Book Description
Fly with 1st Lt. John A. Clark in the cockpit of the famous B-17 "Flying Fortress" during his 32 bombing missions over Germany in WWII. Experience the terror of flying at 28,000 feet amidst enemy flak and fighter planes during the winter of 1944-1945. Lt. Clark flew as the co-pilot of a "fFlying Fortress" with "The Bloody Hundreth", the famous 100th Bomb Group of the Eighth Air Force. After each of his missions, Lt. Clark recorded a diary describing his combat experience. These diaries are being published for the first time in over 60 years. His unfolding stories provide a realistic and chilling account of aerial combat in the brutal air war over Europe. Several "war stories", all true, provide additional drama and a little humor to this firsthand account of this WWII combat pilot. Witness the remarkable photographs from the authors personal collection that tell and show the story of near misses from flak and the dramatic dropping of 500 pound bombs on German targets during heavy German counter attacks with flak and fighter bombers.
Customer Reviews:
An Eighth Air Force Combat Diary.......2001-11-20
This book is written by a Co-pilot of the 418th Bomb Squadron, 100th Bomb Group based at Thorpe Abbotts, England.
It is his diary of 32 combat missions during the European Theatre of Operations September 1944 to March 1945.
I found this excellently detailed as it was written at the time.
It describes his training as a pilot in the US, the Trans-Atlantic flight in a B-17 from Lincoln, Nebraska to Valley, Wales and flying combat missions over Germany.
Each mission description starts with a copy of his briefing notes which detail engine start, taxi and take off times, target name, altitude formation and callsigns for fighter escorts! Also a newspaper clipping from that day the mission was flown.
Copies of John Clark's combat flight log are included towards the end of the book.
This book is full of photographs never before published; taken of the formations of B-17s streching endlessly across the sky with streaming contrails, the flak clouds over the target, on base scenes of nissen huts in the fog, frost on the trees, aircraft sitting on their hardstands in the early morning mist, and photographs of the crews.
When reading this book, you can visualize everything that is happening, emotions are described and felt when and engine is out, when enemy fighters pass through the formation, when flak burst nearby, or finding that there may not be enough fuel to make it home!
After the war in 1962, 1966, and 1987 he returns to the base he once flew from to find it deteriating even more with each visit.
The only remnants in his last visit is the control tower that has now been restored as a museum and a memorial to those who served with the 100th Bomb Group.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in reading personal accounts of World War II.
Book Description
“We tried to live with 120 percent intensity, rather than waiting for death. We read and read, trying to understand why we had to die in our early twenties. We felt the clock ticking away towards our death, every sound of the clock shortening our lives.” So wrote Irokawa Daikichi, one of the many kamikaze pilots, or tokkotai, who faced almost certain death in the futile military operations conducted by Japan at the end of World War II.
This moving history presents diaries and correspondence left by members of the tokkotai and other Japanese student soldiers who perished during the war. Outside of Japan, these kamikaze pilots were considered unbridled fanatics who willingly sacrificed their lives for the emperor. But the writings explored here by Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney clearly and eloquently speak otherwise. A significant number of the kamikaze were university students who were drafted and forced to volunteer, and in their diaries and correspondence they often wrote heartbreaking soliloquies in which they poured out their anguish and fear and expressed profound ambivalence toward the war as well as opposition to their nation’s imperialism.
A salutary correction to the many caricatures of the kamikaze, this poignant work will be essential to anyone interested in the history of Japan and World War II.
“Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney’s book is designed to challenge Western perceptions of the kamikaze generation. By assembling brief biographies of some of the young Japanese who perished on suicide missions, and by quoting extensively from their wartime diaries and poetry, she portrays a group of literate, thoughtful people, most of whom hated the war and were reluctant to die.”— Sunday Telegraph (UK)
Customer Reviews:
Death for those with so much to live for.......2007-08-11
This is a very intellectual study of tokkotai pilots. The long introduction details the high level of academic learning these young men had and their philosophical beliefs. The chosen diaries are filled with questioning and rationalizations of this honorable duty to their country and with poetic longings to live and to love. If you can wade through the academic language you will discover a new and sad perspective of these brilliant young men whose lives were wasted in an effort to win a war that was already lost.
A welcome, but limited perspective.......2007-07-08
I found this to be a somewhat disappointing book.
The book title refers to the author's presentation of the personal reflections of 5 Japanese tokkôtai (i.e., kamikaze), as revealed in their diaries. The author does an excellent job of describing the historical and cultural context of the tokkôtai in the first part of the introduction. However, the latter half of introduction (pages 17-33) is less useful as it moves away from the primary focus of the book to discuss tangential issues. For example, the section of the book entitled "A long road to the point of no return" focuses on Japanese nationalism, with minimal attention to the tokkôtai.
More important, the author's actual presentation of the pilot diaries is weak. Quotations from the diaries are limited, in some places being only 1 or 2 sentences. In comparison, the author's analyses and inferences take as much space as the actual quotations themselves. Thus, the pilots' personalities and thoughts are not allowed to speak for themselves; instead, they are obscured by the author's analyses.
I will note, as a minor point, that the author uses the word tokkôtai as referring to the Japanese "special attack force." It is not until page 174 in the book, that the author notes that tokkôtai is actually an abbreviation for "tokubetsu kôgekitai," which is the full term for "special attack force."
The book provides a useful and welcome alternate perspective on the kamikaze. Recognize, however, that you will have to wade through a lot of tangents and academic analyses, rather than directly hearing what the tokkôtai have to say for themselves.
A deeper perspective.......2007-03-14
The book covers a lot of the same ground (identical content in some places) as the author's "Kamikaze, Cherry Blossoms, and Nationalisms". The discussion of how Japan's leaders appropriated the cherry blossom iconography for military indoctrination is highly stimulating, though at times the author pushes her theme beyond its the capacity to explain certain aspects of Japanese fanaticism. In part, the problem is that the reader has to accept the diaries and other writings of a small number of highly educated young men as "representative" of the kamikaze (the author avoids the word in her text because she says it has become a synonym for "mindlessness") when, of course, they were a minority. Nevertheless, taken together with other first-hand sources (diaries, letters, memoires, etc.) increasingly becoming available in translation, this collection makes a valuable contribution to deepening our understanding of the human dimenson of wartime Japan.
Kamikaze pilot.......2006-11-03
This should be read by all the young people today. The book is a diary of a young university student who was drafted and forced to become a Kamikaze pilot against his will like many others in ca 1945. They had no other choice then. I could not read this book without a box of tissues. Because I lived in their generation and in the same country.
Book Description
Daring missions. Dangerous rescues. Deadly accuracy.Many pilots never made it out of 'Nam. This one did. Highly decorated Col. Bob Stoffey-- a Marine Corps pilot for over twenty-five years, who served multiple tours in Vietnam-- has seen and done it all. Cleared Hot! is his story-- a fast-paced, high-casualty flight into heart-stopping danger.Full of vivid detail, this combat diary uncovers the real heroes of the Vietnam War, the behind-the-scenes Marine Corps pilots who helped our boys return home....then went back for more.Includes eight pages of heroic photographs!
Customer Reviews:
Cleared Hot.......2007-01-10
A riveting "in the cockpit" presentation of the dangers, personal frustrations, and day to day life or death of combat support helicopter pilots and, perhaps lesser known to the public, the unsung role of Forward Air Controllers (FAC) in low and slow lightly armed observation aircraft, themselves receiving ground fire, guiding high flying jets to target enemies only a few hundred feet in front of friendly ground troops.
Col. Stoffey's ability to recreate in print the radio conversations between FAC and ground or air units gives the reader a feel of "you are there".
bravo.......2006-08-26
great account from the helicoptors point of view. Little difficult getting into as in the beginning there were just too many numbers of different squadrons too absorb. Once I got throught this the read was thoroughly enjoyable.
5 STARS.......2005-08-22
One of the better Vietnam War books. Well-written, interesting, enjoyable, and never self-promoting. Comes across as the Real Deal.
EXCELLENT!!!.......2003-02-27
This is one of the best books on Vietnam EVER. Im only in 8th grade but I've been in the helos he flies and sat in an OV-10 and he couldn't be more descriptive about the birds he flies. I would reccomend this book to any war buff, historian, know it all, or just plain reader!
Cleared Hot is a clear winner.......2003-02-20
Cleared Hot!: A Marine Combat Pilot's Vietnam Diary by Col. Bob Stoffey is an accurate account of a Vietnam pilot during his terms of service in the Vietnam Conflict. Stoffey writes an account of his ordinary missions and his not so ordinary experiences. The book is laced with heroic stories of Stoffey flying his OV-10 forward air support plane and "Dog" helicopter against the "Gooners." In the OH-10 he organizes strikes and marks targets as well as gets in the action with his centerline gattling gun and rockets, which he's deadly accurate with. In the "Dog" Stoffey delivers much needed supplies to Marine "Grunts" under heavy fire. He gets in fast while his .50 cal. gunners clear the way, drop their cargo, and get out. The action just isn't in the air. There are accounts of rocket attacks and gunfire on the base, (near every night) as well as raids by Gooners with satchel bombs.
If you're interested in war books, this is one for you. Stoffey's style is technical and precise, using a lot of military abbreviations and terms, which adds to its authenticity. Cleared Hot!: A Marine Combat Pilot's Vietnam Diary is written as you would expect a pilot of the time to speak. He has that edge about him that defines a great pilot and a hero. This book is worth buying. As well as a good read, it gives you a history lesson with a real sense of the danger involved.
Book Description
THEY FLEW LOW, SLOW, AND INTO THE FACE OF ENEMY FIRE....In Vietnam, an elite group of air force pilots fought a secret air war in Cessna 0-2 and OV-10 Bronco prop planes-flying as low as they could get. The eyes and ears of the fast-moving jets who rained death and destruction down on enemy positions, the forward air controller made an art form out of an air strike-knowing the targets, knowing where friendly troops were, and reacting with split-second, life and death decisions as a battle unfolded. For Tom Yarborough, the risk was constant, intense, electrifying. A member of the super secret Prairie Fire unit, Yarborough became one of the most frequently shot-up pilots flying out of Da Nang-engaging in a series of dangerous secret missions in Laos. This is Yarborough's adrenaline-pumping chronicle of heroism, danger, and brotherhood in Vietnam. From the rescuing of downed pilots to taking out enemy positions, to the most harrowing day-long missions, here is the dedication, courage, and skill of the fliers who took the war into the enemy's backyard.... AUTHORBIO: TOM YARBOROUGH served in the Air Force for thirty years in a variety of flying and staff assignments. A command pilot, he logged 5,000 hours of flying time, with over 1,500 of them in combat. During his two Vietnam tours as a forward air controller, he earned thirty combat decorations, including the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, Air Medal, and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry. Now a business executive, he lives in West Springfield, Virginia, where he maintains ties to the academic community as an adjunct history professor at Northern Virginia Community College.
Customer Reviews:
A surprisingly great book.......2007-09-24
Really great read, a real page turner, funny. About a newby covey pilot who turns into the old man. His crew chief cringes every time he takes off because he brings back more ruined planes than anyone. One of the best FAC books out there.
Outstanding .......2007-05-04
A rare combination a true warrior, who survived some of the most dangerous flying of the Vietnam War and a highly literate author. One wonders where our nation finds the quiet Paladins of the 20'Th century.
At one level a warrior's story of near hand to hand combat from the air with a fully committed enemy. The evolution of the author's transition from a member of the Air Force to his very close identification with the Special Forces who operated under his wing adds to the story. Live at the Muff Divers Club also brings color to the tale. As a war story it has the same ring of aggressive sacrifice of other great warriors.
As a psychological study it is a great story of the magnetism / repulsion of war and the warrior culture.
Finally, it is a story of flying on the very edge. As a pilot what is so stunning is the difficulty of the conditions under which they operated. Operating under ceilings a fraction of that required for civilian pilots while performing a difficult mission and finally trying to stay alive stretches the reader's ability to understand. Most non pilots will take for granted the brief description of descending into cloud covered valleys, far from navigation facilities as another day at the office. Far from it, some of the most dangerous and challenging things a pilot can be called upon to do. But that's just for starters; those of us in civilian life almost always have the ability to climb back though the clouds to sunshine when we are overloaded. However, it must be a totally different experience to be flying against a dedicated enemy while trapped under the overcast. The equivalent of fighting on the edge of a cliff.
.The reader is fortunate that the author brings a great story and the skill to tell the story. Even more of a gift is that the author lived to tell the story of those who did not return.
Great job of telling the true story!.......2007-03-22
Tom has done an outstanding job of telling the tales of FAC work in Vietnam and the secret war in Laos. This book is a must read for anybody with a sense of patriotism and who is a pilot and really cares abot "getting the job done". Excellent book and story.
Thanks Tom
Another American Hero.......2007-03-15
Tom Yarborough (TY)has written an exelent book about his time as a FAC with the 20 TASS in Da Nang during the vienam war.
It is well written, very exiting and I had a hard time putting it down, the author dos a great job putting the reader in the backseat and you can almost taste the adrenelin and smell the sweat.
Go buy this book, you cannot miss out
Bo Hermansen
Da Nang Diary.......2007-01-10
This book has personal significance for me. My sweetheart flew with this group and knows the author, so we will read it together and re-live history with a very intensely personal appreciation of this well-written, engaging book. I initially looked at a few sections and passages and found it interesting, engaging and not the least bit dry or boring as some historical stories can be. Amazed and thrilled that the author has captured such an important part of our mutual history that touched so many American families. BRAVO!
Average customer rating:
- One of the better books about the American Volunteer Group.
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Flying Tiger: A Crew Chief's Story: The War Diary of an AVG Crew Chief
Frank S. Losonsky
Manufacturer: Schiffer Publishing
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ASIN: 0764300458 |
Book Description
This new book is the war diary of a Flying Tiger American Volunteer Group crew chief from the 3rd Pursuit Squadron. Much of the Flying Tiger history is written from the pilot's viewpoint. These brave pilots deserve much praise, but those who fixed the aircraft and kept them flying also have a story to tell. Though their story is perhaps not as flashy, it is quite interesting and very much in tune with the everyday spirit of that intense period before America entered the World War II. This book contains Losonsky's war diary, which is supplemented with interviews and dialogue, and includes over 200 unpublished photographs. This format provides the reader with a multi-dimensional view of the period. Flying Tiger will give aviation historians new insights into the days shortly before the Flying Tiger successes in late 1941.
, over 200 photographs, 8 1/2" x 11"
Customer Reviews:
One of the better books about the American Volunteer Group........1999-02-24
Great book by my friend and comrade in arms Frank Losonsky. Would be nice if the correct sub title was used ie. The War Diary of an AVG Crew Chief instead of The War Diary of an Average Crew Chief. note: AVG American Volunteer Group Not necesary to make this public, but please correct it.
Book Description
During Operation Desert Storm, Captain Keith Rosenkranz piloted his F-16 "Viper" in 30 combat missions. Here he recounts these experiences in searing, "you-are-there" detail, giving readers one of the most riveting depictions ever written of man and machine at war.
Customer Reviews:
a great book!.......2007-10-18
i bought this book as a gift for my husband who is an f18 pilot himself, we r from kuwait so a gulf war book is a must have for us.. my husband owns a bigggg library with all sort of war and military books.. but this one was sooo special he couldnt put it down in fact i was a little jealous of the book! he loved it soo much u wont believe it.. in fact i gave it a quick scan myself and i enjoyed the story too. when i asked my husband what he thought of the book because im writing for amazon, he just said that its the best book he ever read and its a very good account of what happened during the war to liberate our country!
A Flight Sim Fan's Review.......2006-06-05
Boy, I loved this book. As someone who's NOT a pilot and NOT in the military, this book provided a TON of insight into the day-to-day life of a combat pilot.
One way to see what it's like to be a fighter pilot is to buy a combat flight sim for your PC. Sometimes I wonder how real these are. However, when reading Rosey's account, I can say, they're pretty real!
So many times I've forgone all tasks other than countering a missile threat. So many times I've almost flown into the ground at night. Rosey did these, too, and I can't imagine how it feels to really see a SAM guiding on you, coming out of the clouds.
In addition to a lot of things flight sim fans have gone through, Rosey adds a lot of real life perspective. I laughed when he described how F-16 pilots bring 'piddle packs' on long flights and he described how he went about not making a mess with them. I laughed again when he described bringing a granola bar with him on flights, for the ride home after a bombing run. I've often gotten up while playing a flight sim and gone to the fridge for a snack.
For flight sim fans, this book should be REQUIRED READING. It gives a great perspective on how missions are planned and carried out. I was surprised by a lot of the real-life aspects of combat flight and was equally surprised by some of the aspects that read the same way an 'after-action' report from a flight sim mission reads. I'm still blown away by a couple of the mission accounts when Rosey went 'downtown'.
Thank you Rosey!.......2005-12-05
This is a brilliant book.
For anyone interested in military aviation or modern warfare I can only recommend reading Keith Rosenkrantz's excellent account of his part in the first Gulf War.
This book is well written, easy to read, detailed and personal in a way many of these books fail to be.
As a pilot myself (commercial) and having always dreamed of flying such aviation exotica as the F-16, this book is the key for us mere mortals to step into the world of the modern fighter pilot. It gives you a taste of the discipline, courage and commitment required.
For all this and much more you should definitely check out Vipers in the Storm.
When you're finished reading it drop Rosey a line, like I did to thank him for sharing his experiences. His email address is at the back of the book and he was gracious enough to reply to my message too. An officer and a gentleman not to mention hero.
Good look at an AF pilot's experience in modern war........2005-07-25
Rosenkranz is no Hemingway, but he does a good job of telling the entire story of his experience in Desert Storm. One of the things this book has that others about similar experiences lack is the emphasis on the human aspects of war (the moral issues that come from killing people, the toll that being away from one's family takes.) I immensely enjoyed the fact that this book shows that you don't have to be gung-ho all the time to be a good military man, and it in fact has given me more respect for those that serve our country because of the way it relates that one's primary drive to go to war should stem from a strong sense of duty rather than a sense of thrill.
Combat details derailed by naive political commentary.......2003-12-10
Rosenkranz provides plenty of details about exactly what a combat pilot does in a very busy F-16 cockpit, and he also details some of the interesting personal history that led him into this career. Unfortunately, he can't resist frequently venturing off into naive political and historical analyses of the wider questions of the war and the threat Iraq posed to the world, reprinting many speech excerpts from President H.W. Bush as justification for what he and his fellow service men and women were doing, extending them, in the end, to justify the current war in Iraq without ever considering the problems incurred by pursuing policy with force in the Middle East. At times the book reads like an instrument of the Republican National Committee campaign to reelect George W. Bush, or at the very least an apologist for the mistakes of both Bush administrations in the Middle East.
Average customer rating:
- Salter was a real writer.
- Old Material Beautifully Integratred and Presented.
- A Wonderful Collection
- A Feeling Of "The Same River Twice"
- Sun, stars, water and clouds
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Gods of Tin: The Flying Years
James Salter
Manufacturer: Shoemaker & Hoard
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Binding: Hardcover
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The Hunters: A Novel
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Burning the Days: Recollection
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There and Then: The Travel Writing of James Salter
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Last Night
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Solo Faces: A Novel
ASIN: 159376006X |
Book Description
A singular life often circles around a singular moment, an occasion when one's life in the world is defined forever and the emotional vocabulary set. For the extraordinary writer James Salter—recipient of the PEN/Faulkner Award—this moment was contained in the fighter planes over Korea where, during his young manhood, he flew more than one hundred missions. The editors have gathered selections and photographs from a journal Salter kept during the Korean War, published here for the first time, and assembled selections from two novels, The Hunters and Cassada, and from the author's celebrated memoir, Burning the Days. As commented in a brief introduction, "It is, as a record of the day-to-day, mission-to-mission life of a young fighter pilot, a remarkable document by any standard. But it provides as well a view into the 'crucible of a writer's beginnings, like pencil studies that precede a painting, in which the essential qualities of the artist's hand are unmistakable.'"
Customer Reviews:
Salter was a real writer........2007-10-01
If you want real literature without fiction, this is it.
Prentiss Davis
Truckee, CA
Old Material Beautifully Integratred and Presented........2007-06-10
Having read some for the works from which this book takes much of its content I was prepared to be disappointed; however, Salter has woven the material into a much tighter and stronger work. It's clear that he looked back at the old material with improved writing skills and a more mature handling of the nature of warfare in the early days of the jets.
He captures the isolation of these modern day knights of the air, the randomness of early aerial engagements in the first jet on jet conflict and one which was further complicated by the political restrictions which put the bases on the north side of the Yalu off limits. With the possible exception of the middle-east the Korean war probably marked the last engagement of large numbers of American aircraft in air to air combat over a small area.
Highly recommended, especially for those who who have enjoyed his other works. Deserves a place on the bookshelf between Stranger to The Ground, Night Flight, Tom Wolfe's writings on flight and other literate classics on the challenge and characters in flying.
For those wanting to know more about the why of the Korean air engagements Robert Cornan's "Boyd The Story of a Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Course of War" is most enlightening.
Like Wind, Sand and Stars the book has a very broad appeal that is not limited to pilots. Great gift for someone who appreciates good writing.
A Wonderful Collection.......2005-06-30
This was my introduction to James Salter and it was the book that made me interested in his writing. One of the wonderful aspects about Gods is not simply that it contains Salters wonderful writing, but also that the editors have managed to collect the best pasages from a number of his books. After reading Cassada, Burning the Days and the Hunters, I returned to this volume and found that nearly every one of my favorite passages on flying (achieving competence or learning "equitation" as he puts it at one point) from these books appears in Gods. And a bonus are the excerpts from Salter's jounals as a fighter jock driving F-86s in combat in Korea: these sometimes read like poetry leaving an image that has the feel of a Turner watercolor -- a couple of colorful strokes that still give a strong sense of the energy and paradoxically tranquility of moments flying. Originally in Burning: "I will never see it again or, just this way all that is below. Some joys exist in retrospect, but not this, the serenity, the cities shining in detailed splendor."
A Feeling Of "The Same River Twice".......2005-03-25
Salter is a fine writer and an elegant stylist, with the ability to blend exquisite imagery and brute, violent action effortlessly, so that the reader feels transported into the situation he sets up.
This edition of excerpts from three previous books, however, leaves me with a "Rip Off" feeling. Why not just read the books the two editors have ripped this material out of?
The bonus I guess is the frank Korean War journal which has not been published.
In his declining years Faulkner published a similar book BIG WOODS, composed largely of excerpts from books still in print, given his imprimatur as a volume of hunting stories, and his publishers encouraged Faulkner's audience to think of it as a new book by virtue of its new juxtapositions. Now Salter is getting the Faulkner treatment. So be it, but don't expect all the readers to be happy about paying money once again to a speciality publisher for a lot of stories we heard just a few years back when Salter published BURNING THE DAYS (1997). He's great and all but he's no William Faulkner.
Sun, stars, water and clouds.......2004-10-08
James Salter ranks among the finest writers in America, a stylist of extraordinary skill, and this new book about his F-86 flying experiences in Korea demonstrates his remarkable abilities.
However seeming simple the basic act, writing well is as difficult as flying well, and flows from a lifetime of patient, humble practice and learning. The precision with which Salter puts words together, and the pleasure and satisfaction a reader derives from assimilating those words, transcend the subject matter and move to the sublime. Salter is a master craftsman who works with a deceptive effortlessness that distills essence and emotion into forms that drive directly to the point. Every reader who likes great writing will enjoy this book and will learn from it not just about the subject matter but about the art of literary composition.
In other words, one need not be a pilot to enjoy Salter's work in this new book, assembled from material that is now half a century old. He does not clutter it up with unnecessary technicalities (flying jet fighters is complex). His book SOLO FACES (see my review) shows that he is a writer who can capture the heart of the matter and convey it to the reader's mind with lyrical literary skill.
The production values of this book deserve mention: Shoemaker/Hoard is a relatively small Press who obviously lavish meticulous attention on their work, and it shows.
Why "Sun, stars, water and clouds" as the title of this review? The words are taken from Salter's book, page 121, describing what the ancients claimed are the greatest things to be seen. What better place to see them than from a fighter cockpit?
Customer Reviews:
dry narrative lacking references..........2007-08-31
This book has many quotes, numbers, etc. but very few references to back them up. The author may say something like so-and-so said this but no references are provided. Even overlooking this problem, the narrative is dry.
The missing history of the side that lost.......2006-11-09
Bekker writes accessibly and in a well thought out manner. Some histories are dry, but the format of this book in chronological fashion where some time lines overlap, he handles in a reasonable manner.
I would recommend this to anyone who has an interest in history, specifically WWII aviation.
Cheers
Excellent background as well as combat material.......2001-12-31
Like the title explains, this book offers commentary from various echelons in the German Air Force on the planning and production of fighters and bombers, the deployment and assignments, the policy, the conflicts and the strategic misuse of this vital branch of the military. As well, the author gives a great deal of background on the manufacturers, the competition for the new air speed record, the celebrated pilots who tested the new marvels, the hardships of restricted supply, the motives and explanations of the awarding of production contracts, and many more insights into the German Luftwaffe from its inception, and from the ground up. While a little too technical in naming every formation and an insistence on listing every make and model of plane for every sortie, this book has a lot of valuable information on the German military apparatus, specifically the air arm.
An absorbing account of luftwaffe's triumph and tragedy.......2000-07-11
The author expatiates on operations of German airforce in different theatres of war -Poland ,Norway ,France and Low countries ,Balkans ,Russia- when Hitlers's conquest was at its height .
The principal credit for making "Blitzkrieg' a success must go to Luftwaffe. Its support of ground forces -direct ,indirect -brought the Polish campaign to a swift conclusion .Later it helped the German armour to breach French defences at Sedan on May 13,1940.Allied airforces intervened ,made a desperate attempt to block Guderian's tanks from crossing river Meuse which was repulsed by the Luftwaffe fighters.Once the breakthrough was effected, panzers rattled and rumbled towards the English channel. In the process they outran infantry cover, consequently the Luftwaffe was assigned the task of protecting vulnerable flanks of armoured thrust which it did brilliantly.
On May 21-22 ,1941 ,Royal Navy in Cretan waters was exposed to the full fury of German airforce.This led to the first air-sea battle in the history of war .After suffering crippling losses the English fleet had to retreat having paid the penalty of operating without aircover.
Luftwaffe was largely responsible for the triumphant German advance upto the gates of Moscow.
The book has exploded a few myths. The strength of German airforce during the beginning of hostilities was grossly exaggerated by Anglo-American historians of the war.During German invasion of Poland, Luftwaffe had at its disposal only 1302 first-line aircraft. Anglo-Saxon media has reviled the German bombing of Warsaw,Rotterdam. The author ,however, has given different interpretation on what caused this unfortunate bombing,.Both cities were barricaded and bitterly defended. Repeated attempts to make them surrender through negotiations failed.
The book has a few drawbacks. The section dealing with ' Battle of Britain ' appears outdated. Ever since the publication of Group Captain F.W.Winterbotham's book 'Ultra Secret" officially-recognized version on History of World War sorely needed re-interpretation . But the author can be absolved of this lapse since he wrote the book at a time when Ultra was still a top secret.Author never had the privilege to know that Luffwaffe ciphers had been broken and its operational orders read by the British intelligence.
Also ignored are developments in the field of electronics .Just as the Battle of Atlantic, technical progress made a deep impact on the fortunes of airwar.Germans had radars like Freya, Wurzburg to detect the approach of Allied bomber formations.British countered by deploying jammers (Mandrel,Carpet) on fighter planes escorting bomber formations helping them to penetrate German airspace, Then there were devices like Liechtenstein SN2,RWR(radar warning receiver) called Naxos, The former was an airborne interception radar, Latter a passive device capable of sensing radar emisssions from Allied bombers which were picked up at double the distance at which bombers radars were able to detect German fighters. This gave fighters ample time to plan manoeuvres . Naxos picked up emisssions from H2's radar installed on RAF pathfinder force ( PFF) which were assigned the task of marking targets to be bombed by dropping phosphorous flares.Naxos guided the fighters directly to this aircraft.The second German RWR was Flensburg which received emissions from British airborne radar Monica fitted on to the tail of RAF bombers.Thanks to progress in the field of electronics total destruction of Berlin in the spring of 1944 was averted.
Upon reading the book I had a feeling that Herr Bekker wrote it with the intention of extolling the achievments of Luftwaffe. No doubt Germans had superior planes at their disposal. Till the advent of American P-51 Mustang fighters Luftwaffe's FW-190 was the best air superiority fighter.This was amply demonstrated during the dog fights with the British Spitfires in 1941,42,43 above the English channel. Much before the outbreak of war Germans had experimented rocket,turbo-jet powered planes (HE-176,HE-178) However the lead was not exploited and the advantage squandered due to myopia of Luftwaffe General Staff.
Reason for the decline of Luftwaffe is not difficult to seek. Being predominantly tactical airforce whose mission was to support the army in its blitz campaigns, it lacked strategic offensive and operational level defensive capabilities. Conceived for short-term campaigns the changing nature of war forced Luftwaffe to embark on number of tasks and its weakness was soon exposed .The belief that Germany had won the war led to curtailment in long-term planning and development.As a result the airforce was saddled with obsolete aircraft.
Finally, Hitler's insistence on offensive air operation meant that the potentialities of Germany's first operational jet fighter (ME-262) could not be fully exploited.
Perfect !!.......1999-07-27
Since the end of WW II, it seems that occurred an epidemy of books written about the Luftwaffe, mainly by American / British writers, with bombastic titles like " Rise and Fall of The Luftwaffe", "History of the Luftwaffe"..etc... FOrget all about them. Cajus Bekker's book is the best ever written about the subject and comes from a remarkable neutral point of view, considering the fact the writer is a German. In only one volume, he sets up the reader in the real demands placed upon the Luftwaffe even before the War, and shows the way that the German publicity machine worked over their initial sucesses. HE also describes all kinds of combat squadrons, including bomber, dive-bombers and reccon, without talking only about the fighter pilots, differently from so many books. Great! A War Aviation fan must have this one!!
Customer Reviews:
A Great Hero.......2002-07-25
This book is excellent! But, I am biased. Col Tom Yarborough was my Professor of Aerospace Studies at Indiana University and a major reason why I joined the Air Force. He a great and inspiring man. I highly recommend this book by a true hero.
Outstanding, very readable and fast paced- as good as Clancy.......1999-06-14
Anyone who is an armchair flyboy or military aviation buff will find this book to be one of the best. Col. Yarborough's writing style keeps you on the edge of your chair as you follow his incredible hair raising missions in Veitnam and Laos. Best on all this is not fiction but the real item.
I could not put the book down........1999-03-08
This is by far the best book I have read on Vietnam. It takes you to the air with the pilot like you are in the back seat. It's hard hitting and lots of action. I highly recommend it.
The most hair rising combat flight missions I've ever read........1997-12-10
I read a lot of Vietnam pilot's memoires but these are definitely the best. Here I found absolutly the most hair rising combat sorties in treetop level under enemy fire written with such speed, that I could not stop reading. I don't know Tom Yarborough personally, but I really started to like that guy when reading his book. If I should ever be in such a stressy enviroment like Nam, having a guy like him as squadron mate should make things a lot more bearable.
Excellent recount of OV-10 Forward Air Controller in Vietnam.......1997-10-12
Excellent first hand story of flying the OV-10 as a Forward Air Controller in Vietnam. Especially exciting because of the nature of the mission: supporting the infil and exfil of long range patrols. This story has only recently been declassified and is now told in a vivid and thrilling first hand account by one of the most decorated Forward Air Controllers from the Vietnam war. If you like flying and fighting you'll love this story.
Average customer rating:
- A fascinating portrait of an American hero.
- A pilot's read!
- Well researched. Well told
- Can't stop reading!
|
Glen Edwards: The Diary of a Bomber Pilot
FORD DANIEL
Manufacturer: Smithsonian Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 1560985712 |
Product Description
[use existing Kirkus review]
Customer Reviews:
A fascinating portrait of an American hero........1999-01-16
This book is nothing short of captivating. The author provides brief explanatory narratives to connect entries from Edwards' diaries, beginning with flight training, then combat in North Africa, and the early post-war years in America.
Just ferrying his airplane from the States to North Africa was a big adventure, considering the rather primitive nature of navigation aids and weather forecasts in that era.
Combat in Africa and Italy is described in detail, some of it surprising. For example, a military advance had a down side. Moving forward to a newly captured air field meant that the American aviators were subjected to more ground attacks by German aircraft.
The second half of the book covers the early post-war years, when American factories were building new airplanes almost faster than the Air Force could flight test them. Many exotic, one-of-a-kind vehicles are described here.
To some extent, the reader has a sense of foreboding at this point, knowing that this story is destined to end as unhappily as the maiden voyage of the Titanic. Yet this knowledge serves to accentuate the daily events described here.
There are many memorable tidbits in this book, such as tales of a man who actually intimidated Chuck Yeager!
Glen Edwards is portrayed in these pages as so heroic, embodying so many virtues, yet so modest and unassuming. This is someone you would want to know and to spend time with. Through this book, you can.
A pilot's read!.......1999-01-13
A superb book about Glen Edwards. I thoroughly enjoyed and empathized with his career. The pace was like reading a literary version of Ravel's "Bolero" with the crescendo building to the final flight. The description of the crash was wrenching, superb.
A pilot's read! Bravo Zulu!
Paul M. (USN Ret.)
Well researched. Well told.......1998-11-11
"The amount of reseach Ford wove into Glen Edwards: The Diary of a Bomber Pilot" is remarkable. The result is a wonderfully readable tale of one man's contribution to freedom and flight. Nice to 'know" such a man as Edwards and to have Ford, a historian/author who brought him back to life."
Can't stop reading!.......1998-10-30
I can't put this book on Glen Edwards down! God, I hope he makes it thru North Africa because I think I've fallen in love with him. What a can-do kinda guy. So positive -- capturing the essence of each place so well.
This book makes him live again.
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