Tag: ww2 air combat

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Jagdverband 44, the Me 262 and the Luftwaffe’s Mavericks

Coming soon from Osprey and author Robert Forsyth is Jagdverband 44: The Luftwaffe’s Mavericks, the dramatic story of Jagdverband 44, the squadron of aces founded by leading Luftwaffe pilot Adolf Galland equipped with the new Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter.

Jagdverband (JV) 44 was formed as a result of conflict and dissent within the Luftwaffe’s high command. Following disagreement with Reichsmarschall Herman Göring, the commander of the fighter arm, Adolf Galland, was dismissed from his post and exiled. He was given permission to set up a small fighter unit with which to prove that the revolutionary Me 262 was the war-winning jet fighter he believed it to be.

Assembling a small group of disillusioned and weary Luftwaffe fighter aces and flying instructors, Galland – arguably the most famous German fighter ace of World War II – moved his unit, JV 44, to Munich, from where it operated the Me 262 against USAAF aircraft bombing targets in Austria and southern Germany.

In this reappraisal of JV 44, published 30 years after his acclaimed and bestselling first study of the unit, leading Luftwaffe historian Robert Forsyth assesses Galland’s motives for forming the unit and whether it can be regarded more accurately as a ‘Squadron of Aces’ or a ‘Squadron of Outcasts and Exiles’. The book contains numerous first-hand accounts sourced by the the author during his research in the 1990s when he met with several former pilots from the squadron.

The 448 page book is currently available for pre-order in hardcover, audiobook and Kindle editions with release set for November 3.

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Operation Amherst: The Last Airborne Operation of WWII

Coming soon from Pen and Sword Military and authors Joël Stoppels and Harold de Jong is Operation Amherst: The Last Airborne Operation of WWII, which covers the final airborne operation of WWII, detailing French paratroopers’ landings, rapid combat in Drenthe and Friesland, and subsequent liberation efforts in Groningen and beyond.

In preparation for the liberation of the northern part of the Netherlands, Operation Amherst was launched on the night of 7 to 8 April 1945. This last airborne operation of the Second World War was carried out by 702 French (SAS) paratroopers. The fighting developed quickly after the landings in the province of Drenthe and a part of southeast Friesland. Canadian and British forces would then engage in the liberation of Groningen and the Westerbork concentration camp, and the elimination of the Delfzijl Pocket.

The 224 page hardcover book is currently available for pre-order with release set for October 30.

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Bird Men: The B-29 Superfortress and WW2 American Airpower

Coming soon from Mariner Books and bestselling author A.J. Baime is Bird Men: The Rise of American Airpower and the Machine That Ended World War II – A WWII History of American Airpower and the Superfortress That Changed the Course of the War.

Of all the feats of American ingenuity in World War II, perhaps none was as impressive in scale or vital to the Allied victory as the creation of American airpower. Just a few years before the start of World War II, the American military was stuck in the dark ages of aviation, with the U.S. Army’s Air Corps mainly focused, not on combat, but on mail delivery. Fast forward to end of the war, and America had launched the most impressive flying machine the world had ever seen: the B-29 Superfortress, a weapon so essential to ending the war that its research and development process cost more than the Manhattan Project. Continue reading Bird Men: The B-29 Superfortress and WW2 American Airpower

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Coming Soon: Illustrated Study of America’s Failed First Pacific Air Campaign

Coming soon from Osprey Publishing and author Mark Lardas is Philippines 1941–42: America’s disastrous start to the Pacific War, a fully illustrated study of the Pacific War’s little-known first major air campaign.

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese not only attacked Pearl Harbor, but also struck at US and allied bases throughout the Pacific, including the USA’s biggest overseas territory, the Philippines. However, that was an air battle the US was expecting. The USAAF had beefed up its assets in the Philippines, sending nearly a quarter of its available B-17s to the Far Eastern Air Force (FEAF).It could also call on the Philippine Army Air Corps (PAAC).

Aviation historian Mark Lardas explains how despite that, in a campaign that lasted barely a month, Japan’s air forces routed both the FEAF and the PAAC, gaining air superiority and permitting Imperial Army troops undisturbed access to the Philippine coast. Within a week Japan ruled the skies over Luzon. Two weeks later it had air superiority over all the Philippines. After a month, its control was so complete the Imperial Army felt confident to move its 5th Air Group back out of the Philippines. While desultory air combat would continue off and on for the next three months, the issue was decided by 5 January 1942.

Packed with original artwork, 3D diagrams, maps and photos, this is the history of how the first air campaign of the Pacific War turned into a humiliating defeat for the United States.

The 96 page publication is currently available for pre-order in paperback and Kindle editions with release scheduled for July 28.

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