Patrick Cosgrave writes: The most controversial contentions in Mr Wright's
official biography of Lord Dowding were (1) that he was virtually alone in resisting sending more fighter planes to France in May 1940 and (2) that, at the Cabinet of May 15 Dowding made a particularly effective and powerful plea — against Churchill — to this end. At the Cabinet of May 15 Dowding made only one remark — about bombers — while Newall and Sinclair argued the case Mr Wright supposes him to make. True, at a June Cabinet Dowding, called in to support Churchill, made the plea he claimed to make in May. What Mr Wright omits is that, under the influence of Beaverbrook, Dowding changed his mind the following day and agreed that it was safe to send more Hurricanes
to France. The building up of Dowding as a far-seeing commander, against the impetuous Churchill, is thus a fabrication as I said: Mr Wright would have known this if he had consulted freely available records, but I am willing to let him have photostats if he wishes. One further point: Dowding was recalled from his later appointment in America, not as part of the Air Ministry campaign against him, but because of defeatist and unpatriotic indiscretions in talking to Americans from which not even Beaverbrook could save him.
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