Floatplanes Over The Desert

This 568-page study, richly illustrated with photographs and maps, chronicles the operations of the French Navy’s Aéronautique maritime and the British Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean between 1914 and 1918.

Operating in what was considered a ‘sideshow’ theatre far from the Western Front, these pioneering airmen developed critical techniques for naval aviation, performing vital intelligence gathering, reconnaissance and bombing raids deep behind enemy lines.

Celebrating the resilience and ingenuity of the pilots, observers and mechanics, the book sheds light on their significant, albeit often overlooked contribution to the Allied war effort.