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Author: Martin W. Bowman
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473826624
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 255
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Book Description
This is the fifth release in a series that provides a comprehensive insight into all aspects of RAF Bomber Command in World War Two. It begins in late September 1944 when the Allied Bomber Offensive was at its height, and takes us through to the end of the conflict. The crews' personal narrative puts you at the centre of each intense, isolated and harrowing episode of aerial combat as the pilots of Bomber Command attempted to stave off fears of tragic injury and death from fighters, flak and incessant operational pressure during raids on German cities, waterways, ports and oil installations. This continued until the Luftwaffe and the Nachtjagd effectively ceased to exist, their fuel supplies exhausted, their losses in airmen reaching an unsustainable level, and their aircraft and airfields decimated as a result of 24-hour Allied bombing.Often, it was the most exciting feats of bravery, determination and daring that were marked by the most catastrophic losses. Approximately 62 per cent of the 125,000 men who served as aircrew in Bomber Command during the war became casualties. Of these, 52 per cent were sustained while flying operations and a further ten per cent while on non-operational flights in Britain. It should never be forgotten that RAF Bomber Command played a hugely significant role in securing victory for the Allies, carrying out mass raids by day and night that eventually culminated in them 'beating the life out of Germany'. Yet its crews were denied the campaign medal that they so richly deserved, until very recently. Here, Martin Bowman attempts to provide an adequate tribute to the men of Bomber Command, using first-hand accounts to capture an authentic commentary of the times at hand in a release that is sure to capture the imaginations of all aviation enthusiasts.
Author: Martin W. Bowman
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473826624
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 255
Get Book Here
Book Description
This is the fifth release in a series that provides a comprehensive insight into all aspects of RAF Bomber Command in World War Two. It begins in late September 1944 when the Allied Bomber Offensive was at its height, and takes us through to the end of the conflict. The crews' personal narrative puts you at the centre of each intense, isolated and harrowing episode of aerial combat as the pilots of Bomber Command attempted to stave off fears of tragic injury and death from fighters, flak and incessant operational pressure during raids on German cities, waterways, ports and oil installations. This continued until the Luftwaffe and the Nachtjagd effectively ceased to exist, their fuel supplies exhausted, their losses in airmen reaching an unsustainable level, and their aircraft and airfields decimated as a result of 24-hour Allied bombing.Often, it was the most exciting feats of bravery, determination and daring that were marked by the most catastrophic losses. Approximately 62 per cent of the 125,000 men who served as aircrew in Bomber Command during the war became casualties. Of these, 52 per cent were sustained while flying operations and a further ten per cent while on non-operational flights in Britain. It should never be forgotten that RAF Bomber Command played a hugely significant role in securing victory for the Allies, carrying out mass raids by day and night that eventually culminated in them 'beating the life out of Germany'. Yet its crews were denied the campaign medal that they so richly deserved, until very recently. Here, Martin Bowman attempts to provide an adequate tribute to the men of Bomber Command, using first-hand accounts to capture an authentic commentary of the times at hand in a release that is sure to capture the imaginations of all aviation enthusiasts.
Author: Martin W. Bowman
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473822289
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 273
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Book Description
This, the fourth volume of a five part work that provides a comprehensive insight into all aspects of RAF Bomber Command in World War Two, begins in the spring of 1944 with a completely new insight on the catastrophic raid on Nuremburg on the night of 30/31 March and follows with the disastrous attack on Mailly-le-Camp in May. Gradually, the Allied Bomber Offensive began to bear fruit and in June 1944 the invasion of Normandy took place under an umbrella of almost total Allied air superiority. RAF Bomber Command was to play a huge part in what proved to be the final steps to ultimate victory, returning to the mass raids on German cities by night and even mounting raids on the Reich by day. The authors well-tried formula of using background information interspersed with the crews personal narrative takes you raid by raid through each tour of ops while carrying full bomb loads in sub-zero temperatures, blighted by atrocious weather conditions and dogged by fear of fire, death or serious injury or having to endure months if not years of miserable existence and near starvation behind the wire in notorious PoW camps. The path to peace was paved with the unmitigated slow ebbing of courage with an ever-present possibility of death unannounced from a prowling night fighter, nondescript and unseen, as night after incessant night, shattered and ailing bombers could run out of luck to crash in some foreign field while other crews, almost home almost empty - ran out of fuel and died horrible tortuous deaths in twisted and tangled wreckage. Not for them the glory that was accorded The Few but as Winston Churchill said: Fighters are our salvation, but the bombers alone provide the means of victory.
Author: Martin W. Bowman
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1783032715
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 542
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Book Description
This massive work provides a comprehensive insight to the experiences of Bomber Commands pilots and aircrew throughout WWII. From the early wartime years when the RAFs first attempts to avenge Germanys onslaught were bedeviled by poor navigation and inaccurate bombing, to the last winning onslaught that finally tamed Hitler in his Berlin lair, these volumes trace the true experiences of the men who flew the bombers. Hundreds of firsthand accounts are punctuated by the authors background information that puts each narrative into wartime perspective. Every aspect of Bomber Command's operational duties are covered; day and night bombing, precision low-level strikes, mass raids and operations throughout all wartime theaters. Contributions are from RAF personnel who flew the Commands different aircraft from the early Blenheims and Stirlings to the later Lancasters and Mosquitoes.Each volume is full of accounts that tell of the camaraderie amongst the crews, moments of sheer terror and the stoic humor that provided the critical bond. The five volumes of this work provide the most vivid and comprehensive work on the outstanding part played by RAF Bomber Command and their vital role in the destruction of the Third Reich.
Author: Martin W. Bowman
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1783461373
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 429
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Book Description
This massive work provides a comprehensive insight to the experiences of Bomber Commands pilots and aircrew throughout World War Two. From the early wartime years when the RAFs first attempts to avenge Germanys onslaught were bedeviled by poor navigation and inaccurate bombing, to the final winning onslaught that finally tamed Hitler in his Berlin lair, these volumes trace the true experiences of the men who flew the bombers. Hundreds of first-hand accounts are punctuated by the authors background information that put each narrative into wartime perspective. Every aspect of Bomber Commands operational duties are covered; day and night bombing, precision low-level strikes, mass raids and operations throughout all wartime theaters. Contributions are from RAF personnel who flew the commands different aircraft from the early Blenheims and Stirlings to the later Lancasters and Mosquitoes. Each volume is full of accounts that tell of the camaraderie amongst the crews, moments of sheer terror and the stoic humor that provided the critical bond. The five volumes of this work provide the most vivid and comprehensive work on the outstanding part played by RAF Bomber Command in their vital role in the destruction of the Third Reich.
Author: Martin W. Bowman
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1783032561
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 584
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Book Description
This massive work provides a comprehensive insight to the experiences of Bomber Commands pilots and aircrew throughout WWII. From the early wartime years when the RAFs first attempts to avenge Germanys onslaught were bedeviled by poor navigation and inaccurate bombing, to the last winning onslaught that finally tamed Hitler in his Berlin lair, these volumes trace the true experiences of the men who flew the bombers. Hundreds of firsthand accounts are punctuated by the authors background information that puts each narrative into wartime perspective. Every aspect of Bomber Command's operational duties are covered; day and night bombing, precision low-level strikes, mass raids and operations throughout all wartime theaters. Contributions are from RAF personnel who flew the Commands different aircraft from the early Blenheims and Stirlings to the later Lancasters and Mosquitoes.Each volume is full of accounts that tell of the camaraderie amongst the crews, moments of sheer terror and the stoic humor that provided the critical bond. The five volumes of this work provide the most vivid and comprehensive work on the outstanding part played by RAF Bomber Command and their vital role in the destruction of the Third Reich.
Author: Kevin Wilson
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1643130994
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 610
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Book Description
Bomber combat crews faced a wide array of perils as they flew over German territory. Bursts of heavy flak could tear the wings from their planes in a split second. Flaming bullets from German fighter planes could explode their fuel tanks, cut their oxygen supplies, destroy their engines. Thousands of young men were shot, blown up, or thrown from their planes five miles above the earth; and even those who returned faced the subtler dangers of ice and fog as they tried to land their battered aircraft back home.The winter of 1944 was the most dangerous time to be a combat airman in RAF Bomber Command. The chances of surviving a tour were as low as one in five, and morale had finally hit rock bottom. In this comprehensive history of the air war that year, Kevin Wilson describes the most dangerous period of the Battle of Berlin, and the unparalleled losses over Magdeburg, Leipzig and Nuremberg.Men of Air reveals how these ordinary men coped with the extraordinary pressure of flying, the loss of their colleagues, and the threat of death or capture. Brilliantly placing these stories within the context of The Great Escape, D-Day, the defeat of the V1 menace, and more, Wilson shows how the sheer grit and determination of these "Men of Air" finally turned the tide against the Germans.
Author: S. P. MacKenzie
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
ISBN: 0700624694
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 264
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Book Description
During World War II, Allied casualty rates in the air were high. Of the roughly 125,000 who served as aircrew with Bomber Command, 59,423 were killed or missing and presumed killed—a fatality rate of 45.5%. With odds like that, it would be no surprise if there were as few atheists in cockpits as there were in foxholes; and indeed, many airmen faced their dangerous missions with beliefs and rituals ranging from the traditional to the outlandish. Military historian S. P. MacKenzie considers this phenomenon in Flying against Fate, a pioneering study of the important role that superstition played in combat flier morale among the Allies in World War II. Mining a wealth of documents as well as a trove of published and unpublished memoirs and diaries, MacKenzie examines the myriad forms combat fliers' superstitions assumed, from jinxes to premonitions. Most commonly, airmen carried amulets or talismans—lucky boots or a stuffed toy; a coin whose year numbers added up to thirteen; counterintuitively, a boomerang. Some performed rituals or avoided other acts, e.g., having a photo taken before a flight. Whatever seemed to work was worth sticking with, and a heightened risk often meant an upsurge in superstitious thought and behavior. MacKenzie delves into behavior analysis studies to help explain the psychology behind much of the behavior he documents—not slighting the large cohort of crew members and commanders who demurred. He also looks into the ways in which superstitious behavior was tolerated or even encouraged by those in command who saw it as a means of buttressing morale. The first in-depth exploration of just how varied and deeply felt superstitious beliefs were to tens of thousands of combat fliers, Flying against Fate expands our understanding of a major aspect of the psychology of war in the air and of World War II.
Author: Allen Packwood
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108887856
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 439
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Book Description
Viewed by some as the saviour of his nation, and by others as a racist imperialist, who was Winston Churchill really, and how has he become such a controversial figure? Combining the best of established scholarship with important new perspectives, this Companion places Churchill's life and legacy in a broader context. It highlights different aspects of his life and personality, examining his core beliefs, working practices, key relationships and the political issues and campaigns that he helped shape, and which in turn shaped him. Controversial subjects, such as area bombing, Ireland, India and Empire are addressed in full, to try and explain how Churchill has become such a deeply divisive figure. Through careful analysis, this book presents a full and rounded picture of Winston Churchill, providing much needed nuance and context to the debates about his life and legacy.
Author: Peter Englund
Publisher: Knopf
ISBN: 1524733318
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 513
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Book Description
The New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice • An intimate history of the most important month of World War II, completely based on the diaries, letters and memoirs of the people who lived through it At the beginning of November 1942, it looked as if the Axis powers could still win the Second World War; at the end of that month, it was obviously just a matter of time before they would lose. In between were el-Alamein, Guadalcanal, the French North Africa landings, the Japanese retreat in New Guinea and the Soviet encirclement of the German 6th Army at Stalingrad. It may have been the most important thirty days of the twentieth century. In this hugely innovative and riveting history, Peter Englund has reduced an epoch-making event to its basic component: the individual experience. Englund’s narrative is based solely on what he learned from the writings of soldiers and ordinary citizens alike. They comprise a remarkable, deeply personal resource. In thirty memorable days, among those we meet are: a Soviet infantryman at Stalingrad; an American pilot on Guadalcanal; an Italian truck driver in the North African desert; a partisan in the Belarussian forests; a machine gunner in a British bomber; a twelve-year-old girl in Shanghai; a university student in Paris; a housewife on Long Island; a shipwrecked Chinese sailor; a prisoner in Treblinka; a Korean “comfort woman” in Mandalay; Albert Camus, Vasily Grossman and Vera Brittain—forty characters in all. In addition, we experience the construction and launching of SS James Oglethorpe, a Liberty ship built in Savannah; the fate of U-604, a German submarine; the building of the first nuclear reactor in Chicago; and the making of Casablanca. Not since the publication of the author’s last book, The Beauty and the Sorrow, which similarly looked at the First World War, have we had such a mesmerizing work of history.
Author: Malcolm Gladwell
Publisher: Penguin UK
ISBN: 0141998385
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 256
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Book Description
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER 'A parable written for the age of technological disruption . . . brilliantly told' Sunday Times The international bestselling author returns with an exploration of one of the grandest obsessions of the twentieth century 'The Bomber Mafia is a case study in how dreams go awry. When some shiny new idea drops from the heavens, it does not land softly in our laps. It lands hard, on the ground, and shatters.' In the years before the Second World War, in a sleepy air force base in central Alabama, a small group of renegade pilots put forth a radical idea. What if we made bombing so accurate that wars could be fought entirely from the air? What if we could make the brutal clashes between armies on the ground a thing of the past? This book tells the story of what happened when that dream was put to the test. The Bomber Mafia follows the stories of a reclusive Dutch genius and his homemade computer, Winston Churchill's forbidding best friend, a team of pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard, a brilliant pilot who sang vaudeville tunes to his crew, and the bomber commander, Curtis Emerson LeMay, who would order the bloodiest attack of the Second World War. In this tale of innovation and obsession, Gladwell asks: what happens when technology and best intentions collide in the heat of war? And what is the price of progress?
