Download or read book Oswald Boelcke written by R.G. Head and published by Grub Street Publishers. This book was released on 2016-08-05 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This biography of the pioneering WWI flying ace who mentored the Red Baron is “fascinating . . . [it] captures combat aviation at its inception” (MiG Sweep: The Magazine of Aviation Warriors). With a total of forty victories, Oswald Boelcke was Germany’s first ace in World War I—and a century later he remains a towering figure in the history of air warfare, renowned for his character, inspirational leadership, organizational genius, development of air-to-air tactics, and impact on aerial doctrine. Paving the way for modern air forces across the world with his pioneering strategies, Boelcke had a dramatic effect on his contemporaries. The famed Red Baron’s mentor, instructor, squadron commander, and friend, he exerted a tremendous influence upon the German air force. He was one of the first pilots to be awarded the famous Pour le Mérite, commonly recognized as the “Blue Max.” All of this was achieved after overcoming medical obstacles in childhood and later life with willpower and determination. Boelcke even gained the admiration of his enemies: After his tragic death in a midair collision, Britain’s Royal Flying Corps dropped a wreath on his funeral, and several of his captured foes sent another wreath from their German prison camp. His name and legacy live on, as seen in the Luftwaffe’s designation of the Tactical Air Force Wing 31 “Boelcke.” This definitive biography reveals his importance as a fighter pilot who set the standard in military aviation.
Download or read book Fighter Pilot written by William R. Dunn and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2014-04-23 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This WWII fighter pilot memoir recounts the author’s many exploits as a flying ace during WWII in the Normandy invasions, the Battle for France and beyond. Born in Minneapolis in 1916, William R. Dunn decided to become a fighter pilot at the age of twelve. In 1939 he joined the Canadian Army and was soon transferred to the Royal Air Force. As part of the RAF’s famous Eagle Squadron, Dunn was sent to Europe to fight in the Second World War. Flying Hawker Hurricanes and Supermarine Spitfires, he was the first Eagle Squadron pilot to shoot down an enemy aircraft. When he later transferred to the US Army Air Forces, he became the first American ace of the war. Lieutenant Colonel Dunn saw action in the Normandy invasion and in Patton's sweep across France. Twenty years later he fought again in Vietnam. In this lively memoir, Dunn keenly conveys the fighter pilot's experience of war—the tension of combat, the love of aircraft, the elation of victory, the boisterous comradeship and competition of the pilot brotherhood.
Download or read book First Fighter Ace written by Stanisław Skalski and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2017-08-01 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stanisław Skalski was the top Polish fighter ace and the first Allied fighter ace of World War II. His combat career began on the war’s very first day, September 1, 1939, and within two weeks, Skalski had achieved ace status, with six German kills to his credit. After Poland’s surrender, Skalski and other Polish pilots ended up in England to join the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain. He later took command of the Polish Fighting Team, known as Skalski’s Circus, which claimed twenty-six enemy aircraft shot down in a mere two months in North Africa. Skalski then became the first Pole to command an RAF squadron, which he led in Sicily and Italy until he took over a Polish fighter wing and saw action in France after D-Day. According to official tallies, he had scored some twenty aerial victories.
Download or read book Fighter Aces of the U S A written by Raymond F. Toliver and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page 404 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Lists American fighter pilot aces who flew during the U.S. engagements in aerial warfare from World War I to Vietnam.
Download or read book Pushing the Envelope written by Marion Carl and published by Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 2014-03-15 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: First published in 1994, this stirring autobiography of a fighter and test pilot takes readers full throttle through Carl's imposing list of "firsts." Beginning with his World War II career, he gained such commendations as first Marine Corps ace, among the first Marines ever to fly a helicopter, and first Marine to land aboard an aircraft carrier. His combat duty included the momentous battles at Midway and Guadalcanal. Not one to rest on his laurels, however, he participated in photoreconnaissance operations over Red China in 1955 and flew missions in Vietnam. In peacetime he gamed fame for "pushing the envelope" as a test pilot, adding the world's altitude and peace records to his wartime feats and becoming the first U.S. military aviator to wear a full pressure suit. Such achievements also led to Carl's being the first living Marine admitted to the Naval Aviation Hall of Honor, as well as the first Marine to be named to the Navy Carrier Aviation Test Pilots Hall of Honor. This very readable memoir is as forthright and compelling as the man it chronicles.
Download or read book Fighter Pilot written by Christina Olds and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2010-04-13 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Please note: This ebook edition does not include the photo insert from the print edition. The widely anticipated memoir of legendary ace American fighter pilot, 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 is one of the most eagerly anticipated military books of the year.
Download or read book One in a Thousand written by Graham Broad and published by University of Toronto Press. This book was released on 2017-03-20 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This short microhistory details the life and death of Eddie McKay, a varsity athlete at Western University, who flew with the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War. Graham Broad switches creatively from telling McKay's fascinating story to teaching valuable lessons on how to do history: why the past matters, why historians take different approaches, how to pose historical questions, how to identify relevant source materials, and the importance of thoughtful, intelligent, and respectful treatment of historical subjects. The book includes a timeline of the subject's life, a map of relevant combat areas in the Battle of the Somme, and nine illustrations. It concludes with four unsolved events in McKay's life: a mysterious woman, a strange advertisement for batteries, an empty envelope, and an unknown grave—demonstrating that even a detailed history about one person's life is never really complete.
Download or read book Richard Bong written by Pete Barnes and published by Wisconsin Historical Society. This book was released on 2013-06-19 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Who would have imagined a farm boy from Wisconsin would be the greatest air hero of World War II? Richard Bong was an athletic and hard-working boy from northern Wisconsin who dreamed of flying from the first time a plane buzzed low over his family farm. When war broke out, he left behind a life of sports, deer hunting, and farm chores to fly the new P-38 Lightning for the Army Air Force. Stationed in New Guinea, Bong shot down a total of 40 Japanese flyers in under three years - beating the record of 26 set by Eddie Rickenbacker in World War I. His accomplishments won this modest pilot the title "Ace of Aces" and a Congressional Medal of Honor awarded by General MacArthur himself. Follow Bong as he navigates his way through basic training, flight school, and life on an overseas army base. Watch as he takes to the skies in his P-38 fighter jet, outflying Japanese aircraft with barrel rolls, dives, and turns. Celebrate as he meets and marries the love of his life back home in Wisconsin, and mourn as his life comes to a swift and unexpected end during an ill-fated training flight in California. Richard Bong: World War II Flying Ace is part of the Badger Biographies series for young readers. The engaging narrative is complemented by an accessible format that includes historic photographs, a glossary of terms, sidebars on life in the military, and suggestions for activities and discussion.
Download or read book Race of Aces written by John R Bruning and published by Hachette Books. This book was released on 2020-01-14 with total page 534 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The astonishing untold story of the WWII airmen who risked it all in the deadly race to become the greatest American fighter pilot. In 1942, America's deadliest fighter pilot, or "ace of aces" -- the legendary Eddie Rickenbacker -- offered a bottle of bourbon to the first U.S. fighter pilot to break his record of twenty-six enemy planes shot down. Seizing on the challenge to motivate his men, General George Kenney promoted what they would come to call the "race of aces" as a way of boosting the spirits of his war-weary command. What developed was a wild three-year sprint for fame and glory, and the chance to be called America's greatest fighter pilot. The story has never been told until now. Based on new research and full of revelations, John Bruning's brilliant, original book tells the story of how five American pilots contended for personal glory in the Pacific while leading Kenney's resurgent air force against the most formidable enemy America ever faced. The pilots -- Richard Bong, Tommy McGuire, Neel Kearby, Charles MacDonald and Gerald Johnson -- riveted the nation as they contended for Rickenbacker's crown. As their scores mounted, they transformed themselves from farm boys and aspiring dentists into artists of the modern dogfight. But as the race reached its climax, some of the pilots began to see how the spotlight warped their sense of duty. They emerged as leaders, beloved by their men as they chose selfless devotion over national accolades. Teeming with action all across the vast Pacific theater, Race of Aces is a fascinating exploration of the boundary between honorable duty, personal glory, and the complex landscape of the human heart. "Brings you into the cockpit of the lethal, fast-paced world of fighter pilots . . . Fascinating." -- Sara Vladic"Extraordinary . . . a must-read." -- US Navy Captain Dan Pedersen"A heart-pounding narrative of the courage, sacrifice, and tragedy of America's elite fighter pilots." -- James M. Scott"Vivid and gripping . . . Confirms Bruning's status as the premier war historian of the air." -- Saul David
Download or read book The First Hellcat Ace written by Hamilton McWhorter and published by Casemate. This book was released on 2024-03-15 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A new biography of Hamilton "Mac" McWhorter, the first pilot to achieve ace status in the Hellcat. Although he objected to being characterized as such, Hamilton McWhorter III's service to family and country make him a standout among America's Greatest Generation. A Georgia native whose family roots date from that region's settlement during the 1700s, “Mac” McWhorter was a naval aviation cadet undergoing training when Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japan on December 7, 1941. After earning his Wings of Gold in early 1942, Ensign McWhorter was trained as a fighter pilot in the robust but technologically outmoded F4F Wildcat. Initially assigned to VF-9—a fiercely spirited and hard-playing fighter squadron—he saw first combat in November 1942 against Vichy French forces in North Africa. After returning to the United States, VF-9 became the first unit to convert to the new Grumman F6F Hellcat. This was the fighter the U.S. Navy would use to crush Japanese air power during the long offensive from the Southwest Pacific to the shores of Japan. From mid-1943, Hamilton McWhorter was constantly engaged in the unforgiving and deadly aerial warfare that characterized the battles against Imperial Japan. His fifth aerial victory, in November 1943 off Tarawa Atoll, made him the first ace in the Hellcat, and seven subsequent victories ensured his place in the annals of air-to-air combat. McWhorter's combat service, from the beginning of the war to the last campaign off the shores of Okinawa, makes his story a must-read for the serious student of the Pacific air war. Hamilton McWhorter III retired from the Navy as a commander in 1969. He passed away in 2008.
Download or read book Dick Bong written by George C. Kenney and published by . This book was released on 2022-06-07 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During World War II, Major Richard "Dick" Ira Bong's legendary exploits at the helm of his P-38 Lightning made him a household name. Bong received the Medal of Honor for his exploits of downing 40 enemy Japanese planes in the Southwestern Pacific. His tally of 40 victories made him the highest-scoring American ace of all time, a record that is unlikely to ever be broken. Bong died at the tender age of 24 on the 6th of August 1945 in a flight accident during testing of the P-80 Shooting Star Fighter. His fame was such that news of his death vied with the atomic bomb attack on Hiroshima in the US press.
Download or read book The First Fighter Pilot Roland Garros written by Ed Cobleigh and published by . This book was released on 2019-06-06 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Roland Garros enjoyed an exciting life. An aviation pioneer in the early 1900s, he taught himself how to fly a bamboo airplane despite crashing it at Versailles. He was a world-class athlete, a lawyer who wouldn't learn Latin, a sports car salesman on the Champs-Elysées, an airshow pilot and racer. He demonstrated flight to huge crowds up and down the Americas. Ultimately, Roland Garros became the world's first fighter pilot. Leaving his comfortable life in Paris, he flew and fought in the lethal skies of the first World War. Never before had a lone pilot hunted other men in the air. Shot down and captured, he escaped prisoner of war camp, evaded his way across Germany, and crossed the front lines. After a torrid fling in Paris with an exotic dancer, he rejoined his squadron. Garros needed two more aerial victories to become an ace. This creative non-fiction biography puts you in an open cockpit, in air combat, and in Paris experiencing Belle Epoque pleasures. What was it like to fly across the Mediterranean in a rickety monoplane? How did pilots dogfight in WWI? Fasten your seatbelt for exciting aerial action and the adventure-packed life of Roland Garros, the first fighter pilot!
Download or read book Airplanes Women and Song written by Bois Sergievsky and published by Syracuse University Press. This book was released on 2017-01-30 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Boris Sergievsky was one of the most colorful of the early aviators. He made his first flight less than ten years after the Wright brothers made theirs; he made his last only four years before the Concorde took off. Born in Russia, Sergievsky learned to fly in 1912. In World War I, he became a much-decorated infantry officer and then a fighter pilot, battling the Austro-Hungarians. During the Russian Civil War that followed, he fought on three fronts against the Bolsheviks. Coming to America in 1923, the first job he could find in New York was with a pick and shovel, digging the Holland Tunnel, but he soon joined Igor Sikorsky’s airplane company. Over the next decade as chief test pilot for the company, he tested the Sikorsky flying boats that Pan American Airways used to establish its world-wide routes, setting seventeen world aviation records along the way. Sergievsky also flew pioneering flights across unchartered African and Latin American jungles in the 1930s, flew with Charles Lindbergh, tested early helicopters and jets, and flew his own Grumman Mallard on charter flights until 1965. Through it all, his sense of humor remained intact, as did his passion for beautiful women.
Download or read book Flying Aces of World War I written by Gene Gurney and published by . This book was released on 1973 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Bristol F2 Fighter Aces of World War I written by Jon Guttman and published by Osprey Publishing. This book was released on 2007-09-18 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the history of the best Allied fighter-destroyer of World War 1 and the pilots who flew it. Nicknamed "Biff" by the pilots, the Bristol F2 Fighter enjoyed extraordinary success over the Western Front in the final 18 months of the war. However, it had an inauspicious debut, as an entire flight of F2As was wiped out by von Richthofen's Jasta 11. A new improved F2B was soon delivered to the front which functioned in an entirely different manner. The crews operated the plane not as a standard two-seater, but as a single-seat with a "sting in the tail" in the form of a rear gunner with a Lewis machine gun. Numerous ace teams earned the "Biff" grudging respect from its German opponents. This book charts the development of the plane from its unpromising beginnings to the revised model operating with a new kind of tactics. Moreover, the numerous first-hand accounts and combat reports give a fascinating insight into the experiences of the pilots themselves.
Download or read book First Kills written by Stefan W. C. Gnys and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2018-01-23 with total page 468 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Remarkably detailed . . . It is a tribute to Wladyslaw Gnys, the decorated ace pilot, but also to the charming and humble man himself.” —Hamilton Magazine Polish pilot Wladyslaw (Wladek) Gnys was credited with shooting down the first two German aircraft of World War II on September 1, 1939. On this day, as Gnys’ squadron took off near Kraków to intercept the German invaders, German Stuka pilot Frank Neubert attacked, killing the captain. Wladek, who barely survived himself, evaded the pursuing Stukas and went on to make the first Allied kills, while Neubert was credited with the first aerial kill of the war. Fifty years after the invasion of Poland, in the summer of 1989, Gnys and Neubert met and shook hands, making news around the world. They reconciled their differences and remained friends until their deaths. This event symbolized the prevailing friendly coexistence between Poland and Germany. Written by his son Stefan and drawing from his logbooks, this highly illustrated biography of Wladek Gnys is the most in-depth account of the Polish hero’s life. It tells Wladek’s story from his childhood in rural Poland, through his time flying in three Allied air forces during World War II, his capture and escape during Operation Overlord, and his reconciliation with Neubert and his commemoration as a national war hero in Poland. “Tells the story of one man’s ride through the history of most of the 20th century . . . This is far from a run-of-the-mill wartime story, being more of a touching and revealing look into an extraordinary life.” —Aircrew Remembered
Download or read book To Fly and Fight written by Clarence E. "Bud" Anderson and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2017-05-12 with total page 530 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bud Anderson is a flyers flyer. The Californians enduring love of flying began in the 1920s with the planes that flew over his fathers farm. In January 1942, he entered the Army Air Corps Aviation Cadet Program. Later after he received his wings and flew P-39s, he was chosen as one of the original flight leaders of the new 357th Fighter Group. Equipped with the new and deadly P-51 Mustang, the group shot down five enemy aircraft for each one it lost while escorting bombers to targets deep inside Germany. But the price was high. Half of its pilots were killed or imprisoned, including some of Buds closest friends. In February 1944, Bud Anderson, entered the uncertain, exhilarating, and deadly world of aerial combat. He flew two tours of combat against the Luftwaffe in less than a year. In battles sometimes involving hundreds of airplanes, he ranked among the groups leading aces with 16 aerial victories. He flew 116 missions in his old crow without ever being hit by enemy aircraft or turning back for any reason, despite one life or death confrontation after another. His friend Chuck Yeager, who flew with Anderson in the 357th, says, In an airplane, the guy was a mongoosethe best fighter pilot I ever saw. Buds years as a test pilot were at least as risky. In one bizarre experiment, he repeatedly linked up in midair with a B-29 bomber, wingtip to wingtip. In other tests, he flew a jet fighter that was launched and retrieved from a giant B-36 bomber. As in combat, he lost many friends flying tests such as these. Bud commanded a squadron of F-86 jet fighters in postwar Korea, and a wing of F-105s on Okinawa during the mid-1960s. In 1970 at age 48, he flew combat strikes as a wing commander against communist supply lines. To Fly and Fight is about flying, plain and simple: the joys and dangers and the very special skills it demands. Touching, thoughtful, and dead honest, it is the story of a boy who grew up living his dream.
