The first title in the Elite Units series to deal with an American bombardment group, this title focuses on the 303rd BG, dubbed the 'Hells Angels.' One of the very first B-17 units assigned to the newly created Eighth Air Force in England in September 1942, the 303rd was in the vanguard of the daylight bombing campaign through to VE-Day. Awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation in January 1944, the 303rd also had two of its aircrewmen presented with the Medal of Honor, Americas ultimate military decoration. Brian O Neill brings the group's colourful combat history to life with a mix of...
The first title in the Elite Units series to deal with an American bombardment group, this title focuses on the 303rd BG, dubbed the 'Hells Angels.' O...
Synonymous with the Afrika Korps and the campaign in North Africa, JG 27 provided Rommel's army with fighter protection for virtually the whole 'roller coaster ride that was the war in the Western Desert from 1941-43. Formed in Germany on 1 October 1939 (with Adolf Galland as CO of I.Gruppe), JG 27 saw considerable action both during the Battles of France and Britain, downing 146 aircraft in the latter campaign alone. Sent to North Africa in April 1941, the geschwader had an immediate impact on the campaign, which had up until then been dominated by the Allies. The third volume in the...
Synonymous with the Afrika Korps and the campaign in North Africa, JG 27 provided Rommel's army with fighter protection for virtually the whole 'rolle...
One of the most important, and yet least publicised, components of the front-line Luftwaffe was the Schlacht, or ground attack, arm. This book details the Schlacht units who were in the thick of the fighting from the first day of the war until the last. They played a vital part in the heady successes of the early Blitzkrieg campaigns and went on to perform an equally essential role in the dark hours of last ditch defence and ultimate defeat. In between, they fought in all defensive battles: on the eastern front at Stalingrad, Kursk and Berlin; in the west, by night, over Normandy, the...
One of the most important, and yet least publicised, components of the front-line Luftwaffe was the Schlacht, or ground attack, arm. This book deta...
Undoubtedly the most famous of any nation's aviation units in World War 1 was the legendary Jagdgeschwader Nr 1, or 'The Flying Circus' as its respectful foes labelled it. Germany's first true fighter wing, it would always be associated with its first commander, the charismatic and revered Manfred von Richthofen. JG 1 was formed in July 1917, and for sixteen months the unit's young pilots in their colourful aircraft battled for aerial dominance of the Western Front. From its ranks emerged many of Germany's most successful airmen, including the Red Baron's brother Lothar; Ernst Udet; Werner...
Undoubtedly the most famous of any nation's aviation units in World War 1 was the legendary Jagdgeschwader Nr 1, or 'The Flying Circus' as its respect...
After struggling with inadequate supplies of aircraft and materiel, the veteran pilots of the Geschwader would go on to enjoy incredible successes against French and American opponents in September 1918. Aces who flew the famous blue-fuselaged Fokkers of JG II included such stalwarts as Josef Veltjens (35 kills), Georg von Hantelmann (25 kills), Franz Buchner (40 kills) and Ulrich Neckel (30 kills). This volume contains many first-hand accounts by these and other notable aces, which reveal the esprit de corps and camaraderie these airmen displayed in their struggles against superior numbers...
After struggling with inadequate supplies of aircraft and materiel, the veteran pilots of the Geschwader would go on to enjoy incredible successes aga...
This book tells the story of one of World War I's most famous squadrons, Spa. 124 - the only French squadron made up entirely of American volunteers (save for the commander and executive officer.) Organised in April 1916, the group was successively dubbed the Escadrille Americaine, Escadrille des Volontaires and finally the Escadrille Lafayette. Its achievements were modest, but it included several colourful characters who captured the public imagination and played a major role in gaining American sympathy for the Allied cause. When the United States finally entered the war, many Lafayette...
This book tells the story of one of World War I's most famous squadrons, Spa. 124 - the only French squadron made up entirely of American volunteers (...
This book traces the combat history of the most famous and highest-scoring fighter group in France's World War I Aviation Militaire. Groupe de Combat 12 boasted the highest-scoring Allied fighter pilot, Rene Fonck, and France's most celebrated hero of the air, Georges Guynemer. Its ranks included numerous other famous aces, such as Rene's Dorme, Alfred Heurteaux, Albert Deullin, and American volunteers Edwin Parsons and Frank L. Baylies. Additionally, Guynemer was instrumental in developing France's premier series of fighter planes, the SPAD VII, XII, XIII and XVII.
This book traces the combat history of the most famous and highest-scoring fighter group in France's World War I Aviation Militaire. Groupe de Combat ...
The 49th FG was sent to Australia in early 1942 to help stem the tide of Japanese conquest in Java. Too late to save the island, the group went into action in the defence of Darwin, Australia, where the Forty-Niners' handful of P-40E Warhawks were thrown into combat alongside survivors from the defeated forces that had fled from the Philippines and Java. This book assesses the outstanding performance of the 49th FG, pitted against superior Japanese forces. By VJ-Day the group had scored 668 aerial victories and won three Distinguished Unit Citations and ten campaign stars for its outstanding...
The 49th FG was sent to Australia in early 1942 to help stem the tide of Japanese conquest in Java. Too late to save the island, the group went into a...
The 'storm troopers' of the Luftwaffe, the elite Strumgruppen units comprised the most heavily armed and armoured fighter interceptors ever produced by the Germans. Their role was to smash like a mighty fist through the massed ranks of USAAF daylight bombers. Only volunteers could serve with these elite units, and each pilot was trained to close with the enemy and engage him in extremely short-range combat, attacking from the front and the rear in tight arrowhead formations. In exceptional circumstances pilots would even ram their enemy. This book chronicles the brief, but violent, career of...
The 'storm troopers' of the Luftwaffe, the elite Strumgruppen units comprised the most heavily armed and armoured fighter interceptors ever produced b...
The pilots called themselves the 'Tokyo Club'. It was a simple task to become a member. All you had to do was strap yourself into a heavily loaded P-51 Mustang, take off from Iwo Jima (a postage-stamp sized volcanic island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean), fly 650 miles north over the sea - often through monsoon storms - in your single-engined aircraft to Japan, attack a heavily defended target in the vicinity of the enemy's capital city and then turn around and fly home while fretting over your shrinking fuel supply and perhaps battle damage as well. If your gas held out and you were...
The pilots called themselves the 'Tokyo Club'. It was a simple task to become a member. All you had to do was strap yourself into a heavily loaded ...
