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B-17 Flying Fortress Units of the Eighth Air Force (part #2)
by Mark Styling Martin BowmanThe Boeing B-17, which has come to epitomise the American war effort in Europe during World War II (1939-1945), took the fight to Germans from the late summer of 1942 through to VE-Day. Its primary operator in Western Europe was the 'Mighty Eighth', who controlled 27 bomb groups for much of the war. This second of two volumes covers the 14 Bomb Groups of the Third Air Division. First hand accounts, period photography, profile artworks and nose art scrap views bring to life aircraft from each of the groups within the Third Air Division.
B-17 Flying Fortress Units of the MTO
by Mark Styling William HessOsprey's study of the B-17 Flying Fortress Units of World War II (1939-1945). Although the Fifteenth Air Force was dismissed as 'minor leaguers' by the Eighth Air Force, strategic bombers from this outfit had done a 'major league' job on Axis targets in southern Europe following its formation in Italy in November 1943. And the heavy bombers employed by the Fifteenth were of course the venerable B-17 and B-24. At its peak strength, the Fifteenth's B-17 force comprised six groups of four squadrons each, all controlled by the 5th Bomb Wing. Having been a part of the Fifteenth Air Force in 1944, author Bill Hess has long been waiting to write a definitive account on 'his air force'.
B-17 Memphis Belle: Rare Photographs from Wartime Archives (Images of War)
by Graham M. Simons Dr. Harry Friedman&“A grand spread of images showing the aircraft, and more importantly the men who flew and maintained her . . . a must for 8th Air Force aficionados.&”—War History Online Without doubt Boeing Flying Fortress B–17F 41-42285 Memphis Belle and her crew generate an image that is an all-American icon. Indeed, it has been claimed that the Memphis Belle is in the top five of the most famous American aircraft of all time. In September 1942, a new Flying Fortress was delivered at Bangor, Maine, to a crew of ten eager American lads headed by Robert K. Morgan, a lanky 24-year-old USAAF pilot from Asheville, N. C. The boys climbed aboard, flew their ship to Memphis, and christened her Memphis Belle in honor of Morgan&’s fiancé, Miss Margaret Polk of Memphis, and then headed across the Atlantic to join the US Eighth Air Force in England. Between November 7, 1942 and May 17, 1943, they dropped more than 60 tons of bombs on targets in Germany, France and Belgium. The Memphis Belle flew through all the flak that Hitler could send up to them. She slugged it out with Goering&’s Messerschmitts and Focke-Wulfs. She was riddled by machine gun and cannon fire. Once she returned to base with most of her tail shot away. German guns destroyed a wing and five engines. Her fuselage was shot to pieces, but Memphis Belle kept going back. The Memphis Belle crew has been decorated 51 times. Each of the 10 has received the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal and three Oak Leaf Clusters. The 51st award was Sergeant Quinlan&’s Purple Heart.
B-1B Lancer Units in Combat
by Thomas Withington Mark StylingThe development of the B-1B Lancer bomber was difficult to say the least. Originally conceived to fulfill a USAF requirement for an Advanced Manned Strategic Aircraft, the original B-1A concept aircraft was accused of being a white elephant, capable of performing nothing which could not be achieved at less financial and human expense than an intercontinental ballistic missile. Cancelled by the Carter administration and finally commissioned by President Reagan as the modified B-1B, the Lancer began its duties as a nuclear-armed bomber in the mid-1980s. The end of the Cold War (1946-1991) intervened and the jet was removed from its nuclear missions as a result of arms control legislation. However, the 1990s saw the metamorphosis of the Lancer into a potent conventional weapons carrier which has seen action in Iraq, the Balkans and Afghanistan. The Lancer has proved its critics wrong in demonstrating its use as a highly flexible and hard-working bomber, able to undertake diverse missions ranging from CAS to the targeting of weapons-of-mass-destruction installations.
B-24 Liberator Units of the CBI
by Edward Young Mark StylingOsprey's study of the B-24 Liberator Units in the CBI Theatre of World War II (1939-1945). The B-24 Liberator was the mainstay of the US Army Air Force's strategic bombing effort in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theatre from 1942 until the end of the war in 1945. With longer range and a greater load-carrying capacity than the B-17, the B-24 was well suited to the demands of the CBI. The CBI's two air forces - the Tenth in India and the Fourteenth in China - each had one heavy bomb group equipped with Liberators. These two groups, the 7th and the 308th, carried the war to the Japanese across China and South East Asia, flying over some of the most difficult terrain in the world. The 308th had the added burden of having to carry its own fuel and bombs over the Himalayan 'Hump' from India to China in support of its missions. Despite the hardships and extreme distances from sources of supply, both units compiled a notable record, each winning two Distinguished Unit Citations.
B-24 Liberator Units of the Eighth Air Force
by Robert Dorr Mark RolfeOsprey's examination of the B-24 Liberator Units' participation in World War II (1939-1945). The B-24 Liberator was built in greater numbers than any other US warplane, yet its combat crews live, even today, in the shadow of the less plentiful, but better-known, B-17. Accounts of the 'Mighty Eighth' in Europe, and indeed many of the books and films that emerged from the greatest air campaign in history, often overlook the B-24, even though it was in action for as long as the Flying Fortress, and participated in just as many perilous daylight bombing missions.
B-24 Liberator Units of the Fifteenth Air Force
by Robert Dorr Mark RolfeThe B-24 was heavily utilised in the North African and Mediterranean theatres by the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force, with operations over the Ploesti oilfields in Rumania being some of the most famous missions undertaken by the big American 'heavy' in World War II (1939-1945). The stirling work of the Fifteenth Air Force is often overshadowed by the glamorous 'Mighty Eighth', yet the men flying the B-24 fought ceaselessly right through to VE Day. This is the third of five titles planned to chart the operational history of the Consolidated heavy bomber, and is the first single volume to exclusively cover the Fifteenth Air Force's B-24 units.
B-24 Liberator Units of the Pacific War
by Mark Rolfe Robert DorrEver present in the Pacific from Pearl Harbor to VJ-Day during World War II (1939-1945), the B-24 Liberator proved to be the staple heavy bomber of the campaign. From its ignominious beginnings in the Allied rout in the Philippines and the Dutch East Indies, the bomber weathered the Japanese storm with a handful of bomb groups, which played a crucial role in checking the enemy's progress firstly in New Guinea, and then actively participating in the 'island hopping' campaign through the south-west Pacific.
B-24 Liberator vs Ki-43 Oscar
by Jim Laurier Edward YoungDuring the late 1930s an armament race developed between bombers and the fighters that were bent on stopping them. The development of multi-engined, multi-gun, all-metal bombers forced a corresponding increase in fighter armament which, in turn, led to further attempts to improve bomber armament to ensure its ability to survive in the face of hostile fighters. The US Army Air Corps (USAAC) requested that powered gun turrets be fitted to its two principal long-range bombers, the B-17 Flying Fortress and the B-24 Liberator. In reviewing reports of air combat from Spain, China and the early stages of the war in Europe, the USAAC assumed that the greatest danger to the bomber would be attacks from the rear quarter, and thus took steps to ensure that both the B-17 and the B-24 had tail turrets. A powered turret above and behind the cockpit could deal, it was felt, with attacks from the frontal quarter so that the nose armament for the B-17 and the B-24 consisted of several hand-held 0.50-cal machine guns, but not a powered turret. German and Japanese fighter pilots would soon discover and exploit this weakness. The JAAF's response to the increase in bomber armament was to develop a so-called heavy fighter in parallel to the development of the Army's main fighter, the Ki-43 Hayabusa (known as the 'Oscar'), which sacrificed armament for superior manoeuvrability. Yet the inability of the Japanese aircraft industry to produce these heavier fighters (the Kawasaki Ki-60 and Nakajima Ki-44) in sufficient quantities meant that the JAAF had no alternative but to rely on the Ki-43 to intercept American heavy bombers. Under the ideal conditions that existed in the Burma and China theatres for much of 1943, the absence of escort fighters allowed the Ki-43 pilots to press home their attacks to devastating effect.
B-25 Mitchell Units Of The Mto
by Steve PaceOsprey's study of the role played by the B-25 Mitchell bombers in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations during World War II (1939-1945). From November 1942 through to May 1945, the backbone of the USAAF’s medium bomber force was provided by the clutch of bomb groups equipped with the B-25 Mitchell. First seeing action in North Africa in the wake of Operation Torch, and in the Battle of El Alamein, the ‘bombing twin’ proved to be one of the most successful allied combat types in the Mediterranean Theatre of Operations (MTO). The first of four volumes planned for the Combat Aircraft series on the Mitchell, this title includes first-hand accounts, 30 colour profiles and more than 100 colour and black and white photographs of the B-25 in the MTO.
B-29 Hunters of the JAAF
by Koji Takaki'B-29!' No other term struck such terror in the hearts of the Japanese public during World War 2 than this single, most-hated name. It was then only natural that the pilots who attempted to shoot these high-flying Boeing bombers out of the skies over Tokyo, Nagasaki, Hiroshima and Kobe should become known as the elite of the Japanese Army Air Force. This book details the exploits of the ‘Dragon Slayers’ who, flying the very latest single- and twin-engined fighters, exacted a heavy toll on the AAF Boeing bombers using a range of tactics including ramming.
B-29 Superfortress: Giant Bomber of World War Two and Korea
by Graham M. SimonsThe Boeing B-29 Superfortress was a four-engined heavy bomber flown primarily by the United States in World War Two and the Korean War. The B-29 remained in service in various roles throughout the 1950s. The British Royal Air Force flew the B-29 and used the name Washington for the type, and the Soviet Union produced an unlicensed copy as the Tupolev Tu-4. The name "Superfortress" was derived from that of its well-known predecessor, the B–17 Flying Fortress. The B-29 was the progenitor of a series of Boeing-built bombers, reconnaissance aircraft, trainers and tankers including the variant, B-50 Superfortress.The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War Two. A very advanced bomber for its time, it included features such as pressurized cabins, an electronic fire-control system and remote-controlled machine-gun turrets. Though it was designed as a high-altitude daytime bomber, in practice it actually flew more low-altitude nighttime incendiary bombing missions. It was the primary aircraft in the American firebombing campaign against Japan in the final months of World War Two, and carried the atomic bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Unlike many other World War Two-era bombers, the B-29 remained in service long after the war ended, with a few even being employed as flying television transmitters. The type was finally retired in the early 1960s, with 3,960 aircraft in all built.Without doubt there is a clear, strong requirement to put the record straight using primary source documentation to record the undoubted achievements alongside and in context with the shortcomings to the types design and operation that have otherwise received scant attention.The book will cover all variants and is profusely illustrated.
B-29 Superfortress Units of the Korean War
by Robert Dorr Mark StylingThis book is the story of a majestic bomber of the propeller era flying perilous combat missions against a sleek, nimble warplane of the jet age, the Soviet MiG-15. A very heavy bomber and a sky giant during World War II, at that time the B-29 was the most advanced combat aircraft in the world. By the time North Korea attacked its southern neighbour in 1950, thus starting the Korean War (1950-1953) the B-29 had been reclassified a medium bomber. Many of its crew members had fought their war and settled down to raise families and begin careers only to be recalled to fight another war on a distant Asian peninsula.
B-29 Superfortress Units of World War 2
by Robert Dorr Mark StylingThe ultimate piston-engined heavy bomber of World War II (1939-1945), the first production B-29s were delivered to the 58th Very Heavy Bomb Wing in the autumn of 1943. By the spring of 1944 the Superfortress was bombing targets in the Pacific, and by war's end the aircraft had played as great a part as any weapon in ending the conflict with the Japanese. Indeed, the final dropping of two atomic bombs from the B-29 convinced the Japanese to sue for peace. This book traces the wartime career of the B-29, as the aircraft went from strength to strength in the Pacific Theatre.
B-2A Spirit Units in Combat
by Chris Davey Thomas WithingtonThe B-2A 'Spirit' was an aircraft conceived to fight the Cold War (1946-1991) but which has proved invaluable to both the 'New World Order' and more recently the 'War on Terrorism'. The combination of low-observability, precision strike, range and payload flexibility has made the 'Spirit' the weapon of choice when America hits its enemies at the start of a campaign. Spirits have fired the first shots of Operation 'Allied Force' over Kosovo and Serbia, as well as operations 'Enduring Freedom' (2001-present) and 'Iraqi Freedom' (2003-present). Despite the tremendous cost of the aircraft - each unit is literally worth its weight in gold - the B-2 has had an impact on modern warfare which has vastly exceeded this small force of 21 bombers. Developed in utmost secrecy, the B-2's gestation saw the use of new computer design and manufacturing techniques and ultra-modern synthetic materials making it the most revolutionary aircraft in terms of design and performance. This book examines these incredible aircraft.
B-57 Canberra Units of the Vietnam War
by Jim Laurier T BellOsprey's examination of B-57 Canberra Units during the Veitnam War period (1955-1975). While not receiving as much publicity as the F-105 and F-4 fighter-bombers, which took the fight into the heart of North Vietnam, the B-57 Canberra was nevertheless the first jet-powered American attack aircraft committed to the conflict. It was involved in day-to-day interdiction missions against traffic coming down the Ho Chi Minh Trail, shooting up trucks and bombing and strafing sampans in the Mekong Delta. And, not least, the aircraft flew classified 'black' missions over the border into Laos and Cambodia. The B-57B medium bomber began hitting targets in North and South Vietnam at the beginning of 1965. Although B-57B crews had already made a name for themselves during the hair-raising night missions during Op Rolling Thunder, late in the war many aircraft were upgraded to the then-state-of-the-art B-57G Night Intruder, which became one of the most valuable weapons in the USAF inventory. The B-57E, in its electronic eavesdropping and countermeasures roles, starred in the so-called Patricia Lynn missions, parts of which are still classified today. Also operating alongside the USAF B-57 units, were the Canberra B 20s of the Royal Australian Air Force,attached to the USAF's 35th Bomb Wing - the exploits of the Australian Canberras will be fully documented in this book. The unit flew interdiction missions in support of troops in the field from 1967 to 1971. At the time the Canberra was called to action, the USAF, which considered the aircraft too slow, limited in its mission and not 'sexy' enough, was attempting to phase it out of the inventory. In the event, the B-57 continued to serve for another 20 years, echoing the story of the A-10 Warthog. The author has obtained scores of previously unpublished photographs from the first deployment of the B-57s to Bien Hoa, all the way up to very rare photos of the B-57G being armed and readied for night combat missions. The story of the B-57 in Vietnam has never been told in detail, and since the aeroplane served in virtually every role for the duration the US involvement in Vietnam, the story of the B-57 is, in effect, the story of that war.
Baa Baa Black Sheep: The True Story of the "Bad Boy" Hero of the Pacific Theatre and His Famous Black Sheep Squadron (Literature And History Of Aviation Ser.)
by Gregory BoyingtonThe true story of the "bad boy" of the Pacific theatre and his famous Black Sheep squadron. The American World War II fighter pilot tells of his daring combat missions, his experiences in Japanese prison camps, and his ten-year struggle against alcoholism.
Baaz
by Anuja Chauhan1971. The USSR-backed India-Mukti Bahini alliance is on the brink of war against the America-aided Pakistani forces. As the Cold War threatens to turn red hot, handsome, laughing Ishaan Faujdaar, a farm boy from Chakkahera, Haryana, is elated to be in the IAF, flying the Gnat, a tiny fighter plane nicknamed ‘Sabre Slayer’ for the devastation it has wrecked in the ranks of Pakistan’s F-86 Sabre Squadrons. Flanked by his buddies Raks, a MiG-21 Fighter, Maddy, a transport pilot who flies a Caribou and fellow Gnatties Jana, Gana and Mana, Shaanu has nothing on his mind but glory and adventure – until he encounters Tehmina Dadyseth, famed bathing beauty and sister of a dead fauji, who makes him question the very concept of nationalism and whose eyes fill with disillusioned scorn whenever people wax eloquent about patriotism and war… Pulsating with love, laughter and courage, Baaz is Anuja Chauhan's tribute to our men in uniform.
The Baby and the Cowboy SEAL
by Laura Marie AltomA BROKEN SEAL Former Navy SEAL Wiley James is lucky to be alive, but the war destroyed his health, his confidence and his livelihood. Now, back at his family's Montana ranch, Wiley struggles to find new purpose. Instead he finds an old childhood pal-little Macy Shelton, who has grown into a beautiful woman. Wiley knows he should steer clear of the cheery single mom...if only she'd let him. Macy doesn't recognize this new Wiley. A bitter stranger has replaced the young man she fell for as a teen. Though Macy's heart still wants so much more, what Wiley needs most right now is a friend, and Macy is the only one he'll let in. Her friendship is a lifeline, but will Macy's love be the one thing that can finally help Wiley begin to heal?
The Baby Killers: German Air Raids on Britain in the First World War
by Thomas FeganJust over a decade after the Wright Brothers triumph of powered flight, the conduct of war was changed for ever. Until the Kaisers Zeppelins raided British cities and towns, it had been unthinkable that civilian populations and property hundreds of miles from the battlefield could be at risk from sudden death and destruction.In the first section of The Baby Killers Thomas Fegan charts the precise chronology of the air raids on Britain in this most thorough and fascinating work. From the start-point of the doom-laden prophecies of HG Wells and others, he describes the development of the German threat and the desperate search for answers to it. He analyses public reaction and assesses the effectiveness of the campaign as it progressed from airships to Gotha heavy bombers and, later, Giants.The second part of this superbly researched book features a gazetteer to the places bombed. The extent of the list, which includes Edinburgh, Hull and Greater Manchester, will almost certainly surprise most readers. Helpfully there are also comprehensive lists of memorials and relevant museums. The Baby Killers provides a chilling insight into an aspect of The Great War which is all too often overlooked. Yet, at the time, these raids, while modest compared with those of the Second World War Blitz, shook nationalmorale and instilled great fear and outrage. This is an important and highly readable work.
The Baby Wore a Badge (Montana Mavericks: The Texans Are Coming #2)
by Marie FerrarellaFrom Super Cop...to Super Dad?Now we've seen everything. Jake Castro has come to Thunder Canyon...with a seven-month-old infant in tow! The decorated police officer is clearly hoping the family-friendly town will prove the perfect place to raise his daughter. But the rumor mills started to churn the moment Calista Clifton was hired to help out the handsome single father...Serious sparks flew as soon as our hometown star met the out-of-town hero. But my sources tell me Jake might not yet be ready to settle down, despite his daddy status. Can he make Calista's dreams come true-and transform the babysitter into a bride? Stay tuned, loyal readers-this column will reveal all!
Babylon: 'terrific Series' Conn Iggulden (Alexander’s Legacy #4)
by Robert FabbriBabylon is the fourth book in Alexander's Legacy: an epic, brutal and bloody series about a group of power-hungry warlords who battle each other using both sword and wit for the late Alexander's throne. Perfect for fans of Conn Iggulden, Simon Scarrow and Bernard Cornwell.The great city has fallen.Let the games begin . . .Babylon is the fourth book in Alexander's Legacy: an epic, brutal and bloody series about a group of power-hungry warlords who battle each other using both sword and wit for the late Alexander's throne. Perfect for fans of Conn Iggulden, Simon Scarrow and Bernard Cornwell.Praise for Robert Fabbri:'A powerful retelling of one of the most dramatic events in ancient history' BBC HISTORY
Babylonne
by Catherine JinksIn the violent and predatory world of thirteenth-century Languedoc, Pagan's sixteen-year-old daughter disguises herself as a boy and runs away with a priest who claims to be a friend of her dead father and mother, not knowing whether or not she can trust him, or anyone.
BAC SI: A Green Beret Medic's War in Vietnam
by Robert Dumont Jerry KrizanA Special Forces medic delivers “a fascinating account of an unfamiliar part of the Vietnamese War, written in a compelling style” (HistoryOfWar.org).During the Vietnam War, US Army Special Forces A-Teams were deployed to isolated outposts or “camps” in the remote areas of South Vietnam. Their job was to recruit, train, and house members of the indigenous population while molding them into combat-ready fighting units. A-Teams consisted of up to twelve Green Beret soldiers who were experts in both combat and their individual military specialties.Bac Si, the Vietnamese term for “medic,” is the story of Sgt. Jerry Krizan, who was assigned to Special Forces Camp A-331 in the III Corps tactical zone, only ten miles from the Cambodian border. Because of its proximity to a major north-south North Vietnamese Army infiltration route, there were constant enemy troop movements through the camp’s area of operations and A-331 itself came under attack on more than one occasion.The author accompanied patrols and probes into enemy territory, not only prepared to provide aid but fight as a soldier if the squad was ambushed or chose to attack. In this small-unit warfare against an expert enemy, US soldiers had to survive as best they could, with their only succor a Huey—meantime, on the ground, by themselves against unknown opposition.Our Green Beret base camps were our very first line of defense along the borders of South Vietnam, and in this book, through the eyes of a medic, we learn how dire, and confusing, a role we asked our Special Forces to play during that era.
Bacalao
by J. T. Mcdaniel Luc WynBoek beschrijving: In het begin ziet Lawrence Miller USS Bacalao, een Gato klasse vloot onderzeeër, als een hoop gebogen stalen platen op de scheepswerf. Behalve voor een jaar als bevelhebber van een antieke S-boot in Alaska, blijft hij bij Bacalao doorheen de oorlog, klimmend van derde luitenant naar luitenant commandant, en wordt op zijn laatste terugkeer naar de boot haar laatste oorlogs bevelhebber. Critici hebben Bacalao ingehaald als de beste Onderzeeërsroman van de Tweede Wereldoorlog sinds Run Silent, Run Deep, en voormalige onderzeelui hebben zoals het verhaal and de technische getrouwheid van het boek geprezen.