Direct Art UK Home Page
Order Enquiries (UK) : 01436 820269

You currently have no items in your basket


Buy with confidence and security!
Publishing military art since 1985

Don't Miss Any Special Deals - Sign Up To Our Newsletter!
MILITARY
ART
AVIATION
ART
NAVAL
ART

Product Search         

ALWAYS GREAT OFFERS :
20% FURTHER PRICE REDUCTIONS ON HUNDREDS OF LIMITED EDITION ART PRINTS
BUY ONE GET ONE HALF PRICE ON THOUSANDS OF PAINTINGS AND PRINTS
FOR MORE OFFERS SIGN UP TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER

The Shining Sword by Simon Smith (AP) - Direct Art

The Shining Sword by Simon Smith (AP)


Please note that our logo is used on our website images only and does not appear on our products.



The Shining Sword by Simon Smith (AP)

RAF Avro Lancaster flies low over occupied Europe.
Item Code : DHM1466APThe Shining Sword by Simon Smith (AP) - This Edition
TYPEEDITION DETAILSSIZESIGNATURESOFFERSYOUR PRICEPURCHASING
ARTIST
PROOF
Limited edition of artist proofs.

Image size 21 inches x 14 inches (53cm x 36cm) Less than 10 copies remain. Reid, Bill
+ Artist : Simon Smith


Signature(s) value alone : £80
£120 Off!Now : £170.00

Quantity:
All prices on our website are displayed in British Pounds Sterling



Other editions of this item : The Shining Sword by Simon Smith.DHM1466
TYPEEDITION DETAILSSIZESIGNATURESOFFERSYOUR PRICEPURCHASING
PRINT Signed limited edition of 500 prints. Image size 21 inches x 14 inches (53cm x 36cm). Reid, Bill
+ Artist : Simon Smith


Signature(s) value alone : £80
£70 Off!Add any two items on this offer to your basket, and the lower priced item will be half price in the checkout!Now : £140.00VIEW EDITION...
ARTIST
PROOF
Aircrew Presentation edition of 2 prints from the edition of artist proofs. Image size 21 inches x 14 inches (53cm x 36cm). Reid, Bill
Scrivener, Norman
Petrie-Andrews, John
Woolley, Dennis
Wright, Jim
Rodley, Ernest
+ Artist : Simon Smith


Signature(s) value alone : £310
£20 Off!Now : £380.00VIEW EDITION...
PRINT
(BORDER
DAMAGE)
Signed limited edition of 500 prints. Image size 21 inches x 14 inches (53cm x 36cm). Less than 60 copies remain. Reid, Bill
+ Artist : Simon Smith


Signature(s) value alone : £80
£150 Off!Now : £100.00
Better Than
Half Price!
VIEW EDITION...
General descriptions of types of editions :


Extra Details : The Shining Sword by Simon Smith (AP)
About all editions :

A photograph of an edition of the print :

Signatures on this item
*The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare.
NameInfo


The signature of Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased)

Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased)
*Signature Value : £80

Volunteering for RAF aircrew in 1940, Bill Reid learned to fly in California, training on the Stearman, Vultee and Harvard. After gaining his pilots wings back in England he flew Wellingtons before moving on to Lancasters in 1943. On the night of Nov 3rd 1943, his Lancaster suffered two severe attacks from Luftwaffe night fighters, badly wounding Reid, killing his navigator and radio operator, and severely damaging the aircraft. Bill flew on 200 miles to accurately bomb the target and get his aircraft home. For this act of outstanding courage and determination he was awarded the Victoria Cross. Died 28th November 2001.



Citation for the Victoria Cross, gazetted 14th December 1943.

On the night of November 3rd, 1943, Flignt Lieutenant Reid was pilot and captain of a Lancaster aircraft detailed to attack Dusseldorf. Shortly after crossing the Dutch coast, the pilots windscreen was shattered by fire from a Messerschmitt. Owing to a failure in the heating circuit, the rear gunners hands were too cold for him to open fire immediately or to operate his microphone and so give warning of danger; but after a brief delay he managed to return the Messerschmitts fire and it was driven off. During the fight with the Messerschmitt, Flight Lieutenant Reid was wounded in the head, shoulders and hands. The elevator trimming tabs of the aircraft were damaged and it became difficult to control. The rear turret, too, was badly damaged and the communications system and compasses were put out of action. Flight Lieutenant Reid ascertained that his crew were unscathed and, saying nothing about his own injuries, he continued his mission. Soon afterwards, the Lancaster was attacked by a Focke Wulf 190. This time, the enemys fire raked the bomber from stem to stern. The rear gunner replied with his only serviceable gun but the state of his turret made accurate aiming impossible. The navigator was killed and the wireless operator fatally injured. The mid-upper turret was hit and the oxygen system put out of action. Flight Lieutenant Reid was again wounded and the flight engineer, though hit in the forearm, supplied him with oxygen from a portable supply. Flight Lieutenant Reid refused to be turned from his objective and Dusseldorf was reached some 50 minutes later. He had memorised his course to the target and had continued in such a normal manner that the bomb-aimer, who was cut off by the failure of the communications system, knew nothing of his captains injuries or of the casualties to his comrades. Photographs show that, when the bombs were released, the aircraft was right over the centre of the target. Steering by the pole star and the moon, Flight Lieutenant Reid then set course for home. He was growing weak from loss of blood. The emergency oxygen supply had given out. With the windscreen shattered, the cold was intense. He lapsed into semiconsciousness. The flight engineer, with some help from the bomb-aimer, kept the Lancaster in the air despite heavy anti-aircraft fire over the Dutch coast. The North Sea crossing was accomplished. An airfield was sighted. The captain revived, resumed control and made ready to land. Ground mist partially obscured the runway lights. The captain was also much bothered by blood from his head wound getting into his eyes. But he made a safe landing although one leg of the damaged undercarriage collapsed when the load came on. Wounded in two attacks, without oxygen, suffering severely from cold, his navigator dead, his wireless operator fatally wounded, his aircraft crippled and defenceless, Flight Lieutenant Reid showed superb courage and leadership in penetrating a further 200 miles into enemy territory to attack one of the most strongly defended targets in Germany, every additional mile increasing the hazards of the long and perilous journey home. His tenacity and devotion to duty were beyond praise.

London Gazette, 1943.

The Aircraft :
NameInfo
LancasterThe Avro Lancaster arose from the avro Manchester and the first prototype Lancaster was a converted Manchester with four engines. The Lancaster was first flown in January 1941, and started operations in March 1942. By March 1945 The Royal Air Force had 56 squadrons of Lancasters with the first squadron equipped being No.44 Squadron. During World War Two the Avro Lancaster flew 156,000 sorties and dropped 618,378 tonnes of bombs between 1942 and 1945. Lancaster Bomberss took part in the devastating round-the-clock raids on Hamburg during Air Marshall Harris' "Operation Gomorrah" in July 1943. Just 35 Lancasters completed more than 100 successful operations each, and 3,249 were lost in action. The most successful survivor completed 139 operations, and the Lancaster was scrapped after the war in 1947. A few Lancasters were converted into tankers and the two tanker aircraft were joined by another converted Lancaster and were used in the Berlin Airlift, achieving 757 tanker sorties. A famous Lancaster bombing raid was the 1943 mission, codenamed Operation Chastise, to destroy the dams of the Ruhr Valley. The operation was carried out by 617 Squadron in modified Mk IIIs carrying special drum shaped bouncing bombs designed by Barnes Wallis. Also famous was a series of Lancaster attacks using Tallboy bombs against the German battleship Tirpitz, which first disabled and later sank the ship. The Lancaster bomber was the basis of the new Avro Lincoln bomber, initially known as the Lancaster IV and Lancaster V. (Becoming Lincoln B1 and B2 respectively.) Their Lancastrian airliner was also based on the Lancaster but was not very successful. Other developments were the Avro York and the successful Shackleton which continued in airborne early warning service up to 1992.

Contact Details
Shipping Info
Terms and Conditions
Cookie Policy
Privacy Policy
Classifieds

Join us on Facebook!

Sign Up To Our Newsletter!

Stay up to date with all our latest offers, deals and events as well as new releases and exclusive subscriber content!

This website is owned by Cranston Fine Arts.  Torwood House, Torwoodhill Road, Rhu, Helensburgh, Scotland, G848LE

Contact: Tel: (+44) (0) 1436 820269.  Email: cranstonorders -at- outlook.com

Follow us on Twitter!

Return to Home Page