The Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor was conceived for peace but turned to a warlike purpose savaging convoys bringing vital supplies to Britain. The aircraft Churchill called "the scourge of the Atlantic" became synonymous with the struggle to supply the Allies by sea. As a truly long-range reconnaissance bomber, the Condor acted as the eyes and ears ......
Volume 2 of our two-volume visual history of the North American B-25 Mitchell. This second of two volumes on the North American B-25 Mitchell covers the late-WWII G through J, F-10, and PBJ variants of the famed US medium bomber. Among the many topics discussed are the Mitchell versions used by the US Navy and Marine Corps, as well as ......
The Second World War was a time of tremendous technological progress in aviation with innovations such as jet engines and swept wings being brought in as engineers on all sides desperately sought every possible performance advantage. In Germany, the quest for better aircraft resulted in some astonishing designs - everything from bombers with ......
Packed with never-before-seen photos and plans and meticulous new digital artwork, this is the first history of the USAAFs futuristic World War II prototype interceptor, the XP-67 "Moonbat". The series of X-planes that sprang from the US Armys Request for Data R40C, focused on high-altitude, high-speed, long-range bomber ......
September 1940: In the midst of the Second World War, the Luftwaffe unleashed a series of devastating raids on Southampton, all but destroying its spitfire factories. But production didnt stop. Instead, manufacturing of this iconic fighter moved underground, to secret locations staffed by women, children and non-combatant men. With little ......
The perfect companion to Masters of the Air on Apple TV+, this is a superbly illustrated examination of the aircraft, pilots, crews and operations of the US Eighth Air Force. The US Eighth Air Force-known as the "Mighty Eighth"-was a combat air force activated in Georgia, USA on January 28, 1942. Its bomber command ......
Illustrated with colourful artworks of carrier aircraft and their markings, Allied Carrier Aircraft of World War II is a detailed guide to all the aircraft deployed by the Allied navies from 1939 to 1945. Organised chronologically by type and nationality, this book includes fighters, fighter-bombers, torpedo bombers, dive-bombers, ......
The Pacific Profiles series presents the most accurate WWII profiles of aircraft which served in the South Pacific theatre. Volume Seven covers the Douglas C-47, including numerous derivatives such as the C-53, R4D and DC-3. This was the most universal aircraft type to appear in the South Pacific and was deployed from day one to the cessation ......
The 1944 Allied invasion of France was a combined effort, with land- and sea-based forces supported by a huge aerial task force, which included legendary aircraft such as the Spitfire, Mosquito, Dakota and Mustang. The force comprised the RAF, its commonwealth allies and the USAAF, which resulted in an eclectic mix of gliders, heavy bombers, ......
The untold story of the elite force that spearheaded almost every British bombing raid over Nazi Germany by the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Kamikaze Hunters. Perfect for fans off John Nichols Spitfire, Patrick Bishops Fighter Boys and Dambusters Dark low-level raids, dodging anti-aircraft flak to make pinpoint-accurate drops - the ......
Allied Fighters 1939-45 offers an highly-illustrated guide to Allied fighter aircraft that fought in Europe during World War II. Featuring all the main models flown by the Allied air forces from 1939 to 1945, the book offers a wealth of detail, including unit markings, organization, numbers of aircraft flown by campaign and exhaustive ......
Using first-hand accounts and brand-new artwork, this book brings to life the realities of flying the Bf 109 in combat during the very first battles of World War II. The Bf 109 was one of the principal fighter aircraft types in the Luftwaffes inventory during the opening months of World War II and it was central to many of ......
The book describes some of the most daring air attacks of World War II. Some were outstanding successes and some were unmitigated disasters. North Sea Battle: In the early weeks of World War II, Britain and Germany were determined to attack one anothers warships in their respective naval bases. Both RAF and Luftwaffe learned the folly of ......
A new pictorial history of one of the most significant aircraft of the Second World War. Masquerading as a civilian airliner during the mid-1930s, the Heinkel He 111 medium-range bomber saw its first combat in 1936 with Germanys Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War. The initial stages of World War II confirmed the designs prominent role ......
For the first time, this book tells the story of how naval air operations evolved into a vital element of the Royal Navys ability to fight a three-dimensional war against both the Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe. An integral part of RN, the Fleet Air Arm was not a large organisation, with only 406 pilots and 232 front-line aircraft available for ......
Within weeks of war being declared, Wolfgang Fischer had volunteered to join the Luftwaffe and spent nearly five of the succeeding six years of hostilities in uniform. During this time, he was given a succession of postings varying from a long-range recce unit; as a decoder in a met office in occupied France; to a bomber squadron; and as a ......
This is a detailed and fully illustrated monograph which chronicles and considers the camouflage and markings of aircraft operated by the Royal Navy between 1937 and 1941. Among the types included are the Supermarine Walrus, Blackburn Shark, Blackburn Skua, Blackburn Roc, Gloster Sea Gladiator, Hawker Osprey IV, Fairey Swordfish, Fairey Seafox, ......
During the years preceding and during WW2, the RAF and the Royal Aircraft Establishment were responsible for the selection and procurement of British military aircraft and also to evaluate their capabilities against captured enemy models whenever possible. During the lend-lease agreement with the USA, the RAF and Fleet Air Arm operated several ......
Arguably one of the finest piston-engined fighters ever built, the Focke-Wulf Fw 190D-9 raised the bar in terms of aircraft design and operational capability during World War II. Designed by Kurt Tank, the long-nosed Fw 190D9 Dora bettered most of the fighters that the Allied and Soviet air forces could field when it first appeared in the skies ......
The history of Dornier aircraft in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. Soviet Heavy Fighters 1926 1949 showcases some of the lesser known, often forgotten, aircraft types, as well as a group of young and prolific aircraft designers who never had a chance to flourish under difficult wartime conditions and limitations inherent to the ......
Many books on the Luftwaffe in World War II have been published over the years, although the Night Fighters branch has been studied less often. In our Guide to German Night Fighters in World War II you will be able to know all the types and subtypes of aircraft used by the Luftwaffe in the night defense of Germany. In addition, in a didactic ......
The Pacific Profiles series presents the most accurate WWII profiles of aircraft which served in the South Pacific theatre. Volume Six covers a dozen USAAF Fifth and Thirteenth Air Force squadrons which operated the Bell P-39 and P-400 Airacobra from April 1942 until March 1944. They were used in a variety of roles including as fighters, ......
Volume Five of this series chronicles aerial warfare primarily in the New Guinea theatre in the critical period between September and December 1942. It can be read alone or as a continuation of the previous four volumes which span the first nine months of the Pacific War. By early September the strategic picture in the theatre had changed ......
This first of two volumes on the Supermarine Spitfire covers the design, testing, development, and early WWII combat use of the famed British fighter aircrafts initial variants. The Spitfire in its original marques up to the Mk. VII provided a platform that allowed the Royal Air Force to challenge the German Luftwaffes Messerschmitt Bf 109 and ......
A fully illustrated overview of Luftwaffe victory markings in World War II. This book provides an overview of the victory markings painted on the fins and rudders of the planes of the German day fighter and night fighter aircraft between 1939 and 1945, and demonstrates how these were applied in reality through the profiles of nineteen pilots, ......
This is the gripping story of the Battle of Britain; of some of the most fateful weeks in history.
Drawing on eyewitness accounts from both the RAF and the Luftwaffe, this is a compelling story of history in the making through an intensely fought battle, taking the reader into the heart of the action as told by those who fought and ......
Throughout the first year of the war in the Pacific during World War II the USAAF was relatively ineffective against ships. Indeed, warships in particular proved to be too elusive for conventional medium-level bombing. High-level attacks wasted bombs, and torpedo attacks required extensive training. But as 1942 closed, the Fifth Air Force ......
A fully illustrated history of how the US Navy destroyed Truk, the greatest Japanese naval and air base in the Pacific, with Operation Hailstone, and how B-29 units and the carriers of the British Pacific Fleet kept the base suppressed until VJ-Day. In early 1944, the island base of Truk was a Japanese Pearl Harbor; a powerful naval and air ......