Air Force Combat Units of World War II

Air Force Combat Units of World War II PDF Author: Maurer Maurer
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
ISBN: 1428915850
Category : United States
Languages : en
Pages : 520

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Book Description

Air Force Combat Units of World War II

Air Force Combat Units of World War II PDF Author: Maurer Maurer
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
ISBN: 1428915850
Category : United States
Languages : en
Pages : 520

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Book Description


Combat Squadrons of the Air Force; World War II.

Combat Squadrons of the Air Force; World War II. PDF Author: United States. USAF Historical Division
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : United States
Languages : en
Pages : 856

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Book Description
This collection of squadron histories has been prepared by the USAF Historical Division to complement the Division's book, Air Force Combat Units of World War II. The 1,226 units covered by this volume are the combat (tactical) squadrons that were active between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945. Each squadron is traced from its beginning through 5 March 1963, the fiftieth anniversary of the organization of the 1st Aero (later Bombardment) Squadron, the first Army unit to be equipped with aircraft for tactical operations. For each squadron there is a statement of the official lineage and data on the unit's assignments, stations, aircraft and missiles, operations, service streamers, campaign participation, decorations, and emblem.

Wings, Women, and War

Wings, Women, and War PDF Author: Reina Pennington
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
ISBN: 0700615547
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 352

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Book Description
The Soviet Union was the first nation to allow women pilots to fly combat missions. During World War II the Red Air Force formed three all-female units-grouped into separate fighter, dive bomber, and night bomber regiments-while also recruiting other women to fly with mostly male units. Their amazing story, fully recounted for the first time by Reina Pennington, honors a group of fearless and determined women whose exploits have not yet received the recognition they deserve. Pennington chronicles the creation, organization, and leadership of these regiments, as well as the experiences of the pilots, navigators, bomb loaders, mechanics, and others who made up their ranks, all within the context of the Soviet air war on the Eastern Front. These regiments flew a combined total of more than 30,000 combat sorties, produced at least thirty Heroes of the Soviet Union, and included at least two fighter aces. Among their ranks were women like Marina Raskova ("the Soviet Amelia Earhart"), a renowned aviator who persuaded Stalin in 1941 to establish the all-women regiments; the daredevil "night witches" who flew ramshackle biplanes on nocturnal bombing missions over German frontlines; and fighter aces like Liliia Litviak, whose twelve "kills" are largely unknown in the West. She also tells the story of Alexander Gridnev, a fighter pilot twice arrested by the Soviet secret police before he was chosen to command the women's fighter regiment. Pennington draws upon personal interviews and the Soviet archives to detail the recruitment, training, and combat lives of these women. Deftly mixing anecdote with analysis, her work should find a wide readership among scholars and buffs interested in the history of aviation, World War II, or the Russian military, as well as anyone concerned with the contentious debates surrounding military and combat service for women.

A Wing and a Prayer

A Wing and a Prayer PDF Author: Harry H. Crosby
Publisher: Open Road Media
ISBN: 1504067320
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 366

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Book Description
“A compelling account of the air war against Germany” written by the navigator portrayed by Anthony Boyle in Apple TV’s Masters of the Air (Publishers Weekly). They began operations out of England in the spring of ’43. They flew their Flying Fortresses almost daily against strategic targets in Europe in the name of freedom. Their astonishing courage and appalling losses earned them the name that resounds in the annals of aerial warfare and made the “Bloody Hundredth” a legend. Harry H. Crosby—depicted in the miniseries Masters of the Air developed by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg—arrived with the very first crews, and left with the very last. After dealing with his fear and gaining in skill and confidence, he was promoted to Group Navigator, surviving hairbreadth escapes and eluding death while leading thirty-seven missions, some of them involving two thousand aircraft. Now, in a breathtaking and often humorous account, he takes us into the hearts and minds of these intrepid airmen to experience both the triumph and the white-knuckle terror of the war in the skies. “Affecting . . . A vivid account . . . Uncommonly thoughtful recollections that address the moral ambiguities of a great cause without in any way denigrating the selfless valor or camaraderie that helped ennoble it.” —Kirkus Reviews “Re-creates for us the sense of how it was when European skies were filled with noise and danger, when the fate of millions hung in the balance. An evocative and excellent memoir.” —Library Journal “The acrid stench of fear and cordite, the coal burning stoves, the heroics, the losses . . . This has to be the best memoir I have read, bar none.” —George Hicks, director of the Airmen Memorial Museum

Revenge of the Red Raiders

Revenge of the Red Raiders PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780913511053
Category : World War, 1939-1945
Languages : en
Pages : 624

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Book Description
"Revenge of the Red Raiders takes the reader on an unforgettable journey with America's young airmen across the war zones of the Southwest Pacific Theater during World War II. This comprehensively researched and definitive account of one of America's premier Army Air Force bombardment units follows the 22nd Bomb Group from its prewar Stateside formation and training, through its deployment to Northern Australia during the earliest days of WWII, to the end of the conflict on the island of Okinawa"--Publisher's website.

The First Combat Bomb Wing in World War II

The First Combat Bomb Wing in World War II PDF Author: Ron Mackay
Publisher: Schiffer Military History
ISBN: 9780764343759
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This is a study of one of the 8th USAAF's sub-units. The 1st Combat Bomb Wing (1CBW), created on 13 September 1943, was preceded first by the 1st Bomb Wing, and then the 101st Provisional Bomb Wing, which included the 91BG as an element. By then, the 91BG was joined by the 351BG and 381BG, with the 351BG later displaced by the 398BG. The operational experience of these units virtually spanned the entire 33 months of the "Mighty Eighth's" existence and the often costly but finally successful campaign to deny Hitler's Germany the means with which to pursue its warped dreams of conquest.

The Schweinfurt-Regensburg Mission

The Schweinfurt-Regensburg Mission PDF Author: Martin Middlebrook
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1781598002
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 656

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Book Description
A detailed history of the American World War II bombing mission over Nazi Germany, by the author of The First Day on the Somme. On August 17, 1943, the entire strength of the American heavy bomber forces in England set out to raid two major industrial complexes deep in southern Germany: the Messerschmitt aircraft factory and the KGF ball bearing plant. For American commanders, it was the culmination of years of planning, the day when their self-defending formations of the famous Flying Fortress could at last perform their true role, reaching out by daylight to strike at targets in the deepest corners of industrial Germany. The day ended in disaster for the Americans. Thanks to the courage of the aircrews, the bombers won through to the targets and caused heavy damage, but sixty were shot down and the hopes of the American commanders were shattered. Historically, it was one of the most important days for the American air forces during the Second World War. While researching this catastrophic raid, author Martin Middlebrook interviewed hundreds of the airmen involved, German defenders, “slave workers,” and eyewitnesses. The result is a mass of fresh, previously unused material with which the author finally provides the full story of this famous day’s operations. Not only is the American side elaborated upon, but the previously vague German side of the story—both the Luftwaffe action and the civilian experiences in Schweinfurt and Regensburg—is also now presented clearly and in detail for the first time. Middlebrook also covers the important question of why the RAF did not support the American effort and follow up the raid on Schweinfurt as planned.

Air Force Combat Units of World War II

Air Force Combat Units of World War II PDF Author: Maurer Maurer
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic government information
Languages : en
Pages : 528

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Book Description


Boomerang!

Boomerang! PDF Author: Victor C. Tannehill
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 328

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Book Description


B-29 Superfortress Units of World War 2

B-29 Superfortress Units of World War 2 PDF Author: Robert F Dorr
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1782008357
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 202

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Book Description
Featuring photography and colour profiles throughout, a history of the bomber that shaped the Pacific War. The ultimate piston-engined heavy bomber of World War 2, 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.