My husband, Bob Body, who has died aged 73, dedicated his life to researching and documenting the work of the RAF Special Duties squadrons of the second world war, sparked by the story of his uncle Flt Lt John Menzies, a pilot with No 161 (Special Duties) Squadron who was lost on operations into occupied Europe. Bob wrote two books on the subject – Taking the Wings of the Morning (2003), about the search for Menzies; and Runways to Freedom (2016), a history of the squadrons.
On inheriting his uncle’s medals in 1985, Bob became determined to find out what had happened to him. He began to research the work of the two highly secret squadrons, based at RAF Tempsford in Bedfordshire, and to glean information that had been unavailable for many years.
