Each issue featured a complete story, beginning on 1 September 1958 with "Fight Back to Dunkirk" and finishing 26 years later on 3 December 1984 with "Wings of the Fleet".

[3]Running until late 1984, "War Picture Library was a monthly window into a six-year global storm that affected every family in Britain".

[The stories] helped the two generations of children that grew up following VE Day make sense of the catastrophic consequences of war and the sacrifices that were made.

Contributors to War Picture Library included artists such as Fred Holmes, Giorgio Trevisan, Harry Farrugia, George Heath, G. R. Parvin, Nevio Zeccara, Annibale Casabianca, F. Solano López, Juan Gonzalez Alacreu, Jose Ortiz, Ramon de la Fuente, Jorge Moliterni, Renzo Calegari, Faruk Geç, Luis Ramos, Gino D'Antonio, Carlos Pino and Hugo Pratt.

[2][5] Writers are often harder to identify, but among those identified by Steve Holland (et al.) are Donne Avenell, Ian Kellie, Douglas Leach, Willie Patterson, Alf Wallace, David Satherley, Roger P. Clegg, A. Carney Allen and S & J Thomas,[2][5] also Gordon Brunt, author of 40 Air Ace Picture Library issues between 1961 and 1969.

120 (Nov 1961), art by Jose Ortiz) were not uncommon, and were frequently depicted as serving a greater good and having a large, wider impact on the course of the war (in Locke's case, Operation Broadway).

162 (Sep 1962), art by Ramon de la Fuente), which also highlighted very serious issues including the often stark discrepancies between the men who engaged in action and those who took (or were given) the credit.

22 (July 1959) featured "The Invisible Enemy", set during the Battle of the Bulge, and dealing with Nazi war crimes such as the execution of prisoners; issue #54 (June 1960)'s "Umbrella in the Sky" provided a fictionalised account of RAF pilots flying Hurricanes to Russia providing aid to Britain's then-ally during the German assaults.

Perennial rival publishers D. C. Thomson and Amalgamated Press/Fleetway competed for readers and launched between them dozens of comics in pocket format – some spun off from or reprinting existing titles, others providing new twists on the adventure serial.

Such mergers were commonplace in the UK (and US) markets, and Air Ace was on its own published for 545 issues over a full decade (Jan 1960 – Nov 1970) before being merged.