Normandy Breakout by Nicolas Trudgian features Spitfires of 132 Squadron over Normandy, 1944. Spitfires of No. 132 Squadron rush towards the Front to give ground support to the advancing Allied forces following breakout from the Normandy beaches, June J944. Wing Commander Geoffrey Page had no business risking life and limb at low level in a Spitfire in the maelstrom of D-Day and the heavy fighting that followed. On 12 August 1940, during the height of the Battle of Britain, he had been shot down in his Hurricane in flames. Page scrambled out of the inferno, baling out into the sea, but his bums were so severe he spent most of the next two years in hospital undergoing skin grafts. Most would have called it a day, but not the young Page. Showing the hallmark determination common among fighter pilots, he was back in the air by the spring of 1943. Immediately successful, on 29 June he and another pilot shot down 6 enemy aircraft in one ten minute encounter and by the following summer he was given command of 125 Wing. By D-Day Geoffrey Page commanded 132 Squadron's Spitfires, taking an active role in the invasion, and the heavy fighting in the weeks that followed. Nicolas Trudgian's stunning painting brings to life a typical ground support mission flown by 132 Squadron Spitfires just a few days after the invasion, as the Allied troops break out from the Normandy beach-heads. Hurtling at low-level they will seek out targets of opportunity, harry the retreating German forces, and take on any enemy fighters who venture near the battlefront. Below, American armour rumbles through a recently liberated French village, shaking the foundations of the quaint old buildings as they advance towards the Front. A painting that encapsulates a moment of high drama, providing a wonderfully nostalgic study of the immortal Spitfire in action. All editions are signed by the artist along with three distinguished D-Day pilots; Air Commodore John Ellacombe CB DFC* Wing Commander George Unwin DSO DFM* Wing Commander Tom Neil DFC* AFC. The D-Day Anniversary editions are additionally signed by: Flight Lieutenant Sir ARCHIE LAMB KBE CMG DFC Flying Officer FRANK WHEELER DFC Squadron Leader PAT CARDEN DFC AE Commander MIKE CROSSLEY DSC* Royal Navy Wing Commander JACK ROSE CMG MBE DFC. 350 "Aces" Limited Editions 150 "D-Day Anniversary" Limited Editions 25 "D-Day Anniversary" Artist Proof Editions 50 "D-Day Anniversary" Remarque Editions *SOLD OUT* Overall Size: 36 inches x 23 inches (91cm x 58cm)