Download or read book Wings Women and War written by Reina Pennington and published by University Press of Kansas. This book was released on 2002-01-22 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Soviet Union was the first nation to allow women pilots to fly combat missions. During World War II the Red Air Force formed three all-female units-grouped into separate fighter, dive bomber, and night bomber regiments-while also recruiting other women to fly with mostly male units. Their amazing story, fully recounted for the first time by Reina Pennington, honors a group of fearless and determined women whose exploits have not yet received the recognition they deserve. Pennington chronicles the creation, organization, and leadership of these regiments, as well as the experiences of the pilots, navigators, bomb loaders, mechanics, and others who made up their ranks, all within the context of the Soviet air war on the Eastern Front. These regiments flew a combined total of more than 30,000 combat sorties, produced at least thirty Heroes of the Soviet Union, and included at least two fighter aces. Among their ranks were women like Marina Raskova ("the Soviet Amelia Earhart"), a renowned aviator who persuaded Stalin in 1941 to establish the all-women regiments; the daredevil "night witches" who flew ramshackle biplanes on nocturnal bombing missions over German frontlines; and fighter aces like Liliia Litviak, whose twelve "kills" are largely unknown in the West. She also tells the story of Alexander Gridnev, a fighter pilot twice arrested by the Soviet secret police before he was chosen to command the women's fighter regiment. Pennington draws upon personal interviews and the Soviet archives to detail the recruitment, training, and combat lives of these women. Deftly mixing anecdote with analysis, her work should find a wide readership among scholars and buffs interested in the history of aviation, World War II, or the Russian military, as well as anyone concerned with the contentious debates surrounding military and combat service for women.

Download or read book Wings written by Karl Friedrich and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2011-04-01 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Based on the true World War II stories of America's first female military pilots, this historic novel follows the story of a young woman from a dirt-poor farm family. Sally Ketchum has little chance of bettering her life until a mysterious barnstormer named Tex teaches her to fly and to dare to love. But when Tex dies in a freak accident, Sally must make her own way in the world. She enrolls in the U.S. military's Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) program at a special school known as Avenger, where she learns to fly the biggest, fastest, meanest planes. She also reluctantly becomes involved with Beau Bayard, a flight instructor and aspiring writer who seems to offer her everything she could want. Despite her obvious mastery of flying, many members of the military are unable to accept that a “skirt” has any place in a cockpit. Soon Sally finds herself struggling against a high-powered Washington lawyer that wants to close down Avenger once and for all.

Download or read book China s Wings written by Gregory Crouch and published by Bantam. This book was released on 2012-02-28 with total page 545 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the acclaimed author of Enduring Patagonia comes a dazzling tale of aerial adventure set against the roiling backdrop of war in Asia. The incredible real-life saga of the flying band of brothers who opened the skies over China in the years leading up to World War II—and boldly safeguarded them during that conflict—China’s Wings is one of the most exhilarating untold chapters in the annals of flight. At the center of the maelstrom is the book’s courtly, laconic protagonist, American aviation executive William Langhorne Bond. In search of adventure, he arrives in Nationalist China in 1931, charged with turning around the turbulent nation’s flagging airline business, the China National Aviation Corporation (CNAC). The mission will take him to the wild and lawless frontiers of commercial aviation: into cockpits with daredevil pilots flying—sometimes literally—on a wing and a prayer; into the dangerous maze of Chinese politics, where scheming warlords and volatile military officers jockey for advantage; and into the boardrooms, backrooms, and corridors of power inhabited by such outsized figures as Generalissimo and Madame Chiang Kai-shek; President Franklin Delano Roosevelt; foreign minister T. V. Soong; Generals Arnold, Stilwell, and Marshall; and legendary Pan American Airways founder Juan Trippe. With the outbreak of full-scale war in 1941, Bond and CNAC are transformed from uneasy spectators to active participants in the struggle against Axis imperialism. Drawing on meticulous research, primary sources, and extensive personal interviews with participants, Gregory Crouch offers harrowing accounts of brutal bombing runs and heroic evacuations, as the fight to keep one airline flying becomes part of the larger struggle for China’s survival. He plunges us into a world of perilous night flights, emergency water landings, and the constant threat of predatory Japanese warplanes. When Japanese forces capture Burma and blockade China’s only overland supply route, Bond and his pilots must battle shortages of airplanes, personnel, and spare parts to airlift supplies over an untried five-hundred-mile-long aerial gauntlet high above the Himalayas—the infamous “Hump”—pioneering one of the most celebrated endeavors in aviation history. A hero’s-eye view of history in the grand tradition of Lynne Olson’s Citizens of London, China’s Wings takes readers on a mesmerizing journey to a time and place that reshaped the modern world.

Download or read book Silent Wings at War written by John L. Lowden and published by Smithsonian Books (DC). This book was released on 1992 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The pilots were known as "suicide jockeys" and the aircraft they flew were called "flak bait." Towed behind modified bombers or transport aircraft, Allied combat gliders were used in some of the riskiest missions of World War II, landing miles behind enemy lines with specially trained assault forces. In "Silent Wings at War," John L. Lowden combines his own recollections with those of fellow veterans to create a vivid, gritty, jocose memoir of war as he and other glider pilots and their passengers knew it. These true tales of courage, as well as command blunders, make a substantial contribution to WWII literature.

Download or read book Combat Squadrons of the Air Force World War II written by United States. USAF Historical Division and published by . This book was released on 1969 with total page 856 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of squadron histories has been prepared by the USAF Historical Division to complement the Division's book, Air Force Combat Units of World War II. The 1,226 units covered by this volume are the combat (tactical) squadrons that were active between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945. Each squadron is traced from its beginning through 5 March 1963, the fiftieth anniversary of the organization of the 1st Aero (later Bombardment) Squadron, the first Army unit to be equipped with aircraft for tactical operations. For each squadron there is a statement of the official lineage and data on the unit's assignments, stations, aircraft and missiles, operations, service streamers, campaign participation, decorations, and emblem.

Download or read book Women with Wings Women Pilots of World War II written by Shannon Baker Moore and published by ABDO. This book was released on 2017-01-01 with total page 115 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Women with Wings discusses how in the 1940s, women broke free from traditional gender roles by piloting aircraft both on the homefront and in combat, making critical contributions to the Allied victory in World War II. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.

Download or read book Air Force Combat Wings written by Charles A. Ravenstein and published by . This book was released on 1984 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

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 576 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.

Download or read book The Women with Silver Wings written by Katherine Sharp Landdeck and published by Crown Publishing Group (NY). This book was released on 2020 with total page 450 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The thrilling true story of the daring female aviators who helped the United States win World War II--only to be forgotten by the country they served. When Japanese planes executed a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Cornelia Fort was already in the air. At twenty-two, Cornelia had escaped Nashville's debutante scene for a fresh start as a flight instructor in Hawaii. She and her student were in the middle of their lesson when the bombs began to fall, and they barely made it back to ground that morning. Still, when the U.S. Army Air Forces put out a call for women pilots to aid the war effort, Cornelia was one of the first to respond. She became one of just over 1,100 women from across the nation to make it through the Army's rigorous selection process and earn her silver wings. In The Women with Silver Wings, historian Katherine Sharp Landdeck introduces us to these young women as they meet even-tempered, methodical Nancy Love and demanding visionary Jacqueline Cochran, the trailblazing pilots who first envisioned sending American women into the air, and whose rivalry would define the Women Airforce Service Pilots. For women like Cornelia, it was a chance to serve their country--and to prove that women aviators were just as skilled and able as men. While not authorized to serve in combat, the WASP helped train male pilots for service abroad and ferried bombers and pursuits across the country. Thirty-eight of them would not survive the war. But even taking into account these tragic losses, Love and Cochran's social experiment seemed to be a resounding success--until, with the tides of war turning and fewer male pilots needed in Europe, Congress clipped the women's wings. The program was disbanded, the women sent home. But the bonds they'd forged never failed, and over the next few decades, they came together to fight for recognition as the military veterans they were--and for their place in history.

Download or read book Dragons on Bird Wings written by Vladislav Antipov and published by Kitchener, Ont. : Aviaeology. This book was released on 2006 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Follow the 3rd Fighter Aviation Corps along its Combat Path during the Liberation of the Motherland through the experiences of one of its units - the 812th Fighter Aviation Regiment.Drawing on a comprehensive range of archives, memoirs, and photographs, the authors describe this unit's daily combat activities in detail from its formative Rzhev - Vyazma days on the doorstep of Moscow, into the pivotal Stalingrad battles, and on through the hard-won victories along the shores of the Sea of Azov - Kuban, Myskhako, Molochnaya - and beyond.In this volume, part one of the 812th regiment's combat history reaches its climax with the ejection of the Luftwaffe from its remaining bases near the besieged fortress city of Sevastopol, while the Red Army liberates the Crimea from the grip of the Wehrmacht. We leave the 812th - General Savitskiy's "Dragons on Birds Wings" - as it regroups and prepares for the great drive through Europe where it will end the war in Berlin itself...This is the one of the first primary source derived, and by some accounts foremost, English-language histories of an operational regiment-sized VVS (Soviet Air Force) unit during the Great Patriotic War. Forward by Von Hardesty.Expert translation from an original Russian manuscript by James Gebhardt in consultation with Dr. Ilya Grinberg.Useful appendices and comprehensively indexed.REVIEWS "Considerable amounts of care have gone into this volume, both in the research and writing by Antipov and Utkin and in the translation, editing, and production work by the team in Canada. While it should come as no surprise that a Soviet air regiment could have such an scintillating existence leading to a high quality unit history, it does seem rather remarkable that we've had to wait so long to see this kind of work from the Russian side of the Eastern Front become available in English." - Bill Stone"A rare and essential item in English... The authors have done monumental work in compiling statistical and technical information..." - Regina Pennington on Amazon.com"It shows the air war from the Russian perspective without all the death- defying patriotic lingo ('glorious', 'fascist', 'patriotic', etc.)." - Richard Ordway on Amazon.com

Download or read book Fighter Wing written by Tom Clancy and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2007-09-04 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now, for the first time, an insider's look at an Air Force combat wing -- the planes, the technology, and the people . . . with Tom Clancy as your guide. Tom Clancy's previous explorations of America's armed forces, Submarine and Armored Cav, revealed exclusive, never-before-seen information an the people and technology that protect our nation. Now, the acclaimed author of Clear and Present Danger and Debt of Honor takes to the skies with the U. S. Air Force's elite: the Fighter Wing. With his compelling style and unerring eye for detail, Clancy captures the thrill of takeoff, the drama of the dogfight, and the relentless dangers our fighter pilots face every day of their lives . . . showing readers what it really means to be the best of the best. Fighter Wing includes: Detailed analyses of the Air Force's premier fighter planes, including the F-15 Eagle Exclusive photographs, illustrations, and diagrams An insider's look at the people behind the planes and weapons Combat strategies and training techniques used by the U. S. Air Force

Download or read book Wings of Fire written by Mike Guardia and published by . This book was released on 2021-12-07 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From Israel to Afghanistan. The definitive combat history of the F-15 Eagle and Strike Eagle...as told by the pilots who flew them.For more than forty years, the McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15 Eagle has been the US Air Force's premier multi-role fighter jet. Made popular by its ubiquity during the Persian Gulf War, the F-15 has become one of the most recognized and revered fighter jets in the world today.Throughout its illustrious combat history, the F-15 has earned more than 100 air-to-air victories?with zero losses. Wings of Fire is the definitive combat history of the F-15 Eagle and Strike Eagle: from the skies over Israel?to the frontlines in Afghanistan.

Download or read book Leave No Man Behind written by Tony Brooks and published by Diversion Books. This book was released on 2021-08-10 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A story of courage, perseverance, and patriotism behind the 75th Ranger Regiment's rescue mission following one of the deadliest Special Ops incidents in Afghanistan—a grueling search for twelve Navy SEAL casualties and eight downed Night Stalkers . . . but just one lone survivor On June 28th, 2005, a four-man Navy SEAL reconnaissance team under Operation Red Wings was ambushed in northeastern Afghanistan—as depicted in the book and film Lone Survivor. A quick reaction force was dispatched. Turbine 33, carrying eight Navy SEALs and eight members of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, was struck by a rocket propelled grenade—careening the dual rotor Chinook toward the rugged peak of Sawtalo Sar. The result was the single deadliest incident in Special Operations history at the time. Commanders called on the largest element of US Special Forces, the 75th Ranger Regiment. The rescue mission: Operation Red Wings II. Author Tony Brooks gives a first-hand account of the daring recovery of Turbine 33 and the subsequent search for the remaining compromised Navy SEAL recon team—one of whom was Marcus Luttrell, the lone survivor. The Rangers were up against lack of intel, treacherous terrain, violent weather, and an enemy that was raised to fight. Tony Brooks lived—and many of his fellow Rangers died—by the axiom, “Leave No Man Behind.” He is the first to tell the story other books and films have omitted, one of overcoming overwhelming odds to accomplish a mission: to bring every American soldier home.

Download or read book Three Wings for the Red Baron written by Leon Bennett and published by . This book was released on 2013-10 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Three Wings for the Red Baron explores the career of Manfred von Richthofen, top fighter pilot in the Imperial German Air Service during the First World War, and tells the story of his famous three-winged airplane, the Fokker Triplane. A descendant of prosperous landowners, Baron von Richthofen was no revolutionary. And yet, while seeking to fit in with his peers, he was often driven to move into new directions dictated by personal logic. Trained for the cavalry, he switched to the Air Service when machine guns doomed the fate of the horse soldier: if he were to die, it must not be a pointless death. As a flier, having to overcome a lack of talent for aerobatic maneuvering, he chose the duel as a role model: pilot versus pilot. He learned that much could be achieved with a powerful single-seater machine against a low powered and poorly maneuvering enemy two-seater. This became Richthofen's preferred form of combat, leading to an extraordinary series of victories. With the advent of fully aerobatic combat, Richthofen was forced to rethink his approach. The chance sighting of an agile British Sopwith Triplane demanded a fresh response. He enlisted the services of Anthony Fokker to design a competing German Triplane. This machine, the Red Baron's Three Wings, led to his final victories, and to his death. His death was unclear. Within the time span of minutes he was fired on from three different sources: fighter pilot Roy Brown, several ground based anti-aircraft machine gunners, and numerous infantry riflemen. One succeeded, but who? Fresh examination of the available evidence suggests that the unknown rifleman possibility deserves more attention. While not conclusive, much aerodynamic and probability reasoning favors the rifleman version. Strangely, a thorough examination of the triplane's characteristics by the British Sopwith, the French SPAD, the USA Curtiss and MIT revealed little that was praiseworthy. If anything, the six wingtips were a sure sign of high drag and a corresponding low speed. The resulting British rejection of the concept seems understandable. Yet in Fokker's hands, three wings, aided by fat airfoils and low weight design, supplied superb maneuverability. His design approach is fully detailed in the book. The special tactics employed by the Red Baron were crucial to the success of his Three Wings, in particular those downplaying speed and stressing agility. Numerous sketches included in the book serve to make the Red Baron's combat tactics clear. Three Wings for the Red Baron represents an important contribution to the study of the Red Baron and WWI aerial combat tactics.

Download or read book Typhoon Wings of 2nd TAF 1943 45 written by Chris Thomas and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2013-01-20 with total page 154 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book, aviation expert Chris Thomas - inspired to research Typhoons by his own father, who flew numerous raids in a Typhoon during World War 2 - extols the great importance of the Typhoon wings in the ultimate Allied victory in Europe. The Typhoon was the RAF's heavyweight fighter-bomber of choice to support the British and Canadian armies during the invasion of northwest Europe. He describes their destruction of German radar in the lead-up to D-Day, the use of large-scale rocket projectiles in land battles and pinpoint attacks on German command and control centres, which crippled the Wehrmacht's ability to respond quickly to Allied troop movements. But not everything went smoothly for the Typhoon wings. Thomas discusses their epic battle with highly effective German flak installations, which prompted Air Chief Marshal Sir Harry Broadhurst to remark 'I suppose that flying one of these aircraft was the most dangerous task the Air Force has ever asked anybody to do'.

Download or read book Silver Wings Iron Cross written by Tom Young and published by Canelo. This book was released on 2022-03-03 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An American pilot. A German U-boat officer – united by fate in an epic fight for survival. Lieutenant Karl Hagan earned his wings the hard way. But when his plane is shot down behind enemy lines, he’s forced to make the hardest decision of his life... trusting the enemy. Oberleutnant Wilhelm Albrecht wore his Iron Cross with pride. But when his U-boat is attacked in a devastating air raid, he abandons ship and finds an unlikely ally. The pilot who bombed him. November, 1944. The tides of war have turned. The Allies have taken back France, and German troops have retreated. But for Karl and Wilhelm, the war is far from over. Each must be prepared to lie for the other, fight for the other, or die with the other. A deeply moving WWII thriller from master author Tom Young of two enemy combatants forced to work together, perfect for fans of Alistair MacLean, Jack Higgins and Frederick Forsyth. Praise for Tom Young ‘One of the most exciting new thriller talents in years!’ Vince Flynn ‘Gripping and impressively authentic’ Frederick Forsyth ‘Courage and honor in the face of the enemy have not been so brilliantly portrayed since the great novels of the Second World War’ Jack Higgins ‘A gutsy, gritty thriller told only as one who’s been there and done that could write it... a terrific new writer’ W.E.B. Griffin ‘Young has a gift for allowing the reader to experience the emotional aspect of being a soldier... Military-thriller fans should make Young’s work an essential addition to their reading lists’ Booklist ‘Like Tom Clancy, Young has an eye for detail about military equipment, operations, and thinking that will ring true with any veteran’ General Chuck Horner, USAF (RET.), former Commander, U.S. Central Command Air Forces

Download or read book Dragon s Wings written by Andreas Rupprecht and published by . This book was released on 2013-09-26 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As China continues its rise as a world power, there is growing interest in its military aviation. Very little has been published in the past on the subject because of the difficulty of obtaining information, but aviation authors Tony Buttler and Andreas Rupprecht have been researching this subject together for a number of years, both from the perspective of their interest in the Chinese aircraft and also through an interest in Chinese secret aviation projects. They have now amassed enough material to put together a book on Chinese fighter and bomber aircraft development since Mao’s Communist Party took control of the country in 1949. The book examines the design and development of the country’s major military combat aircraft (fighters, bombers, attack aircraft, antisubmarine) since the industry became established after the Second World War, plus a good number of design proposals which, for whatever reason, were rejected or abandoned. The text is supplemented with photographs, line drawings, and color artwork of the aircraft.