This book describes the operations of the Soviet Air Force along the Finnish-Soviet front during the Winter War 1939-1940. The book includes 350+ photos, most of which were never published before, 28 color profiles, and 5 maps. A must-have book for the student of Soviet aviation history

This latest book in the Rainbow Series covers Swedish bomber aircraft deployed during World War Two and in early 50s.Camouflage and markings on the bombers obtained from different countries are described in unparalleled detail by the well-known Finnish author Mikael Forslund.The book features many previously unpublished photographs, and exclusive color profiles created for this book by Karolina Hołda.

In November 1921 the first purpose-built aircraft carrier was launched by the Japanese, followed a year later by the launch of the British Hermes. The conversion of battlecruisers into aircraft carriers after World War I required the consideration of issues including handling aircraft on the flight deck and the techniques of attacking enemy ships, and the evolution of carrier operations was ongoing when World War II broke out. With a focus on the conflict in the Pacific between the U. S. Navy and the imperial Japanese fleet, this title examines how aircraft carriers fought during World War II by first considering all the tools and building blocks of carrier operations, and then discussing the various battles that involved aircraft carriers to explore how carrier operations evolved during war. Every aspect of carrier operations is covered; from the technology used on the carriers and in aircraft including for navigation and communication, to what life was really like in the cockpit for the pilots. A world of tactical dehydration, amphetamine pills, and illegal smoking is explored, as well as the measures pilots implemented to reduce their risk of death in the event of being hit. The major carrier battles of the war are considered, from Coral Sea to Leyte Gulf, with a focus on how the tools of carrier operations were employed. At the battle of Midway the debate of concentration vs. dispersion became relevant, as the Japanese decided to divide their forces while the Americans concentrated theirs. How Carriers Fought questions these tactics, exploring which worked best in theory and in practice. The book concludes with a discussion of how carrier operations changed during the course of the war, as better technology and a better understanding of this new type of warfare allowed for quick advances in how operations were carried out.

Flying alongside the Royal Air Force, with stoical determination, and far from home, Polish pilots put their lives on the line in defence of Britain during the Second World War. The legendary Polish 303 Squadron made a tremendous impact in the Battle of Britain by becoming the best scoring Squadron. Whereas members of 307 Squadron were responsible for defending major cities against incoming German night raiders during the Blitz; and later defended historic cities during the Baedeker raids. Others were given the task of protecting coastal areas or, as special operations units, gathering intelligence and assisting underground resistance forces. As the war progressed, Polish airmen were assigned to offensive raids, infiltrating enemy territory and destroying Germany’s industrial and rocket bases. They also made a vital contribution to D-Day and the subsequent liberation of Europe. This book tells the compelling and dramatic story of the Polish Air Force in Britain through detailed combat reports, logistics of battle strategies, oral history testimonies, operational records and a wide variety of previously unpublished written and visual material. Firmly set within the context of each phase of aerial combat, the book documents the heroic contribution made by the Polish Air Force, not only to one of the most famous battles in history but also to the ultimate success of long-term Allied objectives.

This title is the first in a new series dedicated to the most important aircraft operated by the Israel Air Force. The series starts with an iconic aircraft which is also a myth in the aviation world: The F-15 eagle. The book, which collects unpublished photos and information, is divided into several chapters dedicated to the debut of the aircraft, its use in both peacetime and during wartime operations with the first line squadrons, as well as its participation in several international air exercises. In addition to several colour profiles, the book offers more than 500 photos – many of great interest, rare and unpublished, coming from private archives – that show all the aircrafts operated, serial number by serial number. The book has been prepared by Amos Dor, a well-known Israeli author, and is the result of years of research.

Revised and vastly improved edition of a book first published in 1991. Indeed this is virtually a new book compared to the original. It remains the most authoritative work on Darwin’s air war, and has been compiled from a wide range of sources worldwide, including Japan. This edition contains many new photos, most of them from private collections. The entire scope of Darwin’s air war is covered, beginning with the pre-war defence build-up. After the Pacific War began, Darwin was a key staging post in attempts to reinforce and defend Java, but this ended with the massive raid on 19th February 1942. This was the first of many raids, and the table at the end of the book has been updated to include not only raids but reconnaissances, some of which were previously unrecorded (Japanese records have added much to this volume). Soon greatly aided by radar, Darwin was defended first by USAAF P-40s of the 49th Fighter Group and later by RAAF and RAF Spitfires of No.1 Fighter Wing. As Allied strength steadily grew, offensive strikes were flown against the Japanese in Timor and surrounding islands by an assortment of types including Hudsons, Beaufighters and B-25s (including by No. 18 Dutch Squadron). Eventually USAAF and RAAF Liberators ranged deep into enemy territory. All in all this is a fascinating account of war in a theatre often overlooked. The book also includes a series of profiles which describe the experiences of pilots of several different nationalities. It is well foot-noted throughout and contains a lengthy list of sources.

This Volume Three of Pacific Adversaries conveys detailed stories of aerial warfare in the South Pacific, chosen because both Japanese and Allied records can be matched for an accurate accounting. Often the actual outcomes are very different to the exaggerated claims made by both sides upon which many traditional histories have relied to date. Further, for each of the chosen stories photographic or other evidence enables an accurate depiction of the aircraft involved. Through these chosen snapshots, Pacific Adversaries will portray the South Pacific conflict as accurately as possible. This third volume focuses exclusively on confrontations with the Japanese Navy Air Force (JNAF) in New Guinea and the Solomons, known to the Japanese as the “South Seas”. The JNAF first appeared in the South Pacific in December 1941 and was at the vanguard of offensive efforts during the course of 1942. Following the bloody Guadalcanal campaign, the JNAF fought a largely defensive war in New Guinea and the Solomons against increasingly powerful Allied forces. Perhaps surprisingly, right through to the end of 1943 the JNAF offered significant resistance to the Allies and never ceded air superiority in the vicinity of its key base of Rabaul. Only in 1944, when units were withdrawn to the Central Pacific and the Philippines, was the JNAF presence in the South Pacific finally wound down to just a token force. Never before have detailed accounts matched up adversaries so closely and in doing so shine light on key events in Pacific skies so many years ago.

Military and aviation history enthusiasts have always been interested in the fighter pilots of Hitler's Luftwaffe. Some of their stories are extraordinary. Fighting from the Arctic Circle to the North African deserts, from the Caucasus in the East to Normandy in the West, the German fighter pilot flew and fought until he was shot down, "flown out," wounded or killed in action. A handful survived from "first to last." This first volume of Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe traces the story of the Luftwaffe's day fighter arm (der Tagjagd) from its inception to 1942. Organized campaign by campaign, this chronological account interweaves brief biographical details, newly translated personal accounts and key moments in the careers of a host of notable and lesser known Luftwaffe aces. Around 500 Luftwaffe fighter pilots were awarded the Knight's Cross, accumulating huge numbers of missions flown. A similar number achieved more than 40 victories - more than the two leading USAF and RAF fighter pilots.

Around 500 Luftwaffe fighter pilots were awarded the Knight's Cross, accumulating huge numbers of missions flown. A similar number achieved more than 40 victories—more than the two leading USAF and RAF fighter pilots. This volume of Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe traces the story of the Luftwaffe's day fighter arm from 1942 through to the end of the war in Europe, covering missions over Russia in 1943, over the West and the Reich, the Eastern Front and the Mediterranean. Organized campaign by campaign, this chronological account interweaves brief biographical details, newly translated personal accounts and key moments in the careers of a host of notable and lesser known Luftwaffe aces. Fully illustrated with 200 contemporary photographs, maps and profiles of the aircraft flown by these aces, this is a visual delight for anyone with an interest in the day fighter aces of the Luftwaffe.

Herbert Martin Massey was by any measure, a remarkable man. He was wounded three times in three separate conflicts, the first of which, in the First World War, almost killed him. Brought down in flames by one of Germany’s great aces, Werner Voss, he somehow recovered from his horrific, life-threatening injuries to continue his flying career in the Royal Air Force, only to be nearly killed once more in the Palestine Emergency of 1936, when his life was saved by the thin metal of his cigarette case. Then, at the age of 44 and having risen through the ranks to Group Captain, he was shot down over Holland on the second of the Thousand Bomber Raids in June 1942.Massey was taken prisoner by the Germans and sent to Stalag Luft III at Sagan. Here, he was to excel as the Senior British Officer, vigorously defending the rights of his fellow prisoners of war, the men now under his command. Respected and admired by his comrades and captors alike, fate handed to him the decision to authorise the Great Escape, the famous breakout from Sagan in March 1944.Too badly wounded to join the escape himself, Martin Massey was the man to whom the Germans first broke the news of the execution of fifty of those who had been recaptured. Repatriated to Britain because of his wounds shortly afterwards, it was Massey who brought home the details of the murders which began the process of bringing the perpetrators to justice post-war. Decorated for his gallantry and leadership six times, men like Martin Massey come along only rarely. This book, using previously unseen documents and photographs, tells his story.

Comprehensive technical details of the Macchi, C.205 Veltro.Production and service photos, a wide range of color profiles, and rare color photographs from W. W.II.Detailed photographs featuring modern highly accurate restorations, inside and out, and including under rebuild and servicing details.Profusely illustrated with photos, including a comprehensive walk-around section showing all aspects of the airframe, and diagrams from official manuals.This book provides all the core technical details of the Macchi, C.205 Veltro in one compact, economical volume.Essential reading for aviation enthusiasts & scale aeromodelers.Scale plans of all versions with color profiles.

Black Tulip is the dramatic story of history's top fighter ace, Luftwaffe pilot Erich Hartmann. It's also the story of how his service under Hitler was simplified and elevated to Western mythology during the Cold War. Over 1,404 wartime missions, Hartmann claimed a staggering 352 airborne kills, and his career contains all the dramas you would expect. There were the frostbitten fighter sweeps over the Eastern Front, drunken forays to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, a decade of imprisonment in the wretched Soviet POW camps, and further military service during the Cold War that ended with conflict and angst. Just when Hartmann’s second career was faltering, he was adopted by a network of writers and commentators personally invested in his welfare and reputation. These men, mostly Americans, published elaborate, celebratory stories about Hartmann and his elite fraternity of Luftwaffe pilots. With each dogfight tale put into print, Hartmann’s legacy became loftier and more secure, and his complicated service in support of Nazism faded away. A simplified, one-dimensional account of his life - devoid of the harder questions about allegiance and service under Hitler - has gone unchallenged for almost a generation. Black Tulip locates the ambiguous truth about Hartmann and so much of the German Wehrmacht in general: that many of these men were neither full-blown Nazis nor impeccable knights. They were complex, contradictory, and elusive. This book portrays a complex human rather than the heroic caricature we’re used to, and it argues that the tidy, polished hero stories we’ve inherited about men like Hartmann say as much about those who've crafted them as they do about the heroes themselves.

William Gregory, "Greg," to all, was born into a sharecropper's life in the hills of northcentral Tennessee. From the back of a mule-drawn plow, Greg learned the value of resilience and the importance of living a determined life. Refusing to accept a life of continued poverty, Gregy sought and found a way out - a work-study college program that made it possible to leave farming behind him forever. While at college, Greg completed the Civilian Pilot Training Program and was subsequently accepted into the Army's pilot training program. Earning his wings in 1942, Greg became a P-38 combat pilot and served in North Africa during the summer of 1943 - a critical time when the Luftwaffe was still a potent threat, and America had begun the march northward from the Mediterranean into Europe proper. Following the war, Greg served with a B-29 unit, then transitioned to the new, red-hot B-47 strategic bomber. In his frequent deployments, he was always assigned the same target in the Soviet Union - Tblisi, Stalin's home town. While a B-47 pilot, Greg was selected to join America's first high-altitude program - the Black Knights. Flying RB-57D aircraft, Greg and his team flew peripheral "ferret" missions around the Soviet Union and its satellites, collecting critical order-of-battle data so desperately needed by the Air Force at that time. When that program neared its design end, and following the Gary Powers shoot-down over the Soviet Union, Greg was assigned to command of the CIA's U-2 unit at Edwards AFB. It was during that five-year command that Greg and his team provided critical overflight intelligence, including during the Bay of Pigs, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Vietnam build-up. He found time to also become one of the first to fly U-2s off aircraft carriers in a demonstration project. Following his U-2 command, Greg attended the National War College, was assigned to the reconnaissance office at the Pentagon, and then was named Vice-Commandant of the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT). Greg retired from the Air Force in 1972.

The Pacific Profiles series presents the most accurate WWII aircraft profiles to date of Japanese aircraft in the “South Seas” theatre. Volume One illustrates, by unit, Japanese Army Air Force fighter aircraft operating in New Guinea and the Solomons from December 1942 to April 1944. In this theatre numerous different aircraft types and their variants were assigned to eleven fighter regiments which formed the 4th Air Army. Unit insignia, camouflage and command markings varied from unit to unit, giving a wide variety of colour and markings. The profiles, based on photos, Japanese documents, Allied intelligence reports and post-war wreck investigations, are accompanied by brief histories of the relevant units and explanations of their role in the theatre. The author, Michael Claringbould, is world-renown for his expertise in respect to wartime Japanese aviation. These profiles accurately portray Japanese Army Air Force fighters during this fascinating and esoteric component of the Pacific air war.

This Volume Two of Pacific Adversaries conveys detailed stories of aerial warfare in the South Pacific, chosen because both Japanese and Allied records can be matched for an accurate accounting. Often the actual outcomes are very different to the exaggerated claims made by both sides upon which many traditional histories have relied to date. Further, for each of the chosen stories photographic or other evidence enables an accurate depiction of the aircraft involved. Through these chosen snapshots, Pacific Adversaries will portray the South Pacific conflict as accurately as possible. This second volume focuses exclusively on confrontations with the Japanese Navy Air Force (JNAF) in New Guinea and the Solomons, known to the Japanese as the “South Seas”. The JNAF first appeared in the South Pacific in December 1941 and was at the vanguard of offensive efforts during the course of 1942. Following the bloody Guadalcanal campaign, the JNAF fought a largely defensive war in New Guinea and the Solomons against increasingly powerful Allied forces. Perhaps surprisingly, right through to the end of 1943 the JNAF offered significant resistance to the Allies and never ceded air superiority in the vicinity of its key base of Rabaul. Only in 1944, when units were withdrawn to the Central Pacific and the Philippines, was the JNAF presence in the South Pacific finally wound down to just a token force. Never before have detailed accounts matched up adversaries so closely and in doing so shine light on key events in Pacific skies so many years ago.

Very few Australians today know of the fierce air battles fought across the Top End of Australia in World War II.For more than two years Japanese aircraft crossed the coast and bombed relentlessly. Savage dogfights were fought between the legendary Zero fighter and Allied Kittyhawks and Spitfires. Big twin-engine Betty bombers rained down blast and fire upon airfields and towns, even penetrating as far inland as Katherine, some 300 kilometres from the coast.Nearly 200 Japanese aircrew died in the onslaught. This book lists all of their names and describes all of the combat missions – and reveals for the first time that the number of combat flights, aircraft shot down, and aircrew who died is far higher than previously thought. Scores of aircraft were downed in combat operations ranging from Exmouth to Townsville, with the majority of action taking place in the Northern Territory. This new extensive research shows the number of air raids was higher than the previously suggested figure of 64, with 77 raids on the Territory alone, while 207 enemy combat flights were carried out across Northern Australia. 187 Japanese airmen died when their aircraft were brought down. In many cases their bodies lie in remote sites across the vast bush and coastal waters of the north. Many of the wrecks have never been found. The Empire Strikes South describes all of the aircraft used, and gives an insight into the world of fighter pilots and aircrew. With a full range of new colour graphics by renowned illustrator Michael Claringbould, this significant new research reveals a battle for Australia that has been previously unknown.