Download or read book Air Commandos Against Japan written by Carolyn C Y'Blood and published by Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 2008-10-01 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1943 the U.S. Army Air Forces created what would become the Air Commandos, a unit that marked a milestone in tactical operations in support of British ground forces invading Burma. William T. Y’Blood tells the story of how these daring American aviators trained and went into combat using unconventional hit-and-run tactics to confuse the enemy and destroy their lines of communication and supply. The force comprised light planes to evacuate wounded, transports to move heavy cargo, fighters, gliders, helicopters, and more than five hundred men. The book describes how this top-secret force successfully attacked the enemy from the air, resupplied British commandos on the ground, and airlifted the wounded out of the battle area—eventually driving the Japanese out of Burma.
Download or read book Operation Thursday written by Herbert A. Mason and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 45 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A bold, unconventional use of American air power to support British ground troops in Burma, Operation THURSDAY marked a critical development in the history of modern warfare. On March 5-6, 1944, the Allies conducted an air invasion of Burma in an attempt to push back the Japanese in the China-Burma-India Theater and reestablish the land route between India and China. U.S. airmen formed a special operations unit -- the 1st Air Commando Group -- to transport troops to jungle locations and resupply them, often in the line of fire. The remarkable success of this operation lives on, 50 years later, among the elite 1st Air Commando Group -- a force committed to meeting the challenge of unconventional warfare any time, any place, anywhere.
Download or read book Operation Thursday written by Herbert Mason and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2012-05-26 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A bold, unconventional use of American air power to support British ground troops in Burma, Operation THURSDAY marked a critical development in the history of modern warfare. On March 5-6, 1944, the Allies conducted an air invasion of Burma, in an attempt to push back the Japanese in the China-Burma-India Theater and reestablish the land route between India and China. U.S. Airmen formed a special operations unit - the 1st Air Commando Group - to transport troops to jungle locations and resupply them, often in the line of fire. The remarkable success of this operation lives on, fifty years later, among the elite 1st Air commando Group - a force committed to meeting the challenge of unconventional warfare anytime, any place, anywhere.
Download or read book Project 9 written by Dennis R. Okerstrom and published by University of Missouri Press. This book was released on 2014-07-08 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Project 9: The Birth of the Air Commandos in World War II is a thoroughly researched narrative of the Allied joint project to invade Burma by air. Beginning with its inception at the Quebec Conference of 1943 and continuing through Operation Thursday until the death of the brilliant British General Orde Wingate in March 1944, less than a month after the successful invasion of Burma, Project 9 details all aspects of this covert mission, including the selection of the American airmen, the procurement of the aircraft, the joint training with British troops, and the dangerous night-time assault behind Japanese lines by glider. Based on review of hundreds of documents as well as interviews with surviving Air Commandos, this is the history of a colorful, autonomous, and highly effective military unit that included some of the most recognizable names of the era. Tasked by the General of the Army Air Forces, H. H. “Hap” Arnold, to provide air support for British troops under the eccentric Major General Wingate as they operated behind Japanese lines in Burma, the Air Commandos were breaking entirely new ground in operational theory, tactics, and inter-Allied cooperation. Okerstrom’s in-depth research and analysis in Project 9 shed light on the operations of America’s first foray into special military operations, when these heroes led the way for the formation of modern special operations teams such as Delta Force and Seal Team Six.
Download or read book Operation Thursday Birth Of The Air Commandos Illustrated Edition written by Herbert A. Mason Jr. and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2015-11-06 with total page 33 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Includes 20 Illustrations OPERATION THURSDAY — A bold, unconventional use of American air power to support British ground troops in Burma, Operation THURSDAY marked a critical development in the history of modern warfare. On March 5-6, 1944, the Allies conducted an air invasion of Burma, in an attempt to push back the Japanese in the China-Burma-India Theater and re-establish the land route between India and China. U.S. airmen formed a special operations unit—the 1st Air Commando Group—to transport troops to jungle locations and resupply them, often in the line of fire. The remarkable success of this operation lives on, fifty years later, among the elite 1st Air Commando Group—a force committed to meeting the challenge of unconventional warfare any time, any place, anywhere.
Download or read book Any Place Any Time Any where written by R. D. Van Wagner and published by Schiffer Military Aviation His. This book was released on 1998 with total page 171 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The 1st Air Commandos were sired by General of the Army Henry H. "Hap" Arnold and brought to life by the imagination of two men, Lieutenant Colonel Philip G. Cochran and Lieutenant Colonel John R. Alison. In gathering men of character and tenacity, these two visionaries molded a unit which had to overcome orthodox military minds, paralyzing fear, and Burma's impregnable terrain before taking the fight to the Japanese. With a focus on the might and flexibility of air power, Cochran and Alison constructed an experimental unit which cut across the structured lines of conventional organizations. Forming an air arsenal which was totally unique in its composition and application, they combined the firepower of P-51A fighters and B-25H bombers with the logistical tentacles of C-47 transports, CG-4A gliders, L-5 and L-1 light planes, and UC-64 bush planes to reach far behind Japanese lines. The list of firsts is noteworthy - first airborne glider "snatch" in combat, first double tow of gliders into a combat arena, first helicopter operations, first helicopter combat rescue, first gunship employment, and first rockets fired against an enemy. Unorthodox and eclectic, the 1st Air Commandos serve as a model for conventional and special operations today.
Download or read book Army Air Forces in the War Against Japan 1941 1942 written by United States. Army Air Forces. Historical Office and published by . This book was released on 1945 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Flying Tiger to Air Commando written by Charles Baisden and published by Schiffer Military History. This book was released on 1999 with total page 157 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Flying Tiger to Air Commando is an enlisted man's story of over twenty years of service to his country. From enlistment in the Army Air Corps at age nineteen as a Private to his retirement at age 44 as a Master Sgt., his unusual tale will interest all aviation, history, and gunnery buffs. At age twenty he volunteered for the American Volunteer Group, hardly aware of China and its problems with Japan, but was soon to find out as an armorer with Chennault's famed Flying Tigers. When that elite group was broken up, he returned to the States, soon to return to the CBI theater flying as a B-25 gunner with his good friend from the Tigers, R.T. Smith, in the First Air Commandos. The end of WWII was not the end of combat for Sgt. Baisden, who saw service in the Korean War, both as an armorer in the 80th Fighter-Bomber Squadron of the 8th Fighter-Bomber Group, and as a gunner on B-29s in the 93rd Heavy Bombardment Squadron, 19th Bomb Group. His last days in the Air Force were flown as an in-flight refueling technician in KC-97s with the 308th, 2nd, and 19th Air Refueling Squadrons. His down-to-earth narrative is interesting and informative, and is presented along with his own period
Download or read book Apollo s Warriors written by Michael E. Haas and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 1998-05 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presenting a fascinating insider's view of U.S.A.F. special operations, this volume brings to life the critical contributions these forces have made to the exercise of air & space power. Focusing in particular on the period between the Korean War & the Indochina wars of 1950-1979, the accounts of numerous missions are profusely illustrated with photos & maps. Includes a discussion of AF operations in Europe during WWII, as well as profiles of Air Commandos who performed above & beyond the call of duty. Reflects on the need for financial & political support for restoration of the forces. Bibliography. Extensive photos & maps. Charts & tables.
Download or read book Air War for Burma written by Christopher F. Shores and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 456 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the story of the Allied air campaign across Australia, Sumatra, Java, the Philippines, Burma and Ceylon during World War II. It documents the Allied underestimation of Japanese ability, and ends with the Japanese at the extremities of their advance.
Download or read book Operation THURSDAY written by Herbert A. Mason and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 45 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book 1st Air Commando Group written by R. D. Van Wagner and published by . This book was released on 1986 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Hitting Home The Air Offensive Against Japan Illustrated Edition written by Daniel L. Haulman and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2015-11-06 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Includes 20 illustrations The strategic bombardment of Japan during World War II remains one of the most controversial subjects of military history because it involved the first and only use of atomic weapons in war. It also raised the question of whether strategic bombing alone can win wars, a question that dominated U.S. Air Force thinking for a generation. Without question, the strategic bombing of Japan contributed very heavily to the Japanese decision to surrender. The United States and her allies did not have to invade the home islands, an invasion that would have cost many thousands of lives on both sides. This pamphlet traces the development of the bombing of the Japanese home islands, from the modest but dramatic Doolittle raid on Tokyo in April 1942, through the effort to bomb from bases in China that were supplied by airlift over the Himalayas, to the huge 500-plane raids from the Marianas in the Pacific. The campaign changed from precision daylight bombing to night incendiary bombing of Japanese cities and ultimately to the use of atomic bombs against Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The story covers the debut of the spectacular B-29 aircraft—in many ways the most awesome weapon of World War II— and its use not only as a bomber but also as a mine-layer. Hitting Home is the sequel to High Road to Tokyo Bay, a pamphlet by the same author that concentrated on Army Air Forces’ tactical operations in Asia and the Pacific areas during World War II. Taken together, they provide an overview of U.S. Army Air Forces’ operations, tactical and strategic, against Japan. The U.S. air offensive against Japan is the central story of the Pacific war—a drama of human courage and sacrifice and of a unique partnership among modern air, sea, and land forces.
Download or read book Mission to Tokyo written by Robert F. Dorr and published by Zenith Press. This book was released on 2012-09-15 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From Hell Hawks! author Bob Dorr, Mission to Tokyo takes the reader on a World War II strategic bombing mission from an airfield on the western Pacific island of Tinian to Tokyo and back. Told in the veterans' words, Mission to Tokyo is a narrative of every aspect of long range bombing, including pilots and other aircrew, groundcrew, and escort fighters that accompanied the heavy bombers on their perilous mission. Several thousand men on the small Mariana Islands of Guam, Saipan, and Tinian were trying to take the war to the Empire—Imperial Japan—in B-29 Superfortresses flying at 28,000 feet, but the high-altitude bombing wasn't very accurate. The decision was made to take the planes down to around 8,000 feet, even as low as 5,000 feet. Eliminating the long climb up would save fuel, and allow the aircraft to take heavier bomb loads. The lower altitude would also increase accuracy substantially. The trade-off was the increased danger of anti-aircraft fire. This was deemed worth the risk, and the devastation brought to the industry and population of the capital city was catastrophic. Unfortunately for all involved, the bombing did not bring on the quick surrender some had hoped for. That would take six more months of bombing, culminating in the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. As with Mission to Berlin (Spring 2011), Mission to Tokyo focuses on a specific mission from spring 1945 and provides a history of the strategic air war against Japan in alternating chapters.
Download or read book Historical Analysis of the 1st Air Commando Group Operations in the CBI Theater August 1943 to May 1944 written by Air Command Air Command and Staff College and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2014-12-05 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book conducts an analysis of the 1st Air Commando Group (ACG) and its operations in the China-Burma-India (CBI) theater from August 1943 to May 1944. History lends credence to the fact that this small unorthodox group of airmen, envisioned from the simple idea of "what if" and fashioned in a mere few months time into a cohesive and viable fighting force, breathed life into the stagnant Allied effort of removing the Japanese from the China-Burma-India theater. The question is, how? How could such a small unit, which was forced upon the traditional military structure in the CBI theater, accomplish the seemingly impossible where others before had failed? The author maintains that the success of the 1st Air Commando Group was the result of key factors which when combined formed a "magic elixir" boosting the ailing Allied effort in this theater. Those key factors were strong leadership, efficient organization including the hiring of the "right" people, unit training, joint training to promote teamwork, and, tactics and innovation. This analysis gathered supporting information from primary source documents stored at the USAF Historical Research Agency (USAFHRA) as well as utilizing secondary sources for background information. This book looks at the 1st Air Commando Group from August 1943 through May 1944. It begins with a discussion of the events which gave rise to the need for the Air Commandos. Following is a discussion of the organization of the unit, deployment, preparations in-theater, and Operation THURSDAY -the aerial invasion of Burma. Analysis of the reasons for success follows next. Finally, the book closes with final thoughts on the 1st Air Commando Group and lessons learned. The unit was broken apart following its successes through May 1944, never to fight again as an independent cohesive organization. The author surmises that the key ingredients to the "magic elixir" success of this fighting force were no longer present. Without those key factors, the unit was not to be. If it could be narrowed down to a single factor, the underlying key to the success of the Air Commandos was the effective leadership of individuals like General H. H. Arnold, Colonel Philip Cochran, Colonel John Alison, British Brigadier General Orde C. Wingate, and British Admiral Mountbatten. The strength of character and conviction of these individuals enabled an unorthodox organization to be superimposed on an orthodox system and make it work. Finally, many of the ways in which the military operates today-emphasis on joint doctrine, the establishment of US Special Operations Command, and the like-find their roots in the organization and operations of the First Air Commandos. The military was deaf to the Air Commando "lessons learned" for many years. It is ironic that the services have come full circle and now endorse many of their procedures in formalized doctrine.
Download or read book Dick Cole s War written by Dennis R. Okerstrom and published by University of Missouri Press. This book was released on 2015-12-31 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With the 100th anniversary of his birth on September 7, 2015 Dick Cole has long stood in the powerful spotlight of fame that has followed him since his B-25 was launched from a Navy carrier and flown toward Japan just four months after the attack on Pearl Harbor. In recognition the tremendous boost Doolittle’s Raid gave American morale, members of The Tokyo Doolittle Raiders were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in May 2014. Doolittle’s Raid was only the opening act of Cole’s flying career during the war. When that mission was complete and all of the 16 aircraft had crash-landed in China, many of the survivors were assigned to combat units in Europe. Cole remained in India after their rescue and was assigned to Ferrying Command, flying the Hump of the Himalayas for a year in the world’s worst weather, with inadequate aircraft, few aids to navigation, and inaccurate maps. More than 600 aircraft with their crews were lost during this monumental effort to keep China in the war, but Cole survived and rotated home in 1943. He was home just a few months when he was recruited for the First Air Commandos and he returned to India to participate in Project 9, the aerial invasion of Burma.
Download or read book The Strategic Air War Against Germany and Japan A Memoir written by Major General Haywood S. Hansell Jr. USAF and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2015-11-06 with total page 299 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book seeks to recount the air experience and development before World War II, to describe the objectives, plans and effects of strategic air warfare in Europe and in the Pacific, and to offer criticism, opinion, and lessons of that great conflict. MAJOR GENERAL HAYWOOD S. HANSELL, JR., USAF (Retired), is a native of Atlanta, Georgia. A graduate of Georgia Institute of Technology (1924), he entered the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1928. Trained as a fighter pilot, he flew in the Air Corps Aerobatic and Demonstration Team (1932) led by Captain Claire Chennault. In the mid-1930s Hansell specialized in strategic bombardment, teaching tactics and doctrine at the Air Corps Tactical School from 1935 to 1938. Just prior to World War II, he went to Army Air Forces Headquarters where he helped draft the fundamental war requirements plan for the service. In 1942 he became Commanding General, Third Bombardment Wing (B-26s), Eighth Air Force, in the European Theater. Subsequently General Hansell commanded the First Bombardment Division (B-17s), Eighth Air Force, and in 1944-45 the XXI Bomber Command (B-29s), Twentieth Air Force, in the Pacific. The latter command was one of only two long-range B-29 commands conducting strategic air warfare against Japan. In 1946 he retired, suffering from a physical disability. During the Korean War (1950-53), the Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force recalled him to active duty, assigning him as Chief, Military Assistance Program Headquarters, USAF, and subsequently as Air Member Review Board, Weapons Systems Evaluation Group, reporting to the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Research and Development and to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. After four years as a senior program manager and advisor, General Hansell retired again. He is the author of The Air Plan That Defeated Hitler (1972) and Strategic Air War Against Japan (1980).
