Kalevi Keskinnen – författare

Always outnumbered by their Soviet counterparts, the small band of Finnish fighter pilots who defended their Scandinavian homeland from the ''communist hordes'' in three separate wars between 1939 and 1945 amassed scores only bettered by the Luftwaffe''s Jagdflieger.Initially equipped with a motley collection of biplane and monoplane fighters garnered from sources across the globe, the Finnish Air Force was thrust into combat in November 1939. Given little chance against the massive Soviet force, the Finnish fighter pilots confounded the sceptics and decimated the attacking fighter and bomber formations, prompting the Russians to call a halt in March 1940. This scenario was repeated in 1941, and by 1943 the Finns had become uneasy allies with the Germans.Complete with first-hand accounts and detailed colour illustrations, this book profiles aces like Juutilainen and Wind, who proved unbeatable in the final months of conflict.

Always outnumbered by their Soviet counterparts, the small band of Finnish fighter pilots who defended their Scandinavian homeland from the ''communist hordes'' in three separate wars between 1939 and 1945 amassed scores only bettered by the Luftwaffe''s Jagdflieger.Initially equipped with a motley collection of biplane and monoplane fighters garnered from sources across the globe, the Finnish Air Force was thrust into combat in November 1939. Given little chance against the massive Soviet force, the Finnish fighter pilots confounded the sceptics and decimated the attacking fighter and bomber formations, prompting the Russians to call a halt in March 1940. This scenario was repeated in 1941, and by 1943 the Finns had become uneasy allies with the Germans.Complete with first-hand accounts and detailed colour illustrations, this book profiles aces like Juutilainen and Wind, who proved unbeatable in the final months of conflict.

Illustrated throughout with photographs and detailed aircraft profiles, this book tells the story of the Finnish air force''s most successful fighter unit.Finland''s premier fighter squadron during World War 2, Lentolaivue 24 (Flying Squadron 24) first saw action during the bloody Winter War of 1939-40, when the Soviet Red Army launched a surprise attack on the small Scandinavian country - the squadron enjoyed great success against numerically superior opposition. LLv 24 was once again in the thick of the action following the outbreak of the Continuation War in June 1941.As this detailed volume shows, LLv 24 claimed 877 kills, and its pilots won five direct and two indirect Mannerheim Crosses (Finland''s highest military award) out of a total of 19 presented to all Finnish soldiers. Most top aces also scored the bulk of their kills flying with this unit.

Illustrated throughout with photographs and detailed aircraft profiles, this book tells the story of the Finnish air force''s most successful fighter unit.Finland''s premier fighter squadron during World War 2, Lentolaivue 24 (Flying Squadron 24) first saw action during the bloody Winter War of 1939-40, when the Soviet Red Army launched a surprise attack on the small Scandinavian country - the squadron enjoyed great success against numerically superior opposition. LLv 24 was once again in the thick of the action following the outbreak of the Continuation War in June 1941.As this detailed volume shows, LLv 24 claimed 877 kills, and its pilots won five direct and two indirect Mannerheim Crosses (Finland''s highest military award) out of a total of 19 presented to all Finnish soldiers. Most top aces also scored the bulk of their kills flying with this unit.

Illustrated throughout with photographs and detailed aircraft profiles, this book tells the story of the Finnish air force's most successful fighter unit.Finland's premier fighter squadron during World War 2, Lentolaivue 24 (Flying Squadron 24) first saw action during the bloody Winter War of 1939-40, when the Soviet Red Army launched a surprise attack on the small Scandinavian country - the squadron enjoyed great success against numerically superior opposition. LLv 24 was once again in the thick of the action following the outbreak of the Continuation War in June 1941.As this detailed volume shows, LLv 24 claimed 877 kills, and its pilots won five direct and two indirect Mannerheim Crosses (Finland's highest military award) out of a total of 19 presented to all Finnish soldiers. Most top aces also scored the bulk of their kills flying with this unit.