Legends of Warfare: Naval - Böcker

USS Yorktown (CV-5) was the US Navy's first battle-worthy, purpose-built aircraft carrier. Her crew, already accustomed to wartime conditions by maintaining Neutrality Patrols during 1941 in the Atlantic, quickly adapted to the Pacific Theater, having been dispatched there immediately after Pearl Harbor. First at Coral Sea, then at Midway, Yorktown's flyers blunted the sword of Japanese aggression. The men flying from her decks were instrumental in turning the tide of WWII in the Pacific. This volume explores Yorktown's construction, prewar and wartime activities through carefully researched photos, many of which have never before been published, which are reproduced in remarkable clarity. This clarity, and the large size of many of the photos, coupled with descriptive and informative captions, puts the reader on the deck of this historic warship throughout her history.

Chronicles the construction, launch, commissioning, and operations of the USS Iowa from 1940 to today!

The story of the USS Missouri is told from her inception in 1940, through WWII kamikaze attacks, to her being the location of the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945

USS New Jersey saw combat during WWII and the Korean War and was the only battleship of any nation to see service during the Vietnam War.

Although bombed at Pearl Harbor, USS Tennessee was back to sea before the year was over.  The crew of the resilient warship fought from Alaska's Aleutian Islands to Tokyo Bay, surviving enemy artillery, bombs, and kamikaze attacks, and even collisions with other American warships. In 1945, Tennessee took part in the famous Battle of Surigao Strait, the last battleship versus battleship combat in history. The hundreds of photographs in this volume, many previously unpublished, trace the history of this iconic warship from its launching in Brooklyn in 1919 to its scrapping in Baltimore forty years later. Part of the Legends of Warfare series.

The nuclear-powered supercarrier USS Nimitz is the oldest carrier in the US fleet. Commissioned in 1975, CVN-68 is named after famed navy admiral Chester Nimitz and has been at the front line of many naval operations in its 40-plus years of service. Nimitz’s design and development, construction, sea trials, commissioning, and first cruise are presented in concise, detailed text. Also covered are all of the ship's systems, including electronics, defensive/offensive armament, command and control, and aircraft launching and recovery. Nimitz’s military campaigns—including the Gulf of Sidra Incident, Operation Desert Shield/Storm, and Operations Southern Watch, Enduring Freedom, and Iraqi Freedom—are also covered in detail, including their results. The book concludes with its latest operational deployment, Operation Inherent Resolve, and the ship’s current status. Part of the Legends of Warfare series.

No less than Dwight Eisenhower described Andrew Jackson Higgins as "the man who won the war for us," referring to the landing craft he perfected. Those craft, the WWII LCP(L), LCP(R), LCV, LCVP, and LCM, are presented in this volume (the first of two on US landing craft), along with the larger LCI (Landing Craft, Infantry). These vessels, built in the tens of thousands, formed the armada that put Allied troops ashore in North Africa, the Aleutians, and Normandy and across the Pacific. Though many of these designs were initially planned as essentially disposable vessels, ultimately many of these continued to serve the nation's need through Vietnam. Some were even heavily laden with rocket launchers and used for close-in support for troops going ashore. Part of the Legends of Warfare series.

USS Hornet (CV-8), made famous through its launching of the 16 US Army B-25 Mitchell bombers flown by Jimmy Doolittle's raiders in the first US strike on Japan in May 1942, was the third and last Yorktown-class aircraft carrier completed. Serving the US Navy for just over one year, the warship had a brief yet heroic life. This volume explores Hornet's construction, wartime activities (including the Battle of Midway), and ultimate sinking during the Battle of Santa Cruz in October 1942, through carefully researched photos, many of which have never before been published, which are reproduced in remarkable clarity. This clarity and the large size of many of the photos, coupled with descriptive and informative captions, put the reader on the deck of this historic warship throughout its short history. Part of the Legends of Warfare series.

This second of two volumes on American landing craft of World War II focuses on the larger LCT, LSM, LCS(L)(3), and LST vessels that transported tanks and heavy equipment to the shores of North Africa and Normandy and throughout the Pacific. The need for massive numbers of landing craft capable of disgorging huge numbers of troops and equipment was predicted by the US Army in 1940. Later, the British army estimated that over 2,000 of such vessels would be required for the assault on Europe. The US launched a building campaign to produce these seagoing craft, turning primarily to shipyards and manufacturers located along the American rivers. Ultimately many of these continued to serve the nation's need through Vietnam. Some were even heavily laden with rocket launchers and used for close-in support for troops going ashore.

Photographic history of the design, construction, and deployment of the last of the famed US Iowa-class battleships.

A concise history of the design, development, and deployment of USS Enterprise (CV-6).

Medium-sized aircraft carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.

The battleships of the Kongo class were the oldest, smallest, and fastest battleships in the Imperial Japanese Navy during WWII. Initially classified as battle cruisers, the lead ship in the class, Kongo, was built in England just prior to WWI. The remaining three ships in the class—Haruna, Kirishima, and Hiei—were all built and completed in Japan by 1915. All four ships were highly reconfigured in the 1920s, and they were reclassified as battleships in the 1930s. The four Kongo-class ships were the most active among the 12 WWII-era Japanese battleships and saw heavy combat throughout the war in such major campaigns as Pearl Harbor, Midway, Guadalcanal, and Leyte. All four ships were sunk by Allied forces by war’s end. This book features rare Japanese primary source material, including numerous photos, line schemes, and detailed charts.

The history of the design, development, and deployment of the famed WWII battleship USS Alabama!

Despite the limitations of the Washington Naval Treaty, USS Indianapolis was an imposing warship. She was widely used by US dignitaries in the 1930s, including President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who sailed aboard the ship many times. After the outbreak of World War II, she saw service near Alaska before moving into waters nearer the Japanese home islands. There, she was struck by a kamikaze and forced to return to the US for repairs. Upon completion of the repairs, Indianapolis was selected to transport components of the "Little Boy" atomic bomb from mainland US to Tinian in the Marianas Islands. On the return journey, she was torpedoed and sunk by a Japanese submarine, becoming the last large warship lost by the US during World War II. Delay in the mission to recover surviving crew resulted in the largest loss of life aboard a single ship at sea in US Navy history. The sinking of Indianapolis remains surrounded in controversy, and the wreck was not located until 2017.

A comprehensive look at World War II-era Fubuki class destroyers, giving readers an understanding of why and how the Imperial Japanese Navy took the lead in destroyer design

A visual history of USS Intrepid, one of the most visited museum ships in the world!

An illustrated history of one of the US Navy's earliest aircraft carriers

USS Lexington (CV-2) was just the second US Navy aircraft carrier produced. This Legends of Warfare illustrated history is the perfect companion to the author's earlier work on USS Lexington (CV-16).

The Akizuki class previewed many features of the postwar fleet escort destroyer. This is the history of their design and construction, and it relies heavily on Japanese source material and includes numerous photos and drawings.

The first book on the powerful Japanese Shokaku-class carriers.

A photographic guide to the USS Arizona, which exploded and sunk in Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

A pictorial guide to battleship Massachusetts, a WWII veteran and floating museum.

A pictorial guide to Akagi and Kaga, two early Japanese aircraft carriers that were sunk at the Battle of Midway.

A pictorial guide to the Imperial Japanese Navy's Nagato-Class battleships, Nagato and Mutsu.

The pictorial history of a 327-foot, 20-knot, heavily armed Coast Guard cutter, which saw combat in both WWII and Vietnam.

Battleship Nevada holds the unique distinction of having survived Pearl Harbor, D-Day, Iwo Jim, and Okinawa, and being the target of atomic bomb testing during Operation Crossroads.

This expanded 176-page volume in the Legends of Warfare series includes 350 images, making it one of the most comprehensive entries in the series to date.

A pictorial history of the USS California, a battleship that was sunk in Pearl Harbor, raised, repaired, and returned to duty during the Second World War.