Atlantic Conveyor was hit by an exocet missile. Robert Taylors fine painting depicts the Prince in the thick of the action. |
Day Duties for the Night Workers by Robert Taylor. With its mission completed, the mighty Lancaster slowly rolls to a halt on the lonely dispersal point, the roar of its four pulsating Merlin engines steadily slackens, replaced by an eerie silence, broken only by the snapping cracks of cooling metal. Slowly the seven weary crew tumble out of the fuselage, their faces etched with strain, eyes rimmed red with tiredness. For them it is the final act of another long, arduous and nerve-wracking operation, another eight-hour ordeal to attack industrial targets in the Ruhr. This time they know they've been lucky, they reached the target and returned home safely, despite the deadly flak and prowling Luftwaffe night-fighters. For others, however, the work of war has just begun. As the massive Lancaster looms majestically over them, the ever vigilant ground crew begin the task of preparing their aircraft for the coming night's operation. Checking, repairing and double-checking again, making sure that nothing goes wrong on the next trip, nothing that could endanger the lives of the crew who depend on them. And then there are guns to be re-armed, bombs to be loaded and near-empty fuel tanks refilled. It will be a race against time. |
Devastating Strike by Robert Taylor. It was one of the fastest operational aircraft in the world, one of the most envied - and one of the most feared. Built almost entirely of wood and assembled by carpenters, the beautifully streamlined de Havilland Mosquito, or Wooden Wonder was a triumph of ingenuity at a time when resources of light alloys were in short supply. Its greatest attribute was speed. Powered by two phenomenal Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, the Mosquito became the finest multi-role combat aircraft of World War II. No other Allied military aircraft was built in so many versions for so many roles - a fast bomber which could carry a huge 4,000lb payload; a day or night fighter; a fighter-bomber; trainer; torpedo bomber; photo reconnaissance aircraft; maritime strike aircraft and U-boat hunter were just some of the 43 different variants produced during a long and distinguished career. Mosquitos had pioneered the role of daring precision attacks with the September 1942 raid on the Gestapo Headquarters in Oslo and were involved in the first unescorted high-speed bombing raids on Germany. It was the Mosquito strike wings of Coastal Command, however, that endured some of the fiercest battles of the war. Flying over the unforgiving icy waters of the North Sea to attack enemy shipping along the coasts of Norway, Denmark and Hollad meant that precision flying was essential for survival; especially in the deep, sheer fjords where even the slightest lapse in concentration could result in instant destruction. In this painting, Mosquito Mk.VIs from No.143 Sqn, part of the famous Banff Strike Wing, come under intense defensive fire whilst delivering a blistering strike on enemy shipping off the Norwegian coast in early 1945. Their salvo of rockets, however, will likely be enough to penetrate the hulls of the ships. |
We All Stand Together by Robert Taylor. Spitfires of 616 Squadron scramble from RAF Kenley during the heavy fighting of the Battle of Britain, late August 1940. Below them a Hurricane of 253 Squadron, sharing the same base, is being prepared for its next vital mission at a distant dispersal. All through the long summer of 1940, as Britain stood alone, a small band of fighter pilots took part in the greatest aerial battle in history. Day after day the men of Fighter Command valiantly took to the air to defend their country from the Luftwaffe and the threat of German invasion and Nazi tyranny. Outnumbered, but never out-fought, they fought to the point of exhaustion and, in doing so, paid a heavy price. But they won. |
Top Dog by Robert Taylor. Completing a record 213 operational sorties with Bomber Commands Pathfinder Force, Mosquito LR503 became one of the most successful aircraft in the Royal Air Force during World War II. It flew first with 109 Pathfinder Squadron, and then 105 Pathfinder Squadron, completing more combat missions than any other Allied aircraft. |
Airstrike over West Falklands by Robert Taylor. A pilots eye view of the last seconds of a Mirage V at the hands of 801 Naval Air C.O., Commander Sharkey Ward, flying a Sea Harrier from H.M.S. Invincible on May 21, 1982, in a ferocious dogfight during the Battle of Falkland Sound. |
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