Duel – serie

An illustrated study of RAF Coastal Command’s deployment of the Beaufighter against German supply lines in 1941 and the long-running ‘arms race’ with Kriegsmarine Flak ships that followed.Crucial German shipping lines faced a new threat in 1941 when RAF Coastal Command debuted the iconic long-range Beaufighter. The aircraft and its subsequent Mk VIC and Mk X versions gave the Allies a tough, relatively fast and very hard-hitting platform for air attack on German convoys, and so it became essential for the Kriegsmarine to fit ever-heavier anti-aircraft batteries to its escort vessels, and even to develop specialist Flak vessels. In this compelling study, naval aviation historian Matthew Willis chronicles the little-explored arms race that saw RAF Coastal Command and the Kriegsmarine engaged in a fierce battle of one-upmanship until war’s end. New artwork, rare archive photography and contemporary records of Beaufighter operations add depth to fascinating historical accounts, including the actions of the famous North Coates Strike Wing against shipping in the North Sea and the exploits of Beaufighter units tasked with severing Rommel’s all-important supply lines.

An illustrated study of the clashes between B-29s conducting night raids on Japan and the Japanese nightfighters protecting the Home Islands from 1944–45.The USAAF’s B-29-led strategic bombing offensive against Japan succeeded when XX Bomber Command switched from high-level daytime precision bombing to low-level night time area bombing. The latter tactic required Superfortresses to attack their target individually, without a formation or escorting fighters for protection. Despite this, Japanese nightfighters proved unable to stop the B-29s. In this study, Mark Lardas examines the capabilities of the aircraft involved, and reveals the conditions under which both sides fought. He evaluates the cutting-edge technology of both sides and how it affected the outcome of the battle. Maps, tactical diagrams, photographs and specially commissioned artwork bring the action to life as the individual US bombers and Japanese nightfighters fight a classic military duel.

A detailed study of how Operation Desert Storm saw Coalition forces respond to Iraq’s surface-to-air missile defences with ground-breaking combat aircraft technology.Developed in the wake of the USA’s ill-prepared entry into the Vietnam War, aircraft carrying electronic counter-measures equipment and anti-radar missiles were crucial to the success of Operation Desert Storm during the First Gulf War. Iraq’s air defence systems were elaborate and costly, but also well understood by Coalition planners, and its surface-to-air missile batteries struggled in the face of radar jamming, pyrotechnic deflection of infrared guidance and extraordinarily effective destruction of enemy air defences weapons like the AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile. Written by aviation expert Peter E Davies, this fascinating study uses newly commissioned artwork to enhance its retelling of how aircraft and weapons, as well as crew training and command-and-control structures, proved decisive in the outcome of Desert Storm in 1991. Archive photos capture examples of the principal weapons involved, while first-hand accounts from Coalition aircrew and planners convey the realities of a conflict in which cutting-edge technology played an inestimable role.

An illustrated exploration of the dramatic aerial combats between the US Navy's long-range bomber and Japanese flying boats in the Pacific War.Edward Young explores these rarely written about combats, examining the aggressive and strategic tactics deployed by both US Navy and Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force and analyzing the technical improvements installed throughout the war.The PB4Y-1/2 Liberator/Privateer was the US Navy’s first four-engined, land-based bomber, adapted and allocated to fight the U-boat menace in the Atlantic and protect the vast reaches of the Pacific Ocean. The long range, speed, armament and bomb load of the PB4Y-1 enabled the US Navy’s Pacific squadrons to adopt more aggressive tactics. The PB4Y-1, and its follow-on PB4Y-2, engaged in dangerous bombing missions against Japanese installations, shipping strikes, and air combat. On the other side, with its doctrine of making the first strike against an enemy fleet, the Imperial Japanese Navy recognized the vital importance of maritime reconnaissance, relying on carrier-based reconnaissance aircraft, ship-borne floatplanes and, for long-range maritime patrol, flying boats. The Japanese would continue to develop their aircraft throughout the war, resulting, among others, in the H6K ‘Mavis’ and the H8K2 ‘Emily’, which despite never achieving a victory, was regarded by the Allied pilots as the most difficult Japanese aircraft to destroy. Enriched with specially commissioned artwork, including armament and cockpit views, battlescenes and technical diagrams, this title analyses technical specifications in detail. By including first-hand accounts, aviation expert Edward Young provides a detailed account of these one-sided yet dramatic and aggressive combats.

This fully illustrated study examines the bloody battle between the US Army's M18 tank destroyer and Germany's formidable Panther tank at Arracourt in September 1944.In response to Germany’s Blitzkrieg victories of 1939–41, the US Army created a dedicated tank-destroyer force intended to encircle and destroy the massed attacking armored divisions. Fast, relatively well-armed, but weakly armored, the M18 was designed from the start as a tank destroyer, unlike the M10 and M36. By September 1944, the German Army’s armored divisions fielded the Panther tank alongside the PzKpfw IV. In this book, William Hiestand notes that the Panther’s combination of long-range firepower, impressive armour, and good mobility won it a fearsome reputation, but shows how the M18 proved to be a very able opponent when the two types clashed on a foggy September morning during the battle of Arracourt.Fully illustrated with specially commissioned artwork and mapping alongside archive photographs, this lively study examines the origins, development, strengths, and limitations of the two AFVs as well as their crews’ training, doctrine, and combat effectiveness. It also provides a detailed account of the momentous battle between the US 704th Tank Destroyer Battalion and the German Panzer-Brigade 113 at Arracourt, where the two types clashed in a surprising encounter that challenges our preconceptions about armored warfare in World War II.

This insightful illustrated study investigates how the Royal Navy lost two battleships and three aircraft carriers to German U-boats during 1939–42.During World War II, over half of Britain’s capital ship losses were due to U-boats, as Germany’s submarines sought to deplete the Royal Navy’s powerful surface fleet. Featuring specially commissioned artwork and mapping alongside archive photographs, this study explains how Germany’s submarines sank five of Britain’s major surface vessels in four years of conflict at sea.Aircraft carrier HMS Courageous was sunk by U-29 on 17 September 1939 during anti-submarine patrols. On 14 October 1939, U-47 penetrated the Scapa Flow defences and sank battleship HMS Royal Oak. On 14 November 1941, U-81 sank HMS Ark Royal as the aircraft carrier returned to Gibraltar. On 25 November 1941, U-331 sank HMS Barham off Egypt. The final British capital ship to be sunk by German submarines was carrier HMS Eagle, torpedoed by U-73 en route to Malta on 11 August 1942.In this book, Mark Lardas charts the origins, development and combat performance of the U-boats in the Kriegsmarine’s efforts to attack British capital ships, and the Royal Navy’s efforts to counter the submarine threat to its battleships, battlecruisers and aircraft carriers. As well as the five encounters that led to sinkings, he examines the ‘near-misses’ that saw Royal Navy capital ships get the better of the U-boats.

An illustrated account of the dramatic engagement between the Luftwaffe’s Me 163 units and Allied bombers during the closing years of World War II.In the summer of 1944, US Army Air Force (USAAF) aircrews flying over the Third Reich reported observing small, high-speed ‘batlike’ aircraft flying close to their formations. The Luftwaffe’s extraordinary Messerschmitt Me 163 rocket-powered interceptor was making its devastating debut with Jagdgeschwader (JG) 400. Capable of reaching high altitudes in the shortest possible time by using a volatile rocket fuel, the Me 163 was the Luftwaffe’s most impressive yet dangerous aircraft, and the fastest in the world. Luftwaffe expert Robert Forsyth details the testing of the aircraft and its lethal SG 500 ‘Fighter Fist’ weapons system, as well as its deployment against the B17s and B24s of the USAAF’s Eighth Air Force and, from late 1944, the Lancasters and Halifaxes of RAF Bomber Command. These duels started a deadly form of warfare, with the bomber squadrons striking at Germany’s synthetic oil refineries and jet airfields, and the Me 163s of JG 400 trying to stop them using cutting-edge aeronautical technology.Using specially commissioned artwork, original photographs and rare first-hand interviews with the pilots that fought the decisive dogfights, this exciting book describes the pivotal encounters over Northern Europe.

With stunning artwork and detailed analysis, a pilot’s view of the dramatic clashes between these two legendary fighters, as some of the most gifted and ‘big name’ aces of World War II went head to head in the skies of North-West Europe.As the Battle of Britain approached its conclusion, two new versions of the famous Spitfire and Messerschmitt Bf 109 arrived on the scene. The RAF could see that the Luftwaffe were stepping down their incursions into British airspace, and went on to the offensive. The Spitfire Mark II, and increasingly the Mark V, would fly over the picturesque English channel in fighter sweeps, or to escort vulnerable Blenheim bombers – waiting for them was the Bf 109F ‘Friedrich’.Yet despite the reversal of offensive and defensive dispositions, and despite the Luftwaffe deploying the bulk of their fighter strength to the Eastern Front in 1941, the Jagdflieger were able to inflict severe losses on their RAF counterparts.

Step into the cockpits of the Luftwaffe’s Bf 109 and the Red Air Force’s Yaks 1-7, two fighters which were involved in some of the largest, fiercest aerial battles in history.The Iconic Messerschmitt fighter and its combat hardened pilots inflicted a fearful beating on the Yaks in the beginning of the war. Some of the highest scoring aces in history benefitted from the Bf 109’s technical superiority over the overweight and underpowered Yak 1, racking up incredible successes against their poorly trained and equipped adversaries. And yet, as the Soviets accumulated combat experience, their tactics improved, as did their mounts in the upgraded Yak 1B and gradually, the Red Force eroded the Jagdwaffe’s dominance of the skies in the eastern front, though with the 109G they would never lose qualitative superiority.Featuring first-hand accounts from veteran pilots, rare archival photographs and expert analysis, this volume brings to life the vicious dogfights that took place between the Bf 109 and the Yak as they vied for mastery of the frozen skies of the Eastern Front.

Employing rigorous analysis and lively narrative alongside specially commissioned artwork, this study casts new light on the rivalry between two vessels of war in the Mediterranean.For four hundred years the Byzantine Empire’s naval forces vied with the warships of the Islamic world for mastery of the Mediterranean. At the heart of this confrontation were the fighting vessels of the two powers, the Byzantine dromon and the Arabic shalandi, both oared warships. In those four centuries of warfare between two major maritime powers, both the Byzantines and the Arabs left us records of their doctrine and tactics, as well as of how their ships were built.Featuring full-colour artwork and rigorous analysis from an authority on naval warfare, this enthralling book offers a glimpse of the long-lost world of war at sea in the age of Byzantium.

As the Allies attempted to break out of Normandy, it quickly became apparent that there would be no easy victory over the Germans, and that every scrap of territory on the way to Berlin would have to be earned through hard fighting. This study concentrates on the ferocious battles between the German Panzer IV and US Sherman that were at the heart of this decisive phase of World War II. The two types were among the most-produced tanks in US and German service and were old enemies, having clashed repeatedly in the Mediterranean theater. Throughout their long service careers, both had seen a succession of technical developments and modifications, as well as an evolution in their intended roles – but both remained at the forefront of the fighting on the Western Front.Written by an expert on tank warfare, this book invites the reader into the cramped confines of these armoured workhorses, employing vivid technical illustrations alongside archive and contemporary photography to depict the conditions for the crewmen within.

As the Pacific War approached a crescendo, the clashes between swarming US Navy carrier aircraft, and the gigantic Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) Yamato-class battleships became symbolic of the fortunes of the two nations.They also served as a metaphor for the profound changes in naval technology and doctrine that the war had brought about. The two opposing forces were the most powerful of their kind - the Japanese Yamato and Musashi were the biggest most heavily armored and armed battleships ever built, while US carrier aviation had evolved into a well-oiled, war-winning machine.With detailed analysis of the technical features of the opposing war machines and a gripping account of the fighting itself, this vividly illustrated work presents views from the cockpits of US Navy Divebombers, and down the sights of IJN anti-aircraft guns, during two of the most dramatic naval engagements ever fought.

The Battle of Britain was a fight for survival against a seemingly unstoppable foe. With the German army poised to invade, only the fighters of the Royal Air Force stood between Hitler and the conquest of Britain. Losses were high on both sides, but the Spitfires, Hurricanes, Havocs and Defiants of the RAF began to take their toll on the overextended, under-protected Kampfgruppen of Heinkel He 111s, Junkers Ju 87s and 88s, and Dornier Do 17s. Both sides learned and adapted as the campaign went on. As the advantage began to shift from the Luftwaffe to the RAF, the Germans were forced to switch from round-the-clock bombing to only launching night-raids, often hitting civilian targets in the dreaded Blitz. This beautifully illustrated study dissects the tactics and technology of the duels in this new kind of war, bringing the reader into the cockpits of the RAF fighters and Luftwaffe bombers to show precisely where the Battle of Britain was won and lost.

Hitler's lightning invasion of Poland in 1939 marked the beginning of World War II in Europe. This was the period when armoured warfare inscribed itself into global consciousness as the Poles desperately sought to stave off the Blitzkrieg.At the heart of the fighting on the ground, large numbers of Nazi Germany's PzKpfw II battled against Poland's better-armed but much less numerous 7TP tank. The two types both possessed unique strengths and weaknesses - unlike the 7TP the PzKpfw II was always equipped with radio, which proved critical for command and control purposes in the heat of combat. But the German tank was blighted by thin armour, which could not withstand Polish gunfire at combat ranges.This fully illustrated, detailed work evaluates the qualities and idiosyncrasies of each tank, giving a stark and arresting crewman’s-eye-view of the brutal armoured combat at the height of the invasion of Poland.

The British Centurion and the American M48 Patton, two leading tanks of the Cold War era, clashed in the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War. Expert author David P. Higgins assesses the strengths and limitations of the two tanks and explores their clashes in the largest tank battles seen since 1945.The two countries’ tank regiments, many of which shared a proud legacy in the British Indian Army, fought one another in the difficult terrain of Jammu and Kashmir, the focus of a long-running dispute between India and Pakistan. The armoured clashes at Asal Uttar, Chawinda and Phillora would demonstrate that the Centurion, with its powerful gun and lower profile, generally proved superior to the faster, lighter but overly complex Patton.Featuring full-colour artwork, expert analysis and archive photographs, this is the full story of the clash between two leading tanks of the Cold War era that were never designed to fight each other, but rather to line up on battlefields as allies.

World War II saw tanks assume a dominant role in warfare, capable of tearing through the enemy lines if left unchecked.To combat the threat posed by these armoured behemoths the United States developed the M1 Anti-Tank Rocket Launcher, better known as the Bazooka. First employed in combat during 1942, the weapon required a great deal of skill and courage to use effectively. By late 1944 it was a mainstay of the US infantry's anti-tank capabilities, alongside towed weapons, anti-tank grenades and other longer-established measures.Focusing on the savage close-quarters fighting between Germany's armoured divisions and the US infantry during the Battle of the Bulge, Steven Zaloga's absorbing study compares and assesses the strengths and limitations of the cutting-edge technology used by both sides. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork and explosive battle reports, this volume casts new light on the evolving nature of infantry-versus-tank combat in the closing months of World War II.

Following the relatively poor performance of America's multi-role fighters during the Vietnam War, the F-15 Eagle was designed as a dedicated air superiority fighter. But, instead of Soviet pilots, it came up against pilots of Saddam Hussein's Iraqi airforce. This book analyses the combat between the American and Soviet 'Cold War fighters' in a balanced manner, examining how the technical abilities of the aircraft combined with the different levels of training available to opposing pilots and groundcrews allowed the F-15s to destroy the Iraqi offensive abilities within weeks of the First Gulf War starting.Packed with artwork, illustrations and photographs, this book places the reader in the cockpit during one of the last major dogfighting air wars in modern history.

The ineffectiveness of conventional air attacks on US Navy surface ships, particularly heavily defended targets like carrier task groups, forced the Japanese to re-evaluate their tactics in late 1944.The solution they arrived at was simple – crash their aircraft into American ships. This notion of self-sacrifice fit well within the Japanese warrior psyche and proved terrifying to the American sailors subjected to it. These tactics brought immediate results, and proved effective until the end of the war.This book examines this terrifying new way of waging war, revealing how the US Navy was forced to adapt its tactics and deploy new weapons to counter the threat posed by kamikaze attacks, as well as assessing whether the damage caused to American naval strength by the loss of so many pilots and aircraft actually had a material impact.

This fully illustrated study casts new light on the prolonged duel between the submarines of the Royal Navy and their chief opponents, Italy's torpedo boats.As the war in North Africa escalated, Axis war efforts became increasingly dependent on supply lines across the Mediterranean. To try to cut off these lines of supply the British deployed submarines from the besieged island of Malta with the directive to sink as much merchant convoy tonnage as possible. Italy responded by sending her Torpedo boats to protect and escort Axis convoys.Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork and carefully chosen archive photographs, this engaging study assesses the evolving battle between Britain's submarines and Italy's torpedo boats in the struggle for primacy in the Mediterranean at the height of World War II.

An illustrated account of the combats in the closing months of World War II between one of America's premier fighter aeroplanes and the product of Japan's effort to introduce fighters that could match American qualitative superiority.The Vought Corsair was the first American single-engined fighter to exceed 400 mph and establish dominance over the legendary Mitsubishi Type Zero-sen. The Ki-84 Hayate was introduced by the Japanese specifically to counter this growing American dominance of the skies over the Pacific. Built in greater numbers than any other late war Japanese fighter, nearly 3000 were completed between 1944 and 1945.This volume examines the clashes between the Corsair and Ki-84 in the closing stages of the war, revealing how Corsair pilots had to adapt their techniques and combat strategies to adapt to these newer types. It also reveals how the kill rate was largely driven by the reduced quality of fighter pilots after the high casualty rates inflicted on the Japanese air force during the air battles over the Solomon Islands.

The Gulf War of 1991 saw decisive battles between two rival infantry fighting vehicles developed during the Cold War: the Soviet BMP and the US Bradley. In the mid-1960s, the Soviet Union unveiled the BMP, the first true infantry fighting vehicle. A revolutionary design, the BMP marked a significant departure from the traditional armoured personnel carrier, with a lower silhouette and heavier armament than rival APCs. One of the most fearsome light-armoured vehicles of its day, it caused great consternation on the other side of the Iron Curtain as the Americans scrambled to design a machine to rival the BMP. The result was the M2/M3 Bradley. These Cold War icons first clashed – not on the plains of Europe, but in southern Iraq during the Gulf War of 1991. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork, this is the absorbing story of the origins, development and combat performance of the BMP and Bradley, culminating in the bloody battles of the Gulf War.

The most critical naval fighting during the War of 1812 took place, not on the high seas, but on the inland lakes of North America: the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain.Carrying between 12 and 22 cannon, the British and American sloops-of-war were ship-rigged, brig-rigged or schooner-rigged vessels. Lakes actions often involved two ships facing each other broadside to broadside, the best example of which was the battle of Lake Erie in 1813 where HMS Detroit led a Royal Navy squadron against the USS Lawrence-led US Navy.Featuring full-colour artwork, this lively study investigates the prolonged struggle between British and US sloops-of-war, highlighting the differences between the war on the lakes and the war on the oceans during the Age of Fighting Sail. It reveals the circumstances under which these ships were built, how they were armed, and the human story behind their construction and use in battle.

The tank battles in the Soviet Union during the summer of 1941 were the largest in World War II, exceeding even the more famous Prokhorovka encounter during the Kursk campaign. Indeed, they were the largest tank battles ever fought.This book examines two evenly matched competitors in this conflict, the German Panzer 38(t) and the Soviet BT-7. Both were of similar size, armed with guns of comparable firepower, and had foreign roots – the Panzer 38(t) was a Czechoslovak design and the BT-7 was an evolution of the American Christie tank.With full-colour artwork and archive and present-day photography, this absorbing study assesses the strengths and limitations of these two types against the wider background of armoured doctrine in the opening stages of Operation Barbarossa.

During the final battles on World War II’s Western Front, the legendary German Tiger I heavy tank clashed with the brand-new M26 Pershing fielded by the United States.The Tiger I had earned a formidable reputation by the end of 1944, although its non-sloped armour and poor mobility meant it was being superseded by the Tiger II or 'King Tiger'. While the Tiger I had been in the front lines since 1942, the US Pershing first entered combat in late February 1945, and more than 20 Pershings would see action before war’s end.This book examines the dramatic Tiger/Pershing duel at Elsdorf in Germany, and also assesses the clashes between German armour and the sole 'Super Pershing' deployed to Europe. Featuring full-colour artwork, carefully chosen photographs and specially commissioned maps, this is the story of the first US heavy tanks in combat with the fearsome Tiger I during the last months of World War II in Europe.

In the build-up to World War II both the United States and Japan believed their battleships would play a central role in battle, but after the Pacific War began in December 1941, the role of the battleship proved to be much more limited than either side expected.There would be only two battleship vs battleship actions in the Pacific in World War II, both of which are assessed in this engaging study. At Guadalcanal in 1942, Kirishima faced two modern US battleships, USS Washington and USS South Dakota. In the Surigao Strait in 1944, two World War I-era Japanese battleships, Yamashiro and Fuso, faced six American battleships supported by four heavy cruisers in history’s last-ever clash between battleships.Employing full-colour artwork, carefully selected archive photographs, and expert analysis, former US Navy Commander Mark E. Stille examines the two head-to-head clashes between the battleships deployed by the United States and Japan in the struggle for control of the Pacific during World War II.

By the time the Americans began their aerial bombardment of Japan in 1944, both the JAAF and IJNAF were spent forces.What the Japanese did have though was the Ki-44 "Tojo". Armed with two 40 mm cannon, it was the most heavily armed and feared single-seat fighter to see action against the new American bomber, the B-29 Superfortress. For the bomber crews, they had what they believed was their ‘ace in hole’: a fully armed B-29 carried four remotely operated gun turrets and a tail gunner's position, making it the world's most advanced self-defending bomber.In every respect the Ki-44 pilots were fighting a desperate battle. Many who made their mark did so using suicidal ramming attacks or "taiatari". Illustrated with full colour artwork, this volume examines why the Ki-44 was unable to break up bomber formations conventionally during the Pacific War, and how its ramming tactics, while terrifying, graphically revealed Japan's inability to stop the B-29.

Following Argentina's military operation to take possession of the Falkland Islands/Islas Malvinas, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's government launched a major naval operation to return them to British rule.Defending the Royal Navy task force were two small squadrons totalling 20 Sea Harriers (SHARs). Initial clashes between SHARs and Argentine Mirages and Daggers on 1 May 1982 failed to eliminate the Sea Harrier defenders. FAA fighter-bomber pilots relied on daring and courageous ultra-low level attacks, frequently escaping the Sea Harrier’s limited capabilities, against Royal Navy warships and auxiliaries, causing considerable damage during Operation Corporate, the large-scale amphibious operation to repossess the islands.Publishing 35 years after the end of the conflict, this fully illustrated volume offers a balanced and objective examination of the SHAR and the Argentine Mirage and Dagger aircraft, highlighting the attributes of both and the skills and courage of the pilots flying them.

When Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin’s rigid airship LZ 1 flew over Lake Constance in 1900, it was the most advanced and impressive flying machine in the world: a colossal, lighter-than-air craft capable of controlled flight.In World War I, Zeppelins were first used in a reconnaissance role, but on 19 January 1915 Kaiser Wilhelm II authorised their use in bombing strategic targets in England. From then on, ‘Zeppelin’ became synonymous with terror to the British, and indeed the airship's effectiveness was more psychological than material. Still, their raids compelled the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service to embark on a program of modernising their aerial defences, accelerating a process that would ultimately make the aeroplane, rather than the airship, the paramount flying machine of the war.Using specially commissioned artwork, contemporary photographs and first-hand accounts, this book tells the fascinating story of Britain’s first Blitz, from the airships who terrorised the public to the men who sought to defend the skies.

Leading up to the Pacific War, Japanese naval strategists believed that a decisive fleet engagement would be fought against the United States Navy.Outnumbered by the USN, the Imperial Japanese Navy planned to use its large, ocean-going submarines to chip away at its opponent before the grand battle. In order to accomplish this, the IJN’s submarine force was tasked to perform extended reconnaissance of the USN’s battle fleet, even in port, and then shadow and attack it.For their part, the USN was fully aware of the potential threat posed by Japanese submarines, and destroyer crews were trained and equipped with modern anti-submarine weapons and tactics to screen the battle fleet. Challenging the assumption that Japanese submarines were ineffective during the Pacific War, this fully illustrated study examines their encounters with the US Navy, and the successes and failures of American destroyers in protecting their capital ships.