Iain Wyllie – illustratör

Flying aircraft such as the Macchi 200-202, Fiat G.50 and biplane Fiat CR.42, the Italian fighter pilots were recognised by their Allied counterparts as brave opponents blessed with sound flying abilities, but employing under-gunned and underpowered equipment.Following the Italian surrender in September 1943, a number of aces continued to take the fight to the Allies as part of the Luftwaffe-run ANR, which was equipped with far more potent equipment such as the Bf 109G, Macchi 205V and Fiat G.55. Flying these types, the handful of ANR squadrons continued to oppose Allied bombing raids on northern Italy until VE-Day.

This book details the colourful experiences of the elite pilots of the AAF's Tenth and Fourteenth Air Forces in the 'forgotten' China-Burma-India theatre during WW2.Inheriting the legacy of the American Volunteer Group (AVG), units such as the 23rd FG 'held the line' against overwhelming Japanese forces until the arrival of the first P-38s and P-51s in 1944. The Warhawk became synonymous with the efforts of the AAF in the CBI, being used by some 40 aces to claim five or more kills between 1942-45.This volume is the first of four covering the exploits with the P-40 during World War 2.

The sterling work of the Fifteenth Air Force is often overshadowed by the glamorous 'Mighty Eighth', yet the men flying the B-24 fought ceaselessly right through to VE Day.The B-24 was heavily utilised in the North African and Mediterranean theatres by the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force, with operations over the Ploesti oilfields in Rumania being some of the most famous missions undertaken by the big American 'heavy' in World War 2.This is the third of five titles charting the operational history of the Consolidated heavy bomber, and is the first single volume to exclusively cover the Fifteenth Air Force's B-24 units.

The most produced Japanese bomber of the war, the G4M saw action on every front from the first day of the Pacific conflict through to VJ-Day.The 'Betty's' very long range made it a key weapon during the opening year of the war. However, to achieve this, the aircraft was built with very little protective armour for its crew or fuel tanks, and Allied pilots soon exposed its extreme vulnerability.In the first in a series of volumes examining the key Japanese aircraft of WW2, Dr Osamu Tagaya details the G4M's extensive combat history, and lists all the units which operated the bomber.

Deemed unsuitable for the Channel Front, lend-lease Tomahawks and Kittyhawks instead became the staple fighters of the Desert Air Force in 1941-42, flying with RAF, South African and Australian squadrons in North Africa and the Middle East. Although usually outclassed by the Bf 109, a number of pilots enjoyed some success during the desert campaign – men like Caldwell, Gibbes, Edwards and Drake, all of whom accrued double figure scores. In East Asia, Australian and New Zealand pilots also saw much action against the Japanese in 1942/43, flying over the jungles of New Guinea in defence of the Australian mainland.This book charts the careers of the men who ‘made ace’ in these often underestimated fighters.

A detailed history of the MiG-17 and MiG-19 units of the Vietnamese People's Air Force, packed with first-hand accounts and colour profiles.The erstwhile enemy of the USAF and US Navy during the nine years of American involvement in the Vietnam War, the Vietnamese Peoples' Air Force (VPAF) quickly grew from an ill-organised rabble of poorly trained pilots flying antiquated communist aircraft into a highly effective fighting force that more than held its own over the skies of North Vietnam.As this book explores, flying Soviet fighters like the MiG-17, and -19, the VPAF produced over a dozen aces, whilst the Americans managed just two pilots and three navigators in the same period.

The first American fighter fitted with a tricyle undercarriage and mid-mounted engine, the P-39 proved less than successful in the hands of its launch customer, the US Army Air Force (AAF).Hampered by unreliabilty and poor engine performance at high altitude, the P-39 nevertheless served alongside the P-40 and P-38 in the bitter struggle to capture Guadalcanal in 1942/43, as well as seeing much action over the jungles of New Guinea.This book tells the story of around a dozen AAF aces who scored five kills with the P-39, although this total was far outstripped by the Soviet Red Air Force, whose pilots rated the Airacobra as one of the best lend-lease fighters of the war.

Built by the 'Société Anonyme Pour l’Aviation et ses Dérivés', (SPAD), the SPAD VII was the first successful fighting scout design to emerge from the company that had traded as Duperdussin pre-war.Flown ‘from the off’ by aces Paul Sauvage and Georges Guynemer, the scouts made an immediate impression. Indeed, the latter pilot was so impressed that he dubbed the Type VII the ‘flying machine gun’.The first of two volumes on SPAD aces, this book tells the whole story from the ace perspective. By the time production of the SPAD VII ended in the final months of 1918, around 6000 examples had been built, and Allied aces on every front had enjoyed success with the type.

Undoubtedly the most famous fighter type to see service on either side during World War 1, the Fokker Dr I was a revelation when it entered service on the western front in 1917.Manfred von Richthofen’s JG 1 ‘circus’ was the first Jasta to completely re-equip with the new fighter, and in the skilled hands of its numerous aces the Dr I proved a formidable opponent. The Dr I remained in service on the Western Front until replaced by the superior Fokker D VII in May 1918. Just weeks prior to that, however, Germany’s leading ace, the great ‘Red Baron’, had been killed at the controls of a Dr I.

The American Volunteer Group, or 'Flying Tigers', have remained the most famous outfit to see action in World War II.Manned by volunteers flying American aircraft acquired from the British, the AVG fought bravely in the face of overwhelming odds in China and Burma prior to the US entry into World War II. Pilots such as 'Pappy' Boyington, R T Smith and John Petach became household names due to their exploits against the Japanese Army Air Force. The AVG legend was created flying the Curtis P-40 Tomahawk and Kittyhawk.This volume dispels the myths surrounding the colours and markings worn by these famous fighters.

The second of two books on the Navy's Phantom II MiG killers of the Vietnam War, this book covers the numerous actions fought out over North Vietnam during the Linebacker I and II operations of 1972-73.No fewer than 17 MiGs were downed during this period, five of them by the Navy's sole aces of the conflict, Lts Randy Cunningham and Willie Driscoll of VF-96. Drawing on primary sources such as surviving Phantom II aircrew and official navy documentation, the author has assembled the most precise appraisal of fighter operations involving US Navy Phantom II units and those elusive MiGs ever seen in print.

Thrown into action following the Torch landings of late 1942, the ‘green’ American pilots flying the obsolescent P-40F suffered cruelly at the hands of seasoned German fighter pilots flying superior machines.Those that survived learnt quickly, and a handful of Warhawk pilots succeeded in making ace by the time the Axis forces surrendered in North Africa. The action then shifted to Sicily and Italy, and the P-40 remained in service until mid-1944.This book charts the careers of the 23 men who succeeded in making ace during that time, despite the advent of much better P-47 and P-51 fighters.

The first book devoted exclusively to the intrepid and disparate band of pilots who could claim to be Gladiator aces.Flying the ultimate British biplane fighter, pilots in China, Finland, East Africa, North Africa, Western Europe, the Mediterranean, Norway and the Middle East all scored the prerequisite five kills to become aces. The first individuals to do so were fighting marauding Japanese fighters and bombers attacking targets in China in 1938.The likes of Sheen, Tuck and Carey are featured in this volume, as they were among the many early war acers who cut their teeth in Fighter Command on the Gladiator.

This book details the exploits of the pilots who flew the hugely successful SPAD XIII and the trickier SPAD XII.Built in response to the combat inadequacies of the SPAD VII, the XIII first entered service with the French Aviation Militaire in late 1917. Despite suffering engine unreliability, the XIII enjoyed great success on the Western Front, where it was flown by numerous French, American, Italian and Belgian aces, including Eddie Rickenbacker, leading US ace of World War I. The SPAD XII, meanwhile, was the product of numerous improvements to the SPAD VII model. Entering service in July 1917, the aircraft boasted a single-shot 37 mm Puteaux cannon, which had to be hand-reloaded in flight!Tricky to fly, the XII was only issued to experienced pilots, and was flown briefly by a number of aces. This is their story.

Initially flying Italian-supplied Fiat G.50s, the Croat forces suffered heavy losses during 1942 whilst flying alongside JG 52 in the southern sector of the Russian front.Despite this, a significant number of kills fell to future aces such as Cvitan Galic and Mato Dubovak during this time, and when the units re-equipped with Bf 109G-10s in 1943, battle-seasoned Croat pilots started to rack up impressive scores.This book reveals how, by 1944, Croat air groups were defending Yugoslavia from British and American air raids, and in the final months of the war a handful of surviving pilots fought on until final defeat in May 1945.

Like Germany, Hungary was forbidden from having an air force following the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the end of World War 1.However, again like Germany, the new state of Hungary created an air arm in secret during the 1930s. Hungarian fighter pilots first saw action against their Slovakian neighbours in early 1939, following the annexation of Czechoslovakia by Germany. In June 1941, Hungarian armed forces joined the Germany in the invasion of Russia, and pilots from the I/I Fighter Group saw continuous action into 1942. Flying CR.42s, Re.2000s and Bf 109Es, pilots scored a modest number of kills. However, when the Bf 109G-equipped Hungarian 101 ŒPuma1 Fighter Regiment was committed to action over Kharkov in April 1943, numerous aces started to rapidly build their scores.Featuring first-hand accounts and combat reports, this book tells the story of pilots like Dezsö Szentgyörgyi and György Debrödy, who scored the bulk of their kills in desperate battles against American fighters and bombers. Unlike most of Germany’s Eastern European allies, Hungary did not capitulate during the Russian advances of 1944, and its fighter pilots fought on until May 1945.

'Like The Long Reach, Down to Earth is a message from the battle at its height, told in their own words by the men who fight' - this is how Brig-Gen Francis Griswold, VIII Fighter Command, ends his introduction to this book.His official endorsement reveals just how important a document Down to Earth was to the teaching of tyro fighter pilots heading for action in the ETO. More leading aces were lost to flak whilst ground strafing than to German fighters.In this book William Hess has included biographies of all the pilots that originally contributed to this work back in 1943-44.

Known as the 'Fighting Cocks', No 43 Sqn has been a part of the RAF since 1916, and is still in service today.This volume deals exclusively with the unit's exploits during WW2, covering its service during the evacuation of Dunkirk and the Battle of Britain, as well as the years spent supporting the Allied cause in North Africa and the Mediterranean. Flying Hurricanes from November 1939, and re-equipped with Spitfires in early 1943, 'Fighting Cocks' pilots scored 159 kills during the war and over a dozen of them 'made ace'.This book presents a full picture of the squadron, its men and its aircraft.

A concise, yet detailed, history of one of the lesser known FGs of the Eighth Air Force, which made a significant contribution to the Allied victory in Europe.Nicknamed the 'Unicorns', the 359th FG was one of the last groups to arrive in the UK for service in the ETO with the Eighth Air Force. First seeing action on 13 December 1943, the group initially flew bomber escort sweeps in P-47s, before converting to the ubiquitous P-51 in March/April 1944. Throughout its time in the ETO, the 359th was credited with the destruction of 351 enemy aircraft destroyed between December 1943 and May 1945.The exploits of all 12 aces created by the group are detailed, along with the most significant missions flown. This book also discusses the various markings worn by the group's three squadrons, the 368th, 369th and 370th FSs.

Designed in a great rush to take part in the German standard fighter competition held in January/February 1918, the D VII easily walked away with first prize.As Germany's premier fighter unit, von Richthofens JG I (led by Hermann Göring in the wake of the 'Red Baron's' recent death) received the first examples of the D VII to reach the frontline in late April. Built to oppose the new generation of French SPAD XIIIs and British SE 5as and Camel fighters, the D VII was arguably the best all-round fighting scout of the Great War.This is the story of the aces that flew it, and what they achieved in combat.

Featuring photographs throughout, this book tells the story of the aces that flew this well-known type around the world.Responsible for destroying 1294 enemy aircraft between June 1917 and November 1918, the Camel was the most successful fighting scout employed by either side in terms of the sheer number of victories that it scored.The Camel was renowned for its sensitivity and need for skill and experience, and casualties amongst pilots undergoing training on the type were very high. More than 5490 examples were constructed, and this book covers its combat use on the Western Front, in Palestine, on the Italian front, in the Home Defence role in the UK and in Russia.

The first USAAF fighters to engage the Japanese in World War 2, a handful of P-40s rose to defend Pearl Harbor from attack on the morning of 7 December 1941.Warhawk units were also heavily involved in the ill-fated fight to stem invading Japanese forces in the Philippines and Java between December 1941 and April 1942 and again in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands between January 1943 and March 1944.This book examines The Warhawk’s wartime exploits and all of its aces including 'aces-in-a-day’ Mel Wheadon and Joe Lesika.

An account of the aces that flew this important piston-engined, single-seat fighter with the US Navy and Marine Corps: the aesthetically inelegant F4F Wildcat.Thrown into combat at Coral Sea, Midway and Guadalcanal, the handful of Wildcat units of the Navy and Marine Corps took on large numbers of fighters and bombers and came out victorious. On the European front, the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm also put the fighter to effective use from escort carriers, protecting Atlantic convoys from Luftwaffe attacks.

The period covered in this volume was considered to be the 'glory years' for the Jagdwaffe fresh from the experience gained in the Spanish Civil War and for the Bf 109 in particular.Many famous pilots scored their first kills in the classic dogfights staged over Poland, Western Europe, the Channel and finally southern England. Some 40 Knight's Crosses were awarded in 1940 alone. However, after sweeping all before them in support of the Blitzkrieg across continental Europe, the Bf 109E pilots were to suffer badly during the Battle of Britain, the result of poor tactics inflicted upon them by the Luftwaffe High Command, and their mount's less then generous range.

The first virtually all-jet war, the conflict in Korea saw F-86 Sabres of the USAF take on MiG-15s of the North Korean and Chinese air forces.Although the Allied pilots were initially taken aback by the ability of the communist fighter in combat, sound training and skilful leadership soon enabled Sabre pilots to dominate the dogfights over the Yalu River. In all 39 F-86 pilots achieved ace status, and a number of these are profiled in this volume, as are notable pilots from the US Navy, Marine Corps and Royal Navy and, for the first time, the handful of MiG-15 aces.

Of all the fronts fought on by the Jagdflieger during World War 2, the Russian, or Eastern, was easily the most lucrative in terms of targets for the experten.Marry an abundance of targets with the Luftwaffe's best piston-engined fighter of the war – Focke-Wulf's Fw 190 'Butcher Bird' – and it quickly becomes apparent why so many Jagdflieger achieved kills that passed the 100 victories mark.From the perspective of the aces themselves, the book shows how the Fw 190 pilots fought virtually to extinction in both the pure fighter and the crucial Schlacht ground attack roles, flying in variable weather on a battlefront that was constantly changing.

Little has been published in English on the Japanese Army Air Force (JAAF), let alone its most successful fighter pilots no less than 150 of them achieved ace status during eight years of near-constant war. They are all listed in this volume.From the arid plains of the Mongolian border region to the lush jungles of New Guinea, the JAAF was more than a match for the many opponents it fought against for control of the skies. Indeed, even when the mighty Allied war machine proved almost overwhelming from early 1944 onwards, the elite fighter pilots of the various sentais within the JAAF fought on with near-fanatical loyalty in defence of the Home Islands.

The speed with which the Corsair was rushed into service as a land-based fighter obliged the pilots to learn on the job.The aircraft soon proved to be superior to the Japanese Zero and played a major part in the destruction of Japan's elite air forces in the South Pacific. Later, in an effort to counter the Kamikaze threat, the Corsair was once again hurriedly pressed into service; this time in its originally intended role as a shipboard fighter. This versatile aircraft saw service with the US Navy and Marines, the British Fleet Air Arm and the RNZAF.Within these pages, real 4FU pilots recount their experiences flying what they call the best all-round fighter in the Pacific theatre.

Although the Spitfire is undoubtedly best known for its exploits against the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, its later war service with Fighter Command on all fronts against the Axis alliance was equally as important.This volume features the exploits of pilots who turned the tide against the Luftwaffe on the Western European and Mediterranean fronts, as well as the Japanese in the Far East, flying Spitfire Mk VIs, VIIs, VIIIs, IXs XIIs and XIVs. Names like Johnnie Johnson, Neville Duke and Donald Kingaby, plus a myriad of lesser known British, Polish, Canadian, American, Australian, Czech, Free French, New Zealand and Norwegian pilots, and their aircraft, are all covered in this book.