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Author: William Wolf
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472844599
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 81
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Book Description
The XB-40 and XB-41 were secret, little-known experimental modifications of the B-17F and B-24D, respectively, into heavily-armed bomber gunships sometimes referred to as “bomber escorters”. They were developed during early World War II in response to the lack of a USAAF long-range fighter aircraft able to escort and protect regular B-17 formations making the round trip from Britain deep into Germany. Using many formerly-classified documents from his large microfilm collection, William Wolf presents their previously-unpublished history. It describes in depth for the first time the politics and development and associated problems of both escorter types. Unfortunately, these “protecters” were found wanting in several ways - after the addition of guns and ammunition they became overweight and tail-heavy causing center of gravity problems and each encountered numerous delays in the development and delivery of their various armament additions and improvements, particularly the Bendix chin turret. In the end, the YB-40 participated in only 14 lackluster operational service test missions during mid-1943 before being withdrawn from service. The XB-41 Liberator never saw operational testing before also being cancelled for its poor performance. The failure of the gunship concept left a huge hole in the capabilities of the Eighth Air Force. Their failure, however, spurred the adoption of the Merlin-powered P-51 Mustang, the outstanding escort fighter that was key to Allied victory in the air war over Europe.
Author: William Wolf
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472844572
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 81
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Book Description
The XB-40 and XB-41 were secret, little-known experimental modifications of the B-17F and B-24D, respectively, into heavily-armed bomber gunships sometimes referred to as “bomber escorters”. They were developed during early World War II in response to the lack of a USAAF long-range fighter aircraft able to escort and protect regular B-17 formations making the round trip from Britain deep into Germany. Using many formerly-classified documents from his large microfilm collection, William Wolf presents their previously-unpublished history. It describes in depth for the first time the politics and development and associated problems of both escorter types. Unfortunately, these “protecters” were found wanting in several ways - after the addition of guns and ammunition they became overweight and tail-heavy causing center of gravity problems and each encountered numerous delays in the development and delivery of their various armament additions and improvements, particularly the Bendix chin turret. In the end, the YB-40 participated in only 14 lackluster operational service test missions during mid-1943 before being withdrawn from service. The XB-41 Liberator never saw operational testing before also being cancelled for its poor performance. The failure of the gunship concept left a huge hole in the capabilities of the Eighth Air Force. Their failure, however, spurred the adoption of the Merlin-powered P-51 Mustang, the outstanding escort fighter that was key to Allied victory in the air war over Europe.
Author: William Wolf
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472844599
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 81
Get Book Here
Book Description
The XB-40 and XB-41 were secret, little-known experimental modifications of the B-17F and B-24D, respectively, into heavily-armed bomber gunships sometimes referred to as “bomber escorters”. They were developed during early World War II in response to the lack of a USAAF long-range fighter aircraft able to escort and protect regular B-17 formations making the round trip from Britain deep into Germany. Using many formerly-classified documents from his large microfilm collection, William Wolf presents their previously-unpublished history. It describes in depth for the first time the politics and development and associated problems of both escorter types. Unfortunately, these “protecters” were found wanting in several ways - after the addition of guns and ammunition they became overweight and tail-heavy causing center of gravity problems and each encountered numerous delays in the development and delivery of their various armament additions and improvements, particularly the Bendix chin turret. In the end, the YB-40 participated in only 14 lackluster operational service test missions during mid-1943 before being withdrawn from service. The XB-41 Liberator never saw operational testing before also being cancelled for its poor performance. The failure of the gunship concept left a huge hole in the capabilities of the Eighth Air Force. Their failure, however, spurred the adoption of the Merlin-powered P-51 Mustang, the outstanding escort fighter that was key to Allied victory in the air war over Europe.
Author: William Schumann
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1435754948
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 384
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Book Description
In addition to being a memoir based on the author's secret wartime diary, it is also the only complete history of the battleship ever published. The author, who served on the ship throughout the war, was the observer in a Vought OS2U Kingfisher seaplane used for aerial spotting and observation, especially during the shelling of enemy defenses during amphibious invasions. In addition to his diary, he researched the ship's records in the archives to produce this complete history/memoir. 79 photos, 43 documents, 2 maps.
Author: Paul H. Silverstone
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Warships
Languages : en
Pages : 458
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Book Description
Author: Richard P. Klobuchar
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476605432
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 281
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Book Description
In 1940, the threat of war in the Pacific forced the United States to expand its fleet quickly. This effort included reconditioning and recommissioning "four stackers" from the navy's reserve fleet. Built in 1918 to fight German submarines, the USS Ward earned at Pearl Harbor the distinction of firing the first shot in America's war against Japan. In the three years that followed, it was bombed, shelled, strafed, and finally sunk (on December 7, 1944), yet none of her crew of 125 men ever lost a life in combat. Information is drawn from naval records as well as from interviews with surviving crewmen. Appendices provide Ward technical data, a chronology of major events, listings of citations earned in World War II and of amphibious landings, and a roster of personnel.
Author: Barrett Tillman Robert L. Lawson
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781610607643
Category : Dive bombers
Languages : en
Pages : 132
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Book Description
With their stout airframes, innovative airbrakes and near-vertical dive capabilities, U.S. Navy torpedo and dive bombers rendered Japanese deck gunners nearly defenseless and played a crucial role in Allied victory. Remarkable period color photography and quotes and anecdotes from pilots and crewmembers relate the stories behind Navy dive bombers. Included in the collection are the legendary SBD ("Slow But Deadly") Dauntless, SBC Helldiver, TBD Devastator and TBF and TBM Avengers. In addition to depicting the aircraft, photos show American airmen testing and training, while first-person accounts tell of missions against Japanese vessels.
Author: C.J. Skamarakas
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 0811772098
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 259
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Book Description
PT boats loom large in the popular imagination of World War II. In March 1942, a PT boat evacuated Gen. Douglas MacArthur, his family, and top staff from the Philippines, which inspired the war movie They Were Expendable, directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne. John F. Kennedy became a war hero while commanding PT-109, which collided with a Japanese destroyer and was sunk in August 1943. But the story of PT boats has never been told in the depth and detail that their exemplary service deserves. Naval historian C. J. Skamarakas uses one Pacific PT boat squadron to tell the story of PT boats in action in World War II. Eighty feet long, PT boats were designed to launch torpedoes against enemy ships five and ten times their own size. But defects in the torpedoes and the boats’ speed and maneuverability ultimately shifted the boats’ mission to patrolling and breaking up Japanese shipping and reinforcements. In the waters of the Southwest Pacific as part of MacArthur’s offensives in New Guinea and the Philippines, Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 25 completed these missions and also executed other operations for which they weren’t specifically trained, including inserting commandos behind enemy lines, air-sea rescue, raids on enemy positions, reconnaissance of potential sites for amphibious landings, coordination of air strikes in support of ground forces, meetings with guerrilla leaders, recovery of prisoners of war, diversionary activities, and psychological operations. Today we would call many of their missions “special ops.” The Japanese called PT boats “mosquitoes” and “devil boats.” The Devil Boats recounts the unique contributions of one motor torpedo boat squadron and through it tells the story of PT boats in the Pacific War. With drama and excitement, as well as careful attention to detail, the book fills a void in the history of the U.S. Navy in World War II.
Author: Paul H. Silverstone
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Warships
Languages : en
Pages : 64
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Book Description
Author: Mark Lardas
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472839722
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 49
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Book Description
The Destroyer Escort was the smallest ocean-going escort built for the United States Navy – a downsized destroyer with less speed, fewer guns, and fewer torpedoes than its big brother, the fleet destroyer. Destroyer escorts first went into production because the Royal Navy needed an escort warship which was larger than a corvette, but which could be built faster than a destroyer. Lacking the shipyards to build these types of ships in Britain, they ordered them in the US. Once the US unexpectedly entered World War II, its navy suddenly also needed more escort warships, even warships less capable than destroyers, and the destroyer escort was reluctantly picked to fill the gap. Despite the Navy's initial reservations, these ships did yeoman service during World War II, fighting in both the Atlantic and Pacific, taking on both U-boat and Japanese submarines and serving as the early warning pickets against kamikazes later in the war. They also participated in such dramatic actions as the Battle of Samar (where a group of destroyers and destroyer escorts fought Japanese battleships and cruisers to protect the escort carriers they were shielding) and the capture of the U-505 (the only major naval vessel captured at sea by the US Navy). The destroyer escorts soldiered on after World War II in both the United States Navy and a large number of navies throughout the world, with several serving into the twenty-first century. This book tells the full story of these plucky ships, from their design and development to their service around the world, complete with stunning illustrations and contemporary photographs.
Author: Barrett Tillman
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439190895
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 451
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Book Description
This is the epic and heroic story of the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise and of the courageous men who fought and died on her from Pearl Harbor to the end of the conflict. Acclaimed military historian Barrett Tillman recounts the World War II exploits of America’s most decorated warship and its colorful crews— tales of unmatched daring and heroism.
