Throughout World War II, RAF Coastal Command had aircraft airborne on patrol for the 24 hours of almost every day for more than five years. Most spectacularly it was attacking German shipping and the U-boats that threatened to starve Britain of food and the means to fight. But its responsibilities also included 'weather' flights, photo reconnaissance and air-sea rescue in a "parish" that stretched from Iceland to the Azores.;This study offers an insight into the life and times of the RAF Coastal Command throughout its 33-year history - little known by the public, or understood by the rest of the Royal Air Force. Also included are details of the weapons, equipment and tactics deployed and, postwar, the development of the Shackleton and Nimrod. The book is a companion volume to "RAF Fighter Command". By the author of the "Encyclopaedia of Modern Royal Air Force Squadrons".