Dennis R. Okerstrom is Professor of English at Park University, a certified flight instructor, and the author of four previous books including The Final Mission of Bottoms Up: A World War II Pilot’s Story and Project 9: The Birth of the Air Commandos in World War II (both with University of Missouri Press). He owns and flies a restored 1942 Army scout plane and is the recipient of numerous awards for scholarship and teaching. He lives in Independence, Missouri.

“Dennis Okerstrom is establishing himself as one of the leading scholars of the American combat aviation experience in World War II. As an academic and an experienced pilot, Okerstrom brings a unique blend of skills to this topic. With his pilot’s penchant for detail and his professorial eye for high quality scholarship, Okerstrom illuminates the mindset of combat aviators like few other authors. He is also a skilled writer with a real knack for bringing this important subject to life.”—John C. McManus, General Editor of The American Military Experience series; author of The Dead and those About to Die: D-Day: The Big Red One at Omaha Beach

Dennis R. Okerstrom is Professor of English at Park University, a certified flight instructor, and the author of four previous books including The Final Mission of Bottoms Up: A World War II Pilot’s Story and Project 9: The Birth of the Air Commandos in World War II (both with University of Missouri Press). He owns and flies a restored 1942 Army scout plane and is the recipient of numerous awards for scholarship and teaching. He lives in Independence, Missouri.

“Dennis Okerstrom is establishing himself as one of the leading scholars of the American combat aviation experience in World War II. As an academic and an experienced pilot, Okerstrom brings a unique blend of skills to this topic. With his pilot’s penchant for detail and his professorial eye for high quality scholarship, Okerstrom illuminates the mindset of combat aviators like few other authors. He is also a skilled writer with a real knack for bringing this important subject to life.”—John C. McManus, General Editor of The American Military Experience series; author of The Dead and those About to Die: D-Day: The Big Red One at Omaha Beach