Extensive range of Nicolas Trudgian aviation art prints including Battle of Britain aviation art by Nicolas Trudgian, Holding the Line and US Air Force art prints of Flying Fortress and Mustang aviation art.

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On that first successful daylight raid, and on the many missions to Berlin that followed, losses were high, but the daytime bomber strikes against the heart of Nazi Germany had an incalculable effect on enemy morale, to say nothing of the disruption to the German war machine. They did more: they signalled to Göring and his Führer that their fate, and that of the Third Reich, was sealed; and the 140,000 USAAF aircrew who flew the torturous attacks to Berlin earned themselves a special place among those who have endeavoured against tyranny.  Nicolas Trudgian's new painting relives the fearsome aerial combat on March 6, 1944, as B-17 Flying Fortresses are attacked en-route for Berlin. Screaming in head-on, Fw190s of II./JG I based at Stormede, charge into the bomber stream. With throttles wide open, 56th Fighter Group P-47 Thunderbolts come hurtling down to intercept. B-17 gunners are working overtime; the air is full of cordite, smoke, jagged pieces of flying metal and hot lead. We are in the midst of one of the fiercest aerial battles of the war.  In the foreground Lucky Lee survives the first onslaught, but her luck won't hold today. Our Girl Sal to the right of the picture will fare better - she will be the only 100th BG aircraft to make it back to her home base from this epic raid.  Limited edition prints are signed by bomber and fighter pilots who flew the Berlin raids more than half a century ago.

Typhoons Over the Rhine by Nicolas Trudgian  Flying low-level at high speed through intense ground fire was all part of the daily task for pilots of the Typhoon ground attack squadron. Armed with rockets, 1000lb bombs and four 20mm cannon, this formidable fighter played a leading role in the Allied advance through occupied Europe. Leading up to, and following the Normandy Landings through to the end of hostilities, the Typhoon, flown by determined hard-hitting pilots, became the scourge of the German Panzer Divisions, wrought havoc with enemy road and rail connections.

Targets along the river Rhine, one of Germany's major arteries of supply and communication, and last line of defence, were given special attention by the Typhoon squadrons. Barges carrying vital supplies, munition trains on the railroads hugging the river bank, and the ever-present movement of troops and armour toward the battlefront, were constantly attacked from the air, and one such scene is portrayed in this painting. Led by Squadron Leader BG 'Stapme' Stapleton, Mk1B Typhoons of 247 Squadron, 2nd Tactical Air Force, based at Eindhoven in the Netherlands, make a low-level attack on enemy river transport on the Rhine in November 1944. Twisting and turning to avoid ground fire as best they can, Typhoon pilots power their way through the valley with cannons blazing, pressing home their attack by strafing every German military target in their path.

Typhoon Country by Nicolas Trudgian  Flt Lieutenant Roy Crane, flying a Typhoon of 181 Squadron from their recently established base in Normandy, makes an attack on a German road convoy in the Falaise area, early August 1944. The Typhoons ground attack fighters played a major role in defeating the German armoured divisions in the battle of the Falaise Gap. 

Northern Europe's short sum,mer nights, with darkness lasting but a few hours, often saw the RAF bomber crews returning to England at dawn, and it is one such scene which is caught on canvas in Nicolas Trudgian's painting.  As the sun comes up over the river Orwell at Pin Mill, Lancasters of No.49 Squadron descend low over Suffolk, heading towards their base at Fiskerton.  The night raid on Hamburg is almost completed.  Spitfires from No.129 Squadron, based at Hornchurch, having made an early morning attack on German installations in Holland, have picked up the bombers and escorted them home.

Desert Sharks and Eagles by Nicolas Trudgian The air war fought in the skies above the inhospitable wastelands of the North African desert were among the most hotly contested of the war.  The outcome of the bitter land war raging below largely depended upon who controlled the air space above, and both sides knew it. JG27, having cut its teeth in the battle of France and Britain, was the first Luftwaffe unit to arrive in North Africa.  Commanded by the mercurial Eduard Neumann, its Me109s were superior to the Hurricanes and P-40 Kittyhawks flown by the RAF pilots and, without the restriction of close escort duties dictated on the Western Front, the JG27 pilots roamed the desert skies, closing in combat with the British fighters at every opportunity.  The North African air campaign spawned many fighter aces, including Hans Joachim Marseille who claimed more than 150 victories in his short career - more than any other Luftwaffe ace flying against RAF pilots.  The scale of the desert air war is highlighted by the raw statistics: 1400 British aircraft lost; over 1200 Luftwaffe destroyed.

They came across the English Channel at wave top height, their propeller slipstreams leaving wakes on the surface of the water. Nine Dornier Do17Z bombers of 9th Staffel, KG76, detailed to attack the R.A.F. airfield at Kenley as part of Reichsmarshal Göring's prelude to Operation Sealion - the invasion of Britain.

Hitler knew that R.A.F. Fighter Command had to be destroyed in the air and on the ground if his plans were to succeed, but the German High Command failed to take into account the resilience of the young Hurricane and Spitfire pilots, and their determination to hold this last vital line of defence.

The Dorniers were spotted as they approached the English coast, and Hurricanes were scrambled to intercept. The German bombers cleared the North Downs with feet to spare and spread out into attack formation as they lined up on the hangars at Kenley. As they came in over the airfield Hurricanes of 111 Squadron came diving upon them. Suddenly all hell broke loose.

Bombs rained down on the airfield and buildings went up in flames. One Dornier was brought down and two more, badly damaged by ground fire, were finished off by the Hurricane pilots. Now the chase was on to catch the others before they could escape back to their base in Northern France.

Nicolas Trudgian's action-packed painting depicts the scene as the surviving Dorniers reach the English coastline. The Dornier in the foreground, flown by F.W. Reichel, has been severely damaged by Treble One Squadron Hurricanes and will not return. Two more in the background will be forced down into the sea. Only one of the nine Dorniers that set out will return to base on that 18th day of August, 1940. With prints signed by three Battle of Britain Hurricane pilots, this popular artist's latest limited edition will be keenly sought by collectors.

Ardennes Offensive by Nicolas Trudgian  Fw190s of JG1 provide close support to the 9th SS Panzer Division, as they spearhead Germanys final major offensive of World War II. Seen advancing on the 82nd Airborne Division, the King Tiger tanks, with the aid of Luftwaffe ground-attack fighters, drive the Americans back through the snowy fields of the Ardennes on Christmas Day, 1944. It was the last, short-lived and ultimately unsuccessful advance made by the German forces during World War II.

Of all the 4th Fighter Group's many famous actions in World War II, it saved one of the most remarkable till last. In its final major mission of the war on 16 April, 1945, in two blistering airfield attacks, its pilots destroyed no fewer than 105 enemy aircraft. While "A" Group attacked airfields in the region of Prague, "B" Group consisting of the 334th Squadron led by Major 'Red Dog' Norley, devastated the Luftwaffe base at Gablingen in 40 minutes of continuous strafing. That same day other 8th Air Force fighter groups attacked Luftwaffe airfields all over Germany, claiming a total of 752 aircraft destroyed. The Luftwaffe never recovered from this terrible and devastating blow.  Nicolas Trudgian's new limited edition re-lives that momentous aerial assault in graphic detail with a superbly realistic view of the snow-covered Gablingen airfield in Bavaria. As 'Red Dog' Norley's P-51D screams across the field at hangar height with his squadron's Mustangs fanned out behind him, the 4th Fighter Group pilots jink through the intense groundfire wreaking havoc on the ground.