Andy Saunders (author)


Andy Saunders is an English author and researcher from East Sussex who specializes in military aviation history with particular emphasis on the Battle of Britain and the air war over north-west Europe between 1939 and 1945.
He regularly contributes to the world's aviation press on military history topics and has also written for national newspapers, including “The Mail on Sunday”. He is a former editor of Britain at War magazine, published by Lincolnshire-based Key Publishing.
He was also a programme consultant for the Discovery History series “War Digs With Harry Harris” and is currently involved in a number of projected television documentaries for various production companies working as contributor, researcher or consultant.
In 2001, he pleaded guilty to an offence under the Protection of Military Remains Act after recovering the aircraft of Flying Officer George Edward Kosh, a Hawker Tempest which crashed in 1944 in East Sussex, without a licence. He was given a one-year conditional discharge after the court heard he had committed a technical offence only which related to going ahead with the excavation of the wreckage a month before the appropriate Ministry of Defence licence came into effect. The licence had mistakenly been post dated by the MOD.
In 2005 he was the principal contributor and consultant for the Channel 4 documentary “Who Downed Douglas Bader” and more recently has had input to BBC Timewatch programmes and to various BBC “Inside Out” programmes as well as “The One Show”, and "Fake Britain".
Many of his written works are published by Grub Street of London, although he has also had one of titles published by the prestigious New York publisher, Random House.
He has been active in military aircraft preservation and recovery for more than forty years, including the recovery from India of two World War One bombers for preservation and flight in the UK as well as the wrecks of Gloster Gladiators from Norwegian mountains for UK museum restoration and display.
He is the founder of the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum.

Published work

  • Battle over Sussex
  • Blitz over Sussex
  • Bombers over Sussex
  • Little Friends
  • RAF Tangmere in old photographs
  • Bognor at War
  • RAF Tangmere Revisited
  • No.43 ‘Fighting Cocks’ Squadron
  • Jane, A Pin-Up at War
  • Bader's last fight : an in-depth investigation of a great WWII mystery
  • Mannock VC
  • Finding the Foe: outstanding Luftwaffe mysteries of the Battle of Britain and beyond investigated and solved
  • Finding The Foe
  • Convoy Peewit
  • Spitfire MK.I P9374
  • Finding the fallen : outstanding aircrew mysteries from the First World War to Desert Storm investigated and solved
  • Stuka Attack
  • Arrival of Eagles
  • DH9 - Jewels of the Maharaja's Palace
  • Sopwith Pup Re-Creation
  • Luftwaffe Bombers in The Battle of Britain
  • Aircraft Salvage in The Battle of Britain + Blitz

Programmes

  • Requiem For An Airfield
  • Missing – No Known Grave
  • Time Team
  • Who Downed Douglas Bader
  • Aces Falling - Timewatch
  • Dig 1940
  • Battle of Britain Uncovered
  • Wartime Secrets
  • The One Show
  • The Sheffield Blitz
  • BBC Inside Out: Plot to Kidnap Hitler
  • BBC Inside Out: Remembered With Honour?
  • War Digs With Harry Harris
  • The Forgotten Blitz

General references

  • Mannock VC: http://www.grubstreet.co.uk/products/view/84/mannock-the-life-and-death-of-major-edward-mannock-vc-dso-mc-raf/