In the summer of 1940, the bombs began to fall over Britain. Seeking to pave the way for a full-scale invasion, Luftwaffe bombers flew over the Channel, dropping their deadly payload on key targets across the south of England. Scrambling to meet them were the pilots of the Royal Air Force. Men from Britain, the British Empire and Commonwealth, and even volunteers from occupied and neutral territories took to the skies against the might of the German forces. The Battle of Britain had begun.