High Flight

The first poem I ever really felt inspired by was High Flight by John Gillespie Magee. He was an American, born in China, and educated in England (Rugby School - he won the school prize for poetry). He returned to America, but after war broke out, he travelled to Canada in 1940 and joined the airforce (RCAF). He flew Spitfires, and joined a squadron based in Lincolnshire. During one flight in August 1941, his highest to date (33,000'), the idea for his famous poem, High Flight, came to him and he wrote it in a letter home to his parents. On December 11th the same year, he took off in his spitfire VZ-H, and while climbing up through a break in cloud, struck an Airspeed Oxford which was descending through the same gap. He failed to bail out in time and was killed. He was 19 years old.

A few years ago, I discovered that Pilot Officer Magee was buried in a memorial graveyard at Scopwick in Lincolnshire. Each year in spring, my first longish (200 mile round trip) bike outing of the year, is a run up to Scopwick to pay my respects to the young man who created probably the most recited poem in the English language.

My understanding is that every USA Airforce pilot must learn High Flight for their passing out ceremony.

If you were to write a poem about a flight in a Spitfire, I bet it would mention noise, acceleration, smell (of fuel & oil), g-force, etc (it would if I was given the task). It probably wouldn't begin:

O, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth, and danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings.

Or end

And while with silent, lifting mind I've trod the untrespassed sanctity of space, put out my hand and touched the face of God.

Roll on the good weather.


The white horse appeared silently, like a ghost, during my visit in 2018. They are all RCAF pilot gravestones, including Magee's