More than Game - A Salute to the South Afrivan Air Force by Herman Potgieter & Linden Burns 9780620192132

Published by Air Report 1995 , Herman Potgieter (Photographer) & Linden Birns (Text). Hardcover, 200 pages. Pre-owned in EXCELLENT CONDITION.

“More Than Game” salutes the South African Air Force, its aircraft, crews and the dedicated people who support them. The title not only plays on the wildlife names given to many SAAF aircraft, but sums up the over-riding spirit which has prevailed, and will no doubt continue to prevail, among its members.

This book’s publication coincides with the SAAF’s 75th anniversary. It traces the SAAF’s development from the canvas-covered barnstormers of the 1920s to the computer-chip wonder-fighters of the 1990s. Through Herman Potgieter’s superb photographs and Linden Birns’s authoritative text, “More Than Game” describes a trim, re-focussed SAAF standing on the threshold of the new millennium. It also examines the post-Second World War expansion and subsequent shrinking of the SAAF’s fleet, the establishment and closure of bases and the roles of its squadrons.

In addition, “More Than Game” marks the high-points in the parallel emergence of South Africa’s defence aerospace industry and showcases the SAAF Museum’s fine efforts in preserving large sections of the nation’s under-rated aviation heritage. For the first time SAAF pilots publicly and frankly describe what it is like to fly various aircraft types. Their anecdotes augment many uncensored photographs, providing previously denied insights into what were recently regarded as top-secret and politically-sensitive pieces of military hardware.

“More Than Game” does not set out to copy previous publications in detailing orders of battle and historical minutiae. It rather paints a comprehensive picture of the contemporary SAAF, emphasising its readiness to take on fresh challenges, a mission for which it is “More Than Game”.