Featuring first-hand accounts from veteran pilots, rare archival photographs and expert analysis, this volume brings to life the vicious dogfights that took place between the Bf 109 and the Yak as they vied for mastery of the frozen skies of the Eastern Front. Step into the cockpit of the Luftwaffe's Bf 109 and the Red Air Force's Yaks 1-7, two fighters which were involved in some of the largest, fiercest aerial battles in history. The Iconic Messerschmitt fighter and its combat hardened pilots administered a fearful drubbing to the Yaks in the beginning of the war. Some of the highest scorin... View More...
This is an illustrated guide shown in over 100 images. It is a compelling history of the Supermarine Spitfire, from the first single-seat prototype of 1936 through to post-war planes that equip fighter units around the world. It includes complete technical specifications detailing the Spitfire's armament, power plant, dimensions, weight and performance. It features over 100 photographs of the Supermarine Spitfire in action, as well as a cutaway diagram showing the interior construction of this classic fighter aircraft. The legendary Supermarine Spitfire was designed solely as an air protection... View More...
This title featuring photographs from the Imperial War Museum. It is a guide to over 100 of the fighters that have helped shape history, including the Fokker Dr. I Triplane, the Hawker Hurricane, the Messerschmitt Bf109, the North American P/F-51 Mustang and the Supermarine Spitfire. It features detailed specification boxes for every aircraft listed, with information about country of origin, first flight, power, armament, size, weights and performance. It includes a history of fighter aircraft, from anecdotes about the first flying aces to fighter armament and equipment during World War II. Si... View More...
The untold story of A-10 units in Operation Enduring Freedom reaches its conclusion with this second of two volumes focusing on the type's combat missions in Afghanistan. Featuring numerous first-hand accounts and photography from those who experienced the conflict, along with imagery from official military archives, this book offers a unique and detailed insight into the record of the A-10 in one of the 21st Century's most significant conflicts. Initially, the A-10 Thunderbolt was not a favourite of the USAF, which, prior to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990, was hoping to shunt this Cold ... View More...
This book profiles a wide variety of British, French, German, Austro-Hungarian and American aircraft, ranging from frontline stalwarts like the RE 8 and AR 1 to the swift Salmson 2A2 and the compact, fighter-like Halberstadt CL II. Oft-overshadowed by the fighters that either protected or threatened them, two-seater reconnaissance aircraft performed the oldest and most strategically vital aerial task of World War 1 - a task that required them to return with the intelligence they gathered at all costs. Bomber sorties were equally important and dangerous, and the very nature of both types of mi... View More...
Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen, was the top ace of the First World War, with eighty confirmed victories. He is also one of the most famous fighter pilots of all time. A Prussian nobleman, he started the war as an officer in a Uhlan cavalry unit, serving on both the Eastern and Western fronts. In May 1915 he joined the flying service, initially as an observer then as a pilot, flying two-seaters. In August 1916, ace fighter pilot Oswald Boelcke recruited von Richthofen into a fighter squadron he was forming. He would later take command of Jasta 11, and then of Jagdgeschwader 1, the famous 'Flyi... View More...
This is an illustrated guide shown in over 100 images. It is a fascinating history of the Avro Lancaster, from the first trials of the prototype at Boscombe Down in 1941 through to the famous Dambusters raids of 1943. It includes complete technical specifications detailing the Lancaster's dimensions, weights, power, fuel and oil, performance and armament. It features over 100 photographs of the Avro Lancaster in action, as well as a cutaway diagram showing the interior construction of this classic bomber aircraft. The Avro Lancaster was a truly outstanding combat aircraft of World War II. Lanc... View More...
This is the story of the elite Japanese Army Air force (JAAF) aces that flew the Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien (Swallow), and the Ki-100 Goshikisen in the Pacific Theatre of World War 2. The former, codenamed 'Tony' by the allies, was a technically excellent aircraft, possessing power, stability and a good rate of climb - differing radically from the usual Japanese philosophy of building light, ultra-manoeuvrable fighters. Its pilots soon realised, however, that the type was plagued by a number of dangerous mechanical issues. Then as the war moved relentlessly closer to Japan's doorstep, a desperate, ex... View More...
Ton-up Lancs is a welcome reassessment of a study which first appeared under the 'Claims to Fame' series. Since that publication years ago, information and photographs continued to be sent to and researched and collected by the author, so much so that a complete revision was necessary, with a new 100-sortie aircraft added to the list, and with many more photographs of the aircraft and men who flew in these very special Avro Lancs. Each aircraft's history is recorded, supported by stories from aircrew that flew them, along with what happened to them once - or if - they survived. The most famous... View More...
Perhaps the most seaworthy flying boat ever built, the elegant, tri-motor Dornier Do 24 served with both the Allied and Axis forces in very different parts of the globe during World War II, garnering an excellent reputation along the way This study uses archival records, first-hand accounts and revealing photographs to illuminate the combat career of this remarkable aircraft for the first time in English. The German-built Do 24 was the Netherlands Navy's principal aerial asset during the Japanese invasion of the East Indies. While the survivors of that ordeal served in the Australian Air forc... View More...
Perhaps the most seaworthy flying boat ever built, the elegant, tri-motor Dornier Do 24 served with both the Allied and Axis forces in very different parts of the globe during World War II, garnering an excellent reputation along the way This study uses archival records, first-hand accounts and revealing photographs to illuminate the combat career of this remarkable aircraft for the first time in English. The German-built Do 24 was the Netherlands Navy's principal aerial asset during the Japanese invasion of the East Indies. While the survivors of that ordeal served in the Australian Air forc... View More...
From Richard Pike, best-selling author of Hunter Boys and The Lightning Boys series comes the newest addition to Grub Street's popular Boys series; Phantom Boys. Originally developed for the US Navy, this twin-engined supersonic long-range fighter-bomber first flew in the spring of 1958. It then entered service for the US Navy in 1961, and in 1969 with the Fleet Air Arm and RAF in the UK. Regarded as one of the most versatile fighters ever built, the Phantom F-4 was the US Navy's fastest and highest-flying aircraft. It was flown by both US military demonstration teams (Navy Blue Angels and the... View More...
The Douglas A-3 Skywarrior, though something of a cult favourite, remains a largely unremarked classic of Naval Aviation. Built for nuclear weapon delivery, the A-3 made its name in Vietnam as a conventional bomber, tanker and Electronic Warfare platform. It was the largest aircraft ever regularly operated from the decks of aircraft carriers, earning it the fleet-wide nickname 'Whale'. It excelled in every mission area assigned to it and operated in the US Navy for more than four decades, from 1956 through to 1991. Fully illustrated to depict the incredible array of paint schemes and its aweso... View More...
From the nascent days of the Spanish Civil War to the desperate, final defence of the stricken Reich, the Messerchmitt Bf 109 was the Luftwaffe's signature fighter. From the very beginning of its combat career it came to symbolize what could be achieved with a modern monoplane fighter aircraft, instilling fear and respect into Allied pilots wherever it was encountered. 35,000 of the ubiquitous Messerschmitts were eventually built, making it the most-produced fighter in history. This is the first Air Vanguard volume to cover the Bf 109, detailing models A-D. Featuring stunning aerial photos the... View More...
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 was one of the truly world class piston-engined fighters of World War II. This reputation rests largely with the E and F variants, which bore the brunt of the Luftwaffe's most important operations in World War II and shot down tens of thousands of Allied aircraft in the Battle of Britain, the Blitzkriegs across Europe and on the Eastern Front. This volume looks at the design and development history of these formidable warplanes, with a meticulous technical focus to reveal why the types were so effective. It explores the long process of tweaks to the E variant, and solu... View More...
Fifty Years of Flying Fun covers, in a roughly chronological order, over fifty continuous years of flying. This ranges from joining the RAF in 1962, through his intriguing first operational tour on Hunters in Aden, the early days of the Jaguar in Germany and, finally in the RAF, an almost outrageous two years flying the Jaguar and Hunter with the Sultan of Oman's Air Force. His subsequent civil flying has been exclusively in the General Aviation and flying display fields as a flying instructor and well known display pilot, including being involved in many varied and interesting display-rela... View More...
The first VF-2 was a prewar unit that had been dubbed the 'hottest outfit afloat' due to the skill of their non-commissioned pilots. This first unit only saw combat at the Battle of the Coral Sea, but VF-2 pilots flying Grumman F4F Wildcats were able to rack up 17 claims there during the bitter 48-hour period of fighting. The second 'Fighting Two' was armed with the new Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat fighter. Arriving in Hawaii in October 1943, the squadron so impressed Cdr Edward H 'Butch' O'Hare, the Medal of Honor winning first US Navy ace of World War 2, that he requested the squadron replace VF-6 ... View More...
Following on from the success of Victor Boys and Vulcan Boys, Tony Blackman, in collaboration with Anthony Wright, brings you Valiant Boys to complete the V Force set. This is a fascinating collection of personal accounts of operating Britain's first V bomber by aircrew and ground crew. The book tells the story from the aircraft's birth taking off from Vickers' tiny airfield at Wisley near Brooklands to its premature death from fatigue. There are tales of testing atom bombs in the Australian desert, dropping hydrogen bombs in the middle of the Pacific and, as a complete contrast, attacking air... View More...
