Doomed at the Start

William H. Bartsch is the author of two other books published by Texas A&M University press: the award-winning December 8, 1941: MacArthur's Pearl Harbor (2003) and Every Day a Nightmare (2010). Bartsch, a former United Nations development economist and independent consultant now exclusively researching and writing on the Pacific War, lives in Reston, Virginia.

“. . . bold drama, with almost novel-like narration. This is good history. . . .” –Daniel R. Mortensen, Office of Air Force History“. . . an engrossing and minutely detailed account based on a variety of US and Japanese government and military records and on personal interviews with the surviving pilots.” –Choice“. . . an admirably detailed history . . . the work will [be of] interest to both aviation buffs and students of WWII.” –Publisher’s Weekly“Ignoring the point of view of the top brass, Bartsch’s book becomes a triumph of human interest rather than another statistical account. . . . A winning account of a losing campaign defended by courage and honor.” –Journal of Military History“. . . as much a compelling human drama as an objective and detailed unit history. . . . a prodigious achievement in unit history research that does overdue justice to the memory of a tragic group of airmen who did the best they could with what they had under extraordinary circumstances and against thoroughly daunting adversity.” –Military History