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Vividly recounts the combat history of the legendary U.S. 56th Fighter Group Focuses on the pilots, their friendships and rivalries, and their battles "Beware the Thunderbolt!" With that motto, the pilots of the U.S. Eighth Air Force's 56th Fighter Group--also known as Zemke's Wolfpack--took to the skies above Europe in their P-47 Thunderbolt fighters, escorting bombers into Germany, dogfighting with the Luftwaffe, and conducting ground-attack missions. The first group to receive the P-47, the 56th pioneered aerial tactics and compiled a staggering record: 665.5 aerial kills, 311 ground kills, thirty-nine fighter aces with five or more kills, two Distinguished Unit Citations, eighteen Distinguished Service Crosses, and twenty-eight Silver Stars.
Zemke's adventures in the sky as the US 8th Air Force's foremost Fighter Group commander, his experiences on the ground as a prisoner of war (Stalag Luft I), and his involvement after the cease-fire with Zeiss Optical Works, a pioneer in creating advanced optical technology used for intelligence. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.
The only US 8th Army Air Force fighter group to retain the mighty P-47 Thunderbolt throughout its combat tour in the European Theater of Operations, the 56th Fighter Group justified its nickname of 'Zemke's Wolfpack' by the aggressive attitude and tactics instilled by its original wartime commander Hub Zemke. This attitude continued through to VE-Day under the auspices of his successors Dave Schilling and Lucian Dade, and it became the top scoring 8th Air Force group for victories in air-air combat. Justifiably considered one of the greatest tacticians and leaders in VIII Fighter Command, Zemke's leadership engendered an esprit de corps that was second to none. Fighting High Publishing brings together historians Nigel Julian and Peter Randall to tell the story of the 'Wolfpack', complimented by a foreword from the Group's wartime leader's son Hub Zemke Jr. The two authors are the owners of the websites at 56thfightergroup.co.uk and littlefriends.co.uk respectively, universally acknowledged as the two finest sites on the 56th and VIII Fighter Command. Having researched the 56th Fighter Group for many years, they have established an international reputation for their expertise in the history of this famous unit. Looking beyond the Thunderbolt flight line, the authors have delved deep into their own extensive collections, along with the 56th Fighter Group museum archives and the many private photograph albums, made available to them by veterans and veteran's families, in order to produce the most in-depth photographic record of the Wolfpack and its associated service units published to date. More than 400 photographs, the majority of which are previously unpublished, show views from behind the scenes alongside newly discovered aircraft noseart, social events, maintenance and repairs which, together with detailed captions, make this a visual and information feast. The modern day legacy is recorded with a section depicting memorials to the 56th Fighter Group. A full honor roll of those who made the ultimate sacrifice is included along with details of all confirmed claims by the Group's air-air 'Aces'.
"On the morning of June 19, 1944, as U.S. troops were battling Japanese forces on Saipan in the Mariana Islands in the Pacific, American pilots based on aircraft carriers offshore rushed to their planes to protect their fleet from an enemy attack from the air. Calling the mission a once-in-a-lifetime fighter pilot's dream when he spotted a large mass of enemy planes bearing down on the U.S. ships, one navy pilot from Indiana, Alex Vraciu, flying a Hellcat fighter from the USS Lexington, pounced on the Japanese and shot down six dive bombers in just eight minutes. Written by award-winning biographer Ray E. Boomhower, Fighter Pilot: The World War II Career of Alex Vraciu, the sixth volume in the Indiana Historical Society Press's youth biography series, examines the daring exploits of the Hoosier flier during his wartime career. A graduate of DePauw University, Vraciu learned to fly during his college years through a government program and joined the navy before America was thrust into the war following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Possessed with keen eyesight, quick reflexes, excellent shooting instincts, and a knack for finding his opponent's weak spot, Vraciu became skilled in the deadly game of destroying the enemy in the skies over the Pacific Ocean. For a period of four months in 1944, Vraciu stood as the leading ace in the U.S. Navy. He shot down nineteen enemy airplanes in the air, destroyed an additional twenty-one on the ground, and sank a large Japanese merchant ship with a well-placed bomb hit. Vraciu's luck, however, finally ran out on December 14, 1944, during a strafing run against a Japanese airfield before the American invasion to retake the Philippines. Luckily he was almost immediately rushed to safety by a small group of U.S. Army in the Far East guerrillas, who had been battling the Japanese in the area for the past few years. The navy pilot spent the next five weeks with the guerrillas, receiving the honorary rank of brevet major while with them. Vraci finally marched into an American camp carrying with him a captured Japanese Luger pistol and sword."--Amazon.com
The long-awaited, critically acclaimed autobiography of Francis "Gabby" Gabreski, the legendary ace fighter pilot of World War II and the Korean War. "I recommend Gabby to anyone who wants an accurate description of what war is all about".--Chuck Yeager.
Fighter Pilot is the memoir of legendary ace American fighter pilot and general officer in the U.S. Air Force, Robin Olds. Robin Olds was a larger-than-life hero with a towering personality. A graduate of West Point and an inductee in the National College Football Hall of Fame for his All-American performance for Army, Olds was one of the toughest college football players at the time. In WWII, Olds quickly became a top fighter pilot and squadron commander by the age of 22—and an ace with 12 aerial victories. But it was in Vietnam where the man became a legend. He arrived in 1966 to find a dejected group of pilots and motivated them by placing himself on the flight schedule under officers junior to himself, then challenging them to train him properly because he would soon be leading them. Proving he wasn't a WWII retread, he led the wing with aggressiveness, scoring another four confirmed kills, becoming a rare triple ace. Olds, who retired a brigadier general and died in 2007, was a unique individual whose personal story presents one of the most eagerly anticipated military books in recent memory. Please note: This ebook edition does not include the photo insert from the print edition.
This is the story of a special breed of warrior, the fighter-bomber pilot; the story of valiant men who flew the F-105 Thunderchief 'Thud' Fighter-Bomber over the hostile skies of North Vietnam. From the briefing rooms to the bombing runs, Vice-Wing Commander Colonel Jack Broughton, recounts the tragedy and heartache, the high drama and flaming terror, the exhilaration and thrill of life on the edge. He relives the incredible feeling of high-speed, low-level sorties where SAM missiles, flak and MiGs were all in a day's work. The bravery of the pilots and their commitment to each other in times of extreme fear, crisis and catastrophe are highlighted by vivid, fast moving flying sequences. Thud Ridgeis a fascinating and graphic memorial to the courage of the men, the power of their machines and their dedication to their mission.
Sensational eyewitness accounts from the most heroic and legendary American aviators of World War II, never before published as a book They are voices lost to time. Beginning in the late 1970s, five veteran airmen sat for private interviews. Decades after the guns fell silent, they recounted in vivid detail the most dangerous missions that made the difference in the war. Ed Haydon dueled with the deadliest of German aces—and forced him to the ground. Robert Johnson racked up twenty-seven kills in his P-47 Thunderbolt, but nearly lost his life when his plane was shot to ribbons and his guns jammed. Cigar-chomping Curtis LeMay was the Air Corps general who devised the bomber tactics that pummeled Germany's war machine. Robin Olds was a West Point football hero who became one of the most dogged, aggressive fighter pilots in the European theater, relentlessly pursuing Germans in his P-38 Lightning. And Jimmy Doolittle became the most celebrated American airman of the war—maybe even of all time—after he led the audacious raid to bomb Tokyo. Today these heroes are long gone, but now, in this incredible volume, they tell their stories in their own words.
The US aviation industry produced three great fighter designs to equip its burgeoning army air force during World War 2, and of this trio, Republic's P-47 Thunderbolt was easily the heaviest. Powered, crucially, by a turbocharged Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engine that produced 2000 hp, the first production fighters reached the 56th FG in June 1942, and six months later the group joined the Eight Air Force in Britain. The arrival of the first P-47Cs in mid-1943 addressed the problem of the aircraft's short combat radius, as this model could be fitted with an external tank. Slowly, as combat tactics evolved in units like the 56th and 78th FGs, pilots learnt how best to fly the Thunderbolt in order to effectively counter the more nimble Luftwaffe fighters.