I’m sad to report that well known author and ex-Beaufort navigator Roy Nesbit passed away on Sunday night.
Roy was a lovely chap, very humble, lived in modest surroundings in the suburbs of Swindon, but left an important and lasting legacy in terms of aviation publishing. He was also one of the last of the generation of WWII aviation authors who wrote from the experience of having been there.
I had the pleasure of working with him on a number of projects over the years and always found him to be a generous and very intelligent chap to work with. His work on the Glenn Miller mystery was typical of his thorough and meticulous approach to research.
He’ll be missed by many I’m sure.
Mark P
By: DavidIsby - 13th February 2014 at 23:28
By: AirportsEd - 6th February 2014 at 19:37
That is sad news; I also admired his work.
As mentioned by NEEMA, at least his work survives for future generations to read and learn.
Ed
By: PeterVerney - 6th February 2014 at 15:10
Another hero gone
RIP
By: NEEMA - 6th February 2014 at 14:35
The loss rate of Beaufort crews in the Med was pretty horrific and something I often bore in mind when reading his pieces.
As others have remarked, his personal experience was brought to bear on the times that he was writing about, something increasingly ,and inevitably, rare these days.
Luckily his work survives him, for appreciation by upcoming generations.
I’ll certainly be revisiting some of his material in the coming days.
By: adrian_gray - 6th February 2014 at 11:46
Another one here who’d corresponded with him, and found him to be a genuinely nice chap.
RIP, Roy. You used the years granted you well.
Adrian
By: D1566 - 6th February 2014 at 11:03
RIP. I had the pleasure of corresponding with him some years ago, a remarkably pleasant and knowledgeable gentleman.
By: posart - 6th February 2014 at 09:35
Corrected, thanks for pointing it out. He would have spotted it, I’ve no doubt!
By: Astir 8 - 6th February 2014 at 08:55
Do me a teeny favour Posart and correct that horrendous typo in line 1. He wasn’t Roy Nebsit.
He was a tremendous writer.
By: T-21 - 6th February 2014 at 08:35
“Failed To Return” and “Missing-Believed Killed” both great titles which I have particularly enjoyed the pieces on Amy Johnson,Glenn Miller and Amelia Earhart.
By: Andy Wright - 5th February 2014 at 22:16
Damn.
I don’t think there’d be a person on this forum who hasn’t been touched by his work. Work that had that little bit of extra depth to it because he had the wartime experience to back it up. What a legacy. RIP.
By: Tin Triangle - 5th February 2014 at 17:54
That’s a great shame, his History of the RAF was one of the first books that got me into aviation history.
RIP.
By: Roborough - 5th February 2014 at 17:51
R.I.P. Sir. Always enjoyed his magazine pieces.
Bill
By: Snoopy7422 - 5th February 2014 at 17:44
Sad to hear. Read many a good article from him. RIP.
By: Trolly Aux - 5th February 2014 at 17:39
RIP Sir
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February 5, 2014 at 5:25 pm