During the First World War fledgling crews in basic aircraft experimented with dropping grenades and small bombs. The need for elements of accuracy became obvious and evolved from that point onwards. The various light bombers that flew during the inter war period developed procedures which carried on into the early years of the Second World War. Bomber Command eventually witnessed the large 4-engined 'Heavy Bombers', namely the Handley Page Halifax, Shorts Stirling and Avro Lancaster develop into significant bomb carrying aerial platforms. This book will provide the reader with an explanation of the origin of Bomb Aimers, the training of these men and the complexity of dropping many types of bomb ordinance is an enthralling story. Technical and scientific developments are examined to provide an understanding of the trade that enabled the Bomb Aimers wing to be awarded to the men who volunteered at this time. Many gallantry medals were won by Bomb Aimers. Accounts of dangerous operational flying will be revealed by Bomb Aimers in numerous aircraft. This book will examine true accounts that took place; many will be based upon personal flying logbooks and other unique material originating from the aircrew themselves.

This autographical account of one young naval officers brief World War II career as a carrier Landing Signal Officer details incidents and anecdotes, from the hilarious to the harrowing, drawn from the authors extemporaneous log, maintained during the advance of the Central Pacific fast carrier force toward the Empire of Japan, 1943-1945. Aircraft numbers are actually drawn from the authors Flight Log Book. Paddles! is an authorative look at aircraft recovery operations aboard the light, fast carrier Belleau Wood, punctuated by excursions into flying exploits outside the nominal scope of LSO duties, and seasoned with mischief and romance ashore. Set in the period of the massive build-up of the carrier, Navy that would destroy the Japanese fleet. Paddles! begins with conversion of a twenty-one year old wet-behind-the-ears ensign from fighter gunnery instructor to senior Landing Signal Officer in just four months, and follows him through twenty-seven months of fast paced air operations in the naval air combat enviornment. Crackling dialogue in the jargon of the time and vivid scene setting combine to submerge the reader in gripping battle action and sensuous romantic encounters-to the heights and depths of a checkered career.

This little known Heinkel fighter design was eventually canceled yet saw service in the Spanish Civil War.

These are pictorial studies of the Allied air offensive that defeated Japanese air forces in the vast Pacific Ocean region, destroyed Japan's navy and its supply lines, and finally devastated the war making potential of the Japanese homeland. The photos come from official archives as well as from the private collections of veterans. The captions reflect painstaking research to supply date, place, and units engaged.

This book is the result of nearly six years of research, gathering of materials and interviews. It presents a chronological listing of the 479th Fighter Group's activities during the World War II era, from its beginnings until its deactivation. Based upon a summation of the group's historical records, the account also contains personal anecdotes provided by many of the group's former members as well as over 650 photos that serve to illustrate the narration. Hopefully through the assemblage of this information the memory of the group and the men who comprised the living, lifeblood of the 479th FG will be better known and remembered by future generations.

In late 1941, war was looming with Japan, and Britain's empire in southeast Asia was at risk. The British government decided to send Force Z, which included the state-of-the-art battleship Prince of Wales and the battlecruiser Repulse, to bolster the naval defences of Singapore, and provide a mighty naval deterrent to Japanese aggression. These two powerful ships arrived in Singapore on 2 December - five days before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. But crucially, they lacked air cover. On 9 December Japanese scout planes detected Force Z's approach in the Gulf of Thailand. Unlike at Pearl Harbor, battleships at sea could manoeuvre, and their anti-aircraft defences were ready. But it did no good. The Japanese dive-bombers and torpedo-bombers were the most advanced in the world, and the battle was one-sided. Strategically, the loss of Force Z was a colossal disaster for the British, and one that effectively marked the end of its empire in the East. But even more importantly, the sinking marked the last time that battleships were considered to be the masters of the ocean. From that day on, air power rather than big guns would be the deciding factor in naval warfare.

Nimrod Boys is a complementary book to Nimrod Rise and Fall from acclaimed author Tony Blackman. It is a collection of over twenty first-hand accounts of operating the Hawker Siddeley Nimrod - an aircraft which served at the forefront of the Cold War. As the first jet-powered maritime aircraft, it could reach critical points for rescues or for operational requirements in rapid time. Its outstanding navigation and electronics systems also allowed the Nimrod to be a first-class machine in anti-submarine warfare. The book focuses on the Nimrod's UK-based and worldwide operations. With detailed accounts of the Nimrod's role during the Falklands Campaign and in later conflicts such as the First Gulf War to modern-day anti-drug smuggling operations in the Caribbean. There are also descriptions of the Nimrod's achievements in the International Fincastle Competition - where RAF squadrons competed against counterparts from Australia, Canada and New Zealand. With a variety of perspectives on Nimrod crew life, including from a female air electronic operator, readers will find dramatic, engaging and occasionally humorous stories. One flight test observer also reflects on the cancelled Nimrod MR4 project. Nimrod Boys written by Tony Blackman with Joe Kennedy and with a foreword by AVM Andrew Roberts is more than worthy addition to the celebrated Boys series.

A moving tribute to the sacrifice and bravery of the fliers of RAF Bomber Command. ****************************** The Crew, based on interviews with Ken Cook, the crew's sole surviving member, recounts the wartime exploits of the members of an Avro Lancaster crew between 1942 and the war's end. Gloucestershire-born bomb aimer Ken Cook, hard-bitten Australian pilot Jim Comans, Navigator Don Bowes, Upper Gunner George Widdis, Tail Gunner 'Jock' Bolland, Flight Engineer Ken Randle and Radio Operator Roy Woollford were seven ordinary young men living in extraordinary times, risking their lives in freedom's cause in the dark skies above Hitler's Reich. From their earliest beginnings - in places as far apart as a Cotswold village and the suburbs of Sydney - through the adventure of training in North America and the dread and danger of the forty-five bombing raids they flew with 97 Squadron, David Price describes the crew's wartime experiences with human sympathy allied to a secure technical understanding of one of the RAF's most iconic aircraft. The drama and anxiety of individual missions - to Kassel, Munich and Augsburg as well as Berlin - is evoked with thrilling immediacy; while the military events and strategic decisions that drove the RAF's area bombing campaign against Nazi Germany are interwoven deftly with the narrative of the crew's operational careers. ****************************** Reviews: 'A sensitive account of the bomber's life ... Price has given the bomber offensive a human face. This book [...] has a heart and soul' The Times. 'A fascinating and fast-paced account of the exploits of an Avro Lancaster bomber crew from 97 Squadron RAF' The Herald. 'A remarkable insight into the bravery, determination and skill of British Bomber Command crews during WWII' Waterstones.

This two volume set originally appeared in 1919 in limited quantities - original copies are now highly sought collectibles. Both volumes of New England Aviators are now available in new quality editions. 542 New England pilots - who flew with the USAAC, USN, USMC and British and French air forces - are given short biographical entries and most appear in World War I era photographs. New England Aviators is a superb, detailed reference for World War I and aviation historians, as well as uniform and insignia collectors.

In the light of new archival material the editors take a fresh look at Russian aviation in the twentieth century. Presenting a comprehensive view of Russian aviation, from its genesis in the late czarist period to the present era, the approach is essentially chronological with a major emphasis on the evolution of military aviation. The contributions are diverse, with appropriate attention to civilian and institutional themes.

The Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller. In May 1945, with victory in Europe established, the war was all but over. But on the other side of the world, the Allies were still engaged in a bitter struggle to control the Pacific. And it was then that the Japanese unleashed a terrible new form of warfare: the suicide pilots, or Kamikaze. Drawing on meticulous research and unique personal access to the remaining survivors, Will Iredale follows a group of young men from the moment they joined up through their initial training to the terrifying reality of fighting against pilots who, in the cruel last summer of the war, chose death rather than risk their country's dishonourable defeat and deliberately flew their planes into Allied aircraft carriers. A story of courage, valour and dogged determination, The Kamikaze Hunters is a gripping account of how a few brave young men helped to ensure lasting peace.

This new book covers the 388th TFW; a Composite Wing based at Korat RTAFB, Thailand, consisting of fighters, Wild Weasel aircraft, airborne jamming aircraft and AWACS aircraft. The author flew 133 combat missions in Southeast Asia in 1972, and was assigned to the 469th TFS, one of the two F-4E squadrons of the 388th TFW. The book discusses in detail the Wing, the Squadrons and the aircraft they flew: the F-4. F-105G Wild Weasel, A-7D, EB-66, EC-121, and C-130. Also covered are the mission types, as well as operations of the Wing during the Linebacker Campaign over North Vietnam. Narratives of all the 388th MiG kills and aircraft losses during 1972 are included. The book contains over 170 color and black and white photographs taken by the author, as well as theatre maps. A selection of official and unofficial flight suit patches is also included. Don Logan is also the author of Rockwell B-1B: SACs Last Bomber, and Northrops T-38 Talon: A Pictorial History(both titles are available from Schiffer Publishing Ltd.).

The Republic Aviation Corporation F-84 series, the Thunderjet, Thunderstreak, and Thunderflash was the United States Air Forces first Post World War II jet fighter. As a somewhat sad result of this, it has been ignored by most aviation historians and aficionados. It was not the Air Forces first operational jet fighter, as that honor went to the Lockheed F-80 which was created during World War II. And it did not receive the glory of the North American Aviation F-86, which followed it in sequence and was more photogenic, faster, and more involved in the glory of aerial combat. Nevertheless, the F-84 performed its unheralded role in a true yeoman fashion. It, and its pilots and groundcrews, fought the air-to-mud role as a fighter bomber in Korea. It served as an interceptor, and in photo reconnaissance. It was the first jet fighter to be operationally capable of air refueling, and it was the first to be able to deliver a nuclear weapon. 4300 of the straight-wing F-84s were built, along with 2713 of the swept-wing F-84Fs, and 715 of the reconnaissance RF-84Fs. Almost 8000 unrecognized fighters, of which half of those produced served as a deterrent to enemy forces during the Cold War while being flown by friendly foreign countries.

This analysis of close air support in world War II focuses on the use of tactical air power by British and American forces during the campaigns in Italy and North-west Europe from 1943-45. Gooderson asks whether the employment of air resources in the close support role provided sufficient advantage at the battlefront to justify the effort and the risk to aircraft and pilots. Or was the use of aircraft behind the battlefront to attack communications, transport and supplies a more effective and cost-efficient strategy?

This analysis of close air support in world War II focuses on the use of tactical air power by British and American forces during the campaigns in Italy and North-west Europe from 1943-45. Gooderson asks whether the employment of air resources in the close support role provided sufficient advantage at the battlefront to justify the effort and the risk to aircraft and pilots. Or was the use of aircraft behind the battlefront to attack communications, transport and supplies a more effective and cost-efficient strategy?

In World War I German and British bombers sometimes faced a few dozen light machine-guns defending the target. In World War II Luftwaffe Stuka dive-bombers braved the combined fire of over 1,000 anti-aircraft guns to sink several capital ships at Kronstadt in the Gulf of Finland. In World War I hundreds of thousands of German troops fought months to gain ground measured in yards. During World War II, eighty-five FallschirmjAger captured one of the world's strongest fortifications at Fort Eben Emael, Belgium - manned by 1,200 defenders - in only eighteen hours in May 1940. As a result of these and many other deeds of valor, some 1,785 Luftwaffe officers and enlisted men won the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross - World War II Germany's highest decoration for bravery. This is their story through the eyes of the commanders of 113 of these men, as recorded in their official efficiency reports contained here. Volume 1 contains detailed biographies and official efficiency and promotion reports for fifty-three Knight's Cross winners, as well as biographies for sixty-seven rating commanders.

Lost in the air combat and air ace fanfare of World War II was the dangerous, unheralded and vital role played by USAAF fighter-bomber pilots over the Mediterranean and northwest Europe. Four times as many pilots were lost during strafing and ground attack sorties than were lost against the Luftwaffe in aerial combat. This extensive book is the first in-depth examination of American air-to-ground attack and explores numerous aspects of the subject. The three priorities of the fighter-bomber - air superiority, interdiction and close air support along with combat reports and pilot narratives - are put into the context of the various ground operations. The fighter-bomber pilot risked his life every day against the thickest flak in the war to deprive the enemy of vital reinforcements and supplies, altering his strategy and movement.

The author begins with a general survey of British aircraft manufacturing in the inter-war period, focusing on the technical and productive capacity of the industry prior to rearmament and on government thinking on wartime expansion. Subsequent chapters examine Air Ministry production policy, airframe and aero-engine production, manpower supply and utilization, finance and investment and contractual relations between state and industry. The final chapter is concerned with the mobilization of the aircraft industry on the outbreak of hostilities in 1939, the revision of pre-war development and production programmes, the emergency measures of 1940 and the formulation of longer-term plans for the remainder of the war.

This book covers the complete development history of those variants of the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 powered by inline engines. The first Fw 190 equipped with a Daimler Benz liquid-cooled engine took to the air in early 1942, followed six months later by another powered by a Jumo 213. Production of the Fw 190 C, Fw 190 D and Ta 153 was delayed by the German air ministry. Not until 1944, by which time Germany had lost control of the air, did the Fw 190 D-9, an interim fighter powered by the Jumo 213 A, enter production. The Fw 190 D-9 proved an immediate success, largely due to an excellent prototype test program under Dipl.Ing. Hans Sander. The type quickly entered service with the Luftwaffe and more than 1,700 examples were completed by the end of the war. The Fw 190 D-9 gave rise to a number of improved variants with the more powerful Jumo 213 F engine and a heavier armament, however only a handful of the D-11 and D-13 versions were completed. With a maximum speed of 750 km/h, the Fw 190 D-12 powered by the new Jumo 213 EB would have represented the apex of Fw 190 development. The proposed Fw 190 D-14 and D-15, both powered by improved versions of the dive-bombers 603, came too late to see service with the Luftwaffe.

World War II sent the youth of the world across the globe in odd alliances against each other. Never before had a conflict been fought simultaneously in so many diverse landscapes on premises that often seemed unrelated. Never before had a conflict been fought in so many different ways - from rocket attacks on London to jungle fighting in Burma to armor strikes in Libya. It was only in time that these battles coalesced into one war. In The Second World Wars, esteemed military historian Victor Davis Hanson examines how and why this happened, focusing in detail on how the war was fought in the air, at sea, and on land-and thus where, when, and why the Allies won. Throughout, Hanson also situates World War II squarely within the history of war in the West over the past 2,500 years. In profound ways, World War II was unique: the most lethal event in human history, with 50 million dead, the vast majority of them civilians. But, as Hanson demonstrates, the war's origins were not entirely novel; it was reformulations of ancient ideas of racial and cultural superiority that fueled the global bloodbath.

Relying on scores of primary source documents, U.S. Army Aviation Color Schemes and Markings, 1942-to the Present focuses exclusively on how Army Aviation's aircraft have been painted and marked during nearly sixty years of service. Official changes in exterior schemes, interior colors, and all forms of markings are covered. Exceptions to "the rules" are also discussed. Of additional interest to the historian and enthusiast will be the wealth of material covering unofficial camouflage patterns, personal markings, and demonstration team aircraft. Complementing the text is a superb visual survey of Army Aviation color schemes and markings. This is comprised of over six hundred photos and drawings taken directly from Army manuals, manufacturers' files, private collections, and the archives of the Army and Air Force.

When World War II began, the United States' air forces numbered only 45,000 men and a few thousand aircraft - hardly enough to defend the country, let alone defeat the German Luftwaffe, the world's most formidable air force. Yet by war's end, the Luftwaffe had been crushed, and the U.S. Army Air Forces had delivered the decisive blows. The Men Who Killed the Luftwaffe tells the story of the striking transformation - one of the marvels of modern warfare - that enabled the U.S. to crush the air forces of the Third Reich, while thrusting readers into whirling, heart-pounding accounts of aerial combat.

The Douglas F3D Skyknight was an early but effective attempt at combining new technologies together in a lethal package capable of shipboard operation. Whereas most fighters relied on speed and maneuverability, the portly, straight-winged F3D relied on three radars, four 20mm cannon, and - most importantly - darkness. Having first flown in March 1948, the Skyknight's first taste of war came in September 1952, when Marine Night Fighter Squadron 513 [VMF(N)-513] deployed to Korea. The most important job assigned to VMF(N)-513 was the escorting of USAF B-29 bombers over northern Korea. Whereas Chinese and North Korean MiG-15s relied on ground-controlled intercept radar for steering guidance into firing positions, the F3D, with its own onboard radars, was autonomously lethal - it could detect, track and target MiGs all on its own. Skyknight crews ended the Korean War with six nocturnal kills in exchange for one combat loss. After the war, 35 Skyknights were converted into electronic warfare (EW) aircraft. As US air operations over North Vietnam intensified in early 1965, the need for a tactical EW jet to provide electronic countermeasures (ECM) protection to accompany strike packages north became apparent. For all of its early effectiveness over North Vietnam, the proliferation of radar-guided guns and missiles began to erode the advantage created by EF-10 escort support, which flew its last combat mission in October 1969. This highly illustrated volume explores the F3D Skynights and their deployment during the Korean and Vietnam wars, using first-hand accounts from aircrew, original photographs and 30 profile artworks to explore their key roles as an escort aircraft and electronic warfare aircraft.

Killed in a flying accident in February 1944, Flying Officer William Marsh left behind a personal insight into the life of a desert flyer. Desert Flyer follows Bill Marsh from his early days as a schoolboy, through his RAF training in England and Canada, joins him in his first operational squadron and ultimately his life in North Africa. Originally posted to No. 605 Squadron, Bill Marsh was to have served in the unit in the Far East. However, fate dictated that he was destined for the desert war. He joined No. 274 Squadron and flew Hurricane fighter/bombers against Rommels forces in the North African desert. Graphic descriptions of Marshs eyewitness accounts of the sinking of the Royal Navys aircraft Ark Royal, the aerial dogfights with the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica, as well as details of his day-to-day life are all recorded within these pages. Over 230 previously unpublished photographs, taken by Bill Marsh, support the text. Utilizing private journals, personal letters, photographs, and flying log books, together with details from squadron operational record books, the author has brought to life the words and photographs recorded by William Marsh, the Desert Flyer.