Yakovlev Aces of World War 2

Yakovlev Aces of World War 2 PDF Author: George Mellinger
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1782005536
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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Book Description
This book focuses on the Soviet aces who scored all, or most of their victories in the Yak, drawing information from official unit histories and memoirs of the Soviet pilots themselves. The Yak-1 entered Soviet service in 1941, one of three modern types of aircraft accepted for production just prior to the German invasion of the USSR. Despite initial shortcomings, it soon proved to be the thoroughbred of the Soviet Airforce. Indeed, it remained in production until the end of the war, modernized but fundamentally recognizable. By VE-day about 33,100 Yakovlev fighters had been built. Virtually all Soviet fighter regiments flew at least one variety of Yak for a time, including those which gained their fame identified with other aircraft, and consequently many pilots known as Airacobra or Lavochkin aces also scored victories with the Yak. Many other famous aces were exclusively 'Yak patriots', including the French Normandie pilots.

Yakovlev Aces of World War 2

Yakovlev Aces of World War 2 PDF Author: George Mellinger
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1782005536
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 209

Get Book Here

Book Description
This book focuses on the Soviet aces who scored all, or most of their victories in the Yak, drawing information from official unit histories and memoirs of the Soviet pilots themselves. The Yak-1 entered Soviet service in 1941, one of three modern types of aircraft accepted for production just prior to the German invasion of the USSR. Despite initial shortcomings, it soon proved to be the thoroughbred of the Soviet Airforce. Indeed, it remained in production until the end of the war, modernized but fundamentally recognizable. By VE-day about 33,100 Yakovlev fighters had been built. Virtually all Soviet fighter regiments flew at least one variety of Yak for a time, including those which gained their fame identified with other aircraft, and consequently many pilots known as Airacobra or Lavochkin aces also scored victories with the Yak. Many other famous aces were exclusively 'Yak patriots', including the French Normandie pilots.

MiG-3 Aces of World War 2

MiG-3 Aces of World War 2 PDF Author: Dmitriy Khazanov
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1780960298
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 151

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Book Description
The complete story of the pilots who 'made ace' while flying the original MiG fighters. The MiG-1/3 family of fighters was built to satisfy a Soviet Air Force requirement for an advanced, fast, high-altitude fighter. Entering service in the spring of 1941, the problematic MiG-1 had its handling issues rectified with the hasty production of the MiG-3. Many of these were destroyed on the ground when the Germans launched Operation Barbarossa. Nevertheless, enough examples survived to allow pilots such as Stepan Suprun and Aleksandr Pokryshkin to claim a number of victories in the type. This book tells the complete story of the men who made ace in the first examples of the famous MiG fighter.

Soviet Lend-Lease Fighter Aces of World War 2

Soviet Lend-Lease Fighter Aces of World War 2 PDF Author: George Mellinger
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1782005544
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 147

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Book Description
The Soviet government tried to minimize the importance of Lend-lease fighters well into the 1980s. Only in recent years have these pilots felt free to admit what they flew, and now the fascinating story of these men can emerge. By the end of 1941 the Soviet Union was near collapse and its air force almost annihilated, leaving large numbers of surviving pilots with no aircraft to fly. To help prevent this collapse the UK eventually supplied a total of 4300 Hurricanes and Spitfires to the USSR. After the United States entered the war, the Americans extended Lend-lease to include direct supply to the Soviets as well as the British, and among the aircraft sent were almost 10,000 fighters. Although the aircraft were outdated and often unsuitable to Russian conditions, they served when they were needed, and this book tells how a number of Russian pilots became Heroes of the Soviet Union flying Lend-lease aircraft.

Il-2 Shturmovik Guards Units of World War 2

Il-2 Shturmovik Guards Units of World War 2 PDF Author: Oleg Rastrenin
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472805526
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 96

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Book Description
The first dramatic account of the Il-2 Shturmovik's operations by the most famous units of the Red Army Air Force. Over 43,000 Il-2/10s were built between 1941 and 1955, more than any other combat aircraft in history, making this one of the most important Soviet aircraft deployed in World War II. Built originally as a two-seater, the Il-2 had lost the rear gunner's position by the time it started to reach frontline units. Armed with ground-attack rockets, the aircraft proved deadly against Wehrmacht panzers as pairs of Il-2s roamed the frontline at low level. However, the Shturmoviks (armoured attackers) were vulnerable to attack from the rear by enemy fighters, so Ilyushin reverted to the two-seat layout in September 1942. Oleg Rastrenin provides a fascinating account of the complex development history of a plane that was crucial to Russia's defence. From Stalingrad to Kursk to Berlin, this book charts the aeroplane's vital contribution to the most famous battles of the Eastern front.

Spanish Republican Aces

Spanish Republican Aces PDF Author: Rafael A López Permuy
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1780964404
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 161

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Book Description
The first book published in English to focus exclusively on the exploits of the fighter aces of the Aviación Militar in their fight against the elite pilots of the better armed Nationalist force. At the start of the Spanish Civil War, most young fighter pilot officers joined the rebels, while the high ranking officers, grupo or escuadrilla commanders, and the NCOs, sergeants and corporals remained loyal to the government. Mostly flying the obsolete Nieuport Ni.52s these loyalists were soon outpaced by the more modern Fiat CR.32s and Heinkel He 51s. However, at this early stage of the war, there were several Republican airmen who became aces and famous in the process, despite the small numbers of enemy aircraft shot down. Widely speaking, the Republican military aviation did not keep an exhaustive record of individual shooting claims. However, sufficient documentation exists to make a reasonable assumption as to which pilots fall into the ace category. This volume details the exploits of those pilots, ideal for fans of previous works in the Osprey Aircraft of the Aces series on Nationalist CR.32 Aces and Polikarpov I-15, I-16 and I-152 Aces.

Italian Aces of World War 2

Italian Aces of World War 2 PDF Author: Giorgio Apostolo
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1782008551
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 152

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Book Description
Flying aircraft such as the Macchi 200-202, Fiat G.50 and biplane Fiat CR.42, the Italian fighter pilots were recognised by their Allied counterparts as brave opponents blessed with sound flying abilities, but employing under-gunned and underpowered equipment. Following the Italian surrender in September 1943, a number of aces continued to take the fight to the Allies as part of the Luftwaffe-run ANR, which was equipped with far more potent equipment such as the Bf 109G, Macchi 205V and Fiat G.55. Flying these types, the handful of ANR squadrons continued to oppose Allied bombing raids on northern Italy until VE-Day.

The Second World War in the Air

The Second World War in the Air PDF Author: Merfyn Bourne
Publisher: Troubador Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1780884419
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 425

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Book Description
This book is a complete narrative history of the Second World War in the air which starts by describing the early days of flight in order to put military air power in context when World War Two began. It then moves on to a step-by-step coverage of the air combat in each theatre of war. Offering a comprehensive history – that includes the lesser known campaigns such as the fighting in Burma, Italy and East Africa as well as the air offensive in Western Europe and the struggle in the Pacific – it also re-examines the RAF bombing of German cities and the moral issues raised. This is the first history of the air war to give full and proportionate coverage to the war in Russia, which until now has been largely ignored. The Second World War in the Air is a comprehensive review of the air war. It’s meticulously researched, readable and remains in touch with what the fighting meant for individuals in the various combatant nations.

Brewster F2A Buffalo Aces of World War 2

Brewster F2A Buffalo Aces of World War 2 PDF Author: Kari Stenman
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1849082499
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 97

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Book Description
A complete survey of all of the pilots who achieved Aces status using the Brewster F2A Buffalo. Although designed and built for the US Navy, the F2A fought in only one major US engagement, the battle of Midway, in which F2A pilots managed to shoot down a number of Japanese fighters. Soon replaced by the navy, the F2A was exported to Britain, where it was nicknamed the 'Buffalo' thanks to its stubby appearance. The British sent most of these fighters to the Far East where they were used in the defence of Singapore and Malaya. It was in the Winter War, however, that the F2A truly found a home. Calling the plane simply the Brewster, the Finnish flew it against the invading Russians. As this volume shows, overall 37 Finns achieved ace status flying the Brewster, and it was the Finnish fighter of choice until succeeded by the Bf 109 in 1943.

American Aces against the Kamikaze

American Aces against the Kamikaze PDF Author: Edward M. Young
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1782002898
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 220

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Book Description
This illustrated history describes the clashes between the US against the hastily created Kamikaze units of the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy Air Forces, some of the last large scale aerial engagements of the Pacific War. The Japanese High Command realised that the loss of Okinawa would give the Americans a base for the invasion of Japan. Its desperate response was to unleash the full force of the Special Attack Units, known in the west as the Kamikaze ('Divine Wind'). In a series of mass attacks in between April and June 1945, more than 900 Kamikaze aeroplanes were shot down. Conventional fighters and bombers accompanied the Special Attack Units as escorts, and to add their own weight to the attacks on the US fleet. In the air battles leading up to the invasion of Okinawa, as well as those that raged over the island in the three months that followed, the Japanese lost more than 7,000 aircraft both in the air and on the ground. In the course of the fighting, 67 Navy, 21 Marine, and three USAAF pilots became aces. As Edward M Young shows, in many ways it was an uneven combat and on numerous occasions following these uneven contests, American fighter pilots would return from combat having shot down up to six Japanese aeroplanes during a single mission.

Soviet Aces of World War 2

Soviet Aces of World War 2 PDF Author: Hugh Morgan
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1846037549
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 100

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Book Description
At the time of publication, no single volume in English had ever appeared in the West dealing with this intriguing subject area. Once restrictions relaxed in the former Soviet Union, the records of their elite pilots' deeds - detailed in this book - came to light. Although initially equipped with very poor aircraft, and robbed of effective leadership thanks as much to Stalin's purges in the late 1930s as to the efforts of the Luftwaffe, Soviet fighter pilots soon turned the tables through the use of both lend-lease aircraft like the Hurricane, Spitfire, P-39 and P-40, and home-grown machines like the MiG-3, LaGG-3/5, Lavochkin La-5/7/9 and the Yak-1/3.