Book Description
By the end of 1941 the Soviet Union was near collapse and its air force almost annihilated, leaving large numbers of surviving pilots with no aircraft to fly. At this juncture the United Kingdom put aside its prewar animosities toward the Communists and despatched several hundred Hurricane fighters despite the fact that at this time the British were still struggling to supply the RAF with modern fighters in North Africa and the Far East. A total of 4300 Hurricanes and Spitfires, as well as several hundred Tomahawks, Kittyhawks and Airacobras, obtained from the USA under Lend-lease, were eventually supplied to the USSR in an attempt to present a Russian defeat. After the United States had entered the war, the Americans extended Lend-lease to include direct supply to the Soviets as well as the British, and among the aircraft sent were almost 10,000 fighters - mainly P-39s, P-40s and P-63s. Although many of these aircraft were outdated when they arrived, and some were not particularly suited to Russian operating conditions, they served when they were needed. A number of Russian pilots became Heroes of the Soviet Union flying Lend-lease aircraft, and many more gained their early experience before converting to their own Yaks and Lavochkins. All of these types, including the Hurricane, remained in active units until the end of the war, and even into the post-war period.
The Soviet government tried to play down or conceal the importance of Lend-lease fighters until well into the 1980s, and the pilots who flew them were discriminated against as 'foreigners'. Only in recent years have these pilots felt free to admit what they flew, and now the fascinating story of these men and their heroic achievements can emerge.
Customer Reviews:
Great for its limited audience.......2007-02-14
OK, maybe 5 stars is a bit extereme. But what a pleasure to read if you have an interest in this pretty obscure subject.
Great Book! Excellent edition to anyone's VVS library.......2007-01-19
Split into 4 main sections: Hurricane, P-40, Kobras (P-39), and other lend lease fighters. 80 B&W pictures mainly focusing on pilot portraits with aircraft behind. Hurricane section has more aircraft views and crash photos than others. Other lend lease fighters focus on Spits and P-63 in all of its 7 pages-2 pics of P-47 none of A-20. Nice, as always, art by Jim Laurier features 36 side views of all types covered and an A-20!! Only 1 written page (last one)devoted to A-20(with P-63 photo on it-???!!!), probably not much info on A-20 yet but good to at least include it and the P-63 photo haha. I enjoyed the Hurricane section and P-40 first hand accounts the most. Worth the money but as always WW2 VVS photo quality not as good as German or American books. Some repeat pictures from previous Osprey books on P-40 and P-39. All in all not bad and a must for modellers. Nice 7 page listing of Lend-Lease Aces Roster includes: Name, Rank, HSU, Unit, Victories, Sorties/Combat, Date KIA, and notes. 96pp. Recommended purchase for VVS historians, account of Lt. Kuznetsov cover story very interesting. Enjoy.
Soviet Falcons in Action!.......2007-01-03
The over 15,000 fighters supplied to Russia by America and Great Britain played a vital role in Russia's survival and ultimate triumph in WW II. That total encompassed Hurricanes, Spits, P-39s, P-40s and P-63s along with small numbers of P-47s and -51s. The exploits of the VVS aces who flew lend-lease fighters are recounted in George Mellinger's latest Osprey volume, #74 in their 'Aircraft of the Aces' series.
Of the fighters supplied, Britain's fighters drew a mixed response. The Huricanes were viewed as rugged but slower than its Bf 109 opponents, poorly armed with .303 popguns, etc. Though the Russians demanded Spits, upon arrival, they found the Spitfire's landing gear wasn't up to the primitive airfields found on the Russian front. Nevertheless, pilots such as Sergei Kurzenkov, Yakov Bakharev, Sultan Amet-Khan and Vasilii Adonkin became aces flying ex-RAF machines.
The P-40 and, especially, the P-39 were well regarded by Soviet fliers. Early P-40 models were rated highly for their ruggedness, heavy armament, long range and tight-turning abilities. Pyotr Belyasnik, Aleksandr Matveyev, Aleksei Khlobystov and Stepan Novichkov - Russia's top P-40 ace with 19 kills - were among the Stalin Falcons who did well with lend-lease Tomahawks and Kittyhawks.
Though considered a dog in USAAF service, the P-39, christened 'Kobra' in VVS service, performed superably over the Eastern Front. Heavily armed, fast and maneuverable at the altitudes where most combats took place, VVS pilots swore by the Bell fighter. Russia's most highly regarded fighter leader and ace, Aleksandr Pokryshkin, was so enamored of the Kobra that he refused demands from his superiors that his unit re-equip with Soviet-made fighters! The combats waged by Pokryshkin, Grigorii Rechkalov, Nikolai Lavitskii, Boris and Dmitrii Glinka, Aleksei Smirnov, the legless ace Zakhar Sorokin, Aleksandr Klubov and other Kobra aces are well covered in Mellinger's book.
How important were lend-lease fighters to Russia? Well, by war's end, over 100 Soviet pilots were aces thanks to lend-lease fighters, many of them becoming Heroes of the Soviet Union.
Over 80 black and white photos and nine pages of color sideviews of Hurris, Spits, P-40s, Kobras, P-47s and even an A-20(!) in Soviet livery help illustrate this fascinating chapter of Russia's air war.
Book Description
Evgeniy Mariinskiy, a Soviet fighter ace and Hero of the Soviet Union, shot down 20 enemy planes in aerial combat over the Eastern Front between 1943 and 1945. He frequently engaged enemy fighters and bombers, shot down many but was himself shot down several times.
This is his extraordinary story. His vivid inside view of the ruthless war in the air on the Eastern Front gives a rare insight into the reality of fighting and tactics of the Red Army Air Force. In his own words, and with a remarkable clarity of recall, Evgeniy Mariinskiy describes what combat was like in the air, face to face with a skilled, deadly and increasingly desperate enemy. The reader can follow his career from an unskilled novice who has just arrived at his regiment through to him becoming an ace, and Hero of the Soviet Union, under the leadership of experienced commanders.
The terrifying moments of action, engagements with enemy fighters, forced landings, nervous strain before attacks, loss of comrades and everyday life of pilots - all these aspects of a Soviet fighter pilot's experience during the Great Patriotic War are brought dramatically to life in his memoirs. In his memoirs Mariinskiy describes tactics which enabled him to have an upper hand in dogfights against experienced German pilots. The grand strategy of the campaigns across the Eastern Front is less important here than the sequence of engagements that were the firsthand experience of the author. It is this close-up view of combat that makes Evgeniy Mariinskiy's reminiscences of such value.
Key sales points: A gripping and superbly readable memoir of the war in the air over the Eastern Front 1943-45, penned by a Hero of the Soviet Union and air ace credited with 20 victories / Covers the author's full aviation career including training and his initial experiences over the front, as well as his increasingly successful combat with a skilled enemy / Evgeniy Mariinskiy served with the 129th Guards Fighter Regiment 1943-45, undertaking 210 sorties, participating in 60 air-to-air engagements and shooting down 20 enemy aircraft. In 1945 he was awarded the Gold Star of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Customer Reviews:
Good book, horrible editing.......2007-01-20
The book is more or less a typical memoir from the Eastern Front. I read it in one day and enjoyed it for the most part. Unlike another memoir which I read by a pilot, the losses that Mariinskiy's regiment suffered were not at all as bad as they could have been. He definitely served in one of the better formations and had one of the highest scoring aces, Gulayev, flying in the same regiment. Now, the real reason I give this book 4 stars is because of the horrible editing job. Mistakes are quite numerous! On one page you will read about the 29th Guards Fighter Regiment, on another the same regiment is now the 129th. Gulayev is spelled at times as Gulaev. Sandomir is spelled as Samdomir. And so on and so forth, it becomes quite annoying and definitely takes away from the pleasure of reading this book! The translation is also rudimentary at times, it could have been a much better read if time was taken to correct these two problems. Otherwise some of the stories are very interesting although from time to time I found it hard to believe the numbers the author quotes, both those planes he and his squadron encountered and those planes that were shot down, although you never know. Suffice it to say, if you can get by with the lousy editing and crude translation, you might just enjoy this book.
His first-hand experiences and accounts of battle engagements provide enlightening details.......2006-11-07
Evgeniy Mariinskiy's RED STAR AIRACOBRA: MEMOIRS OF A SOVIET FIGHTER ACE 1941-45 tells of a Soviet air fighter ace and hero who shot down twenty enemy plains during world War II - and was himself shot down not once, but several times. His memoir provides an soldier's eye view of the Eastern Front, surveying the fighting forces and tactics of the Red Army and providing a 'you are there' set of battle experiences. His first-hand experiences and accounts of battle engagements provide enlightening details on what it meant to participate in Soviet battle.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Average customer rating:
- Product review on "Operation Overflight"
- Operation Overflight: A Memoir of the U-2 Incident
- The U-2 Incident with Francis Gary Powers:
- An espionage reader
|
Operation Overflight: A Memoir of the U-2 Incident
Francis Gary Powers , and
Curt Gentry
Manufacturer: Potomac Books Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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The Cold War : A New History
ASIN: 1574884220 |
Book Description
In this new edition of his classic 1970 memoir about the notorious U-2 incident, pilot Francis Gary Powers reveals the full story of what actually happened in the most sensational espionage case in Cold War history. After surviving the shoot-down of his reconnaissance plane and his capture on May 1, 1960, Powers endured sixty-one days of rigorous interrogation by the KGB, a public trial, a conviction for espionage, and the start of a ten-year sentence. After nearly two years, the U.S. government obtained his release from prison in a dramatic exchange for convicted Soviet spy Rudolph Abel. The narrative is a tremendously exciting suspense story about a man who was labeled a traitor by many of his countrymen but who emerged a Cold War hero.
Customer Reviews:
Product review on "Operation Overflight".......2007-05-29
When I ordered this paper back I thought it would a used copy of this book. When it arrived it was a brand new book. So now I have a very nice copy for my Library. Amazon was a pleasure to do business with.
Operation Overflight: A Memoir of the U-2 Incident.......2006-08-25
This book is certainly a must have for the Cold War, Military Aviation and Spy afficionados out there! While the authors did their best to make the most of what little details Powers did/could provide them - especially about the actual missions he flew for the CIA - they failed to do justice to the historical significance of the event. Powers' actual flights and missions in the U-2 are not discussed in great detail (they never even mention the plane's actual altitude, there are no details about the U-2 except for some hearsay info on its imagined structural integrity (or lack thereof), and they assigned less than a page to discuss the other "special missions"), and there are very few details about the mission the book was actually written about. What you will nevertheless be able to read in detail about are his time spent in Russian prisons, the KGB interrogations, or his kind Latvian roomate Zigurd in Vladimir prison. The final section of the book is spent on the well-justified trashing of the CIA (afterall they gave him the shaft the same way NASA did to the Apollo 13 crew), and Powers provides some great insights into the personal dealings of the Agency. Reading it today, Powers' observations were way ahead of their time! You'll appreciate Powers Jr's epilogue that puts the entire book in perspective. Overall it is a great book, the only first-hand account of the U-2 incident you'll ever have, and as a matter of fact, I'll go and read it again!
The U-2 Incident with Francis Gary Powers:.......2006-07-20
The Flt of the U-2 is a most inspiring book. I sat on the edge of my seat while reading it and finished it in one sitting wishing there was more to read, but happy that the Russians got their "just day in court" and finally Francis Gary Powers was exchanged for Rudolph Abel. Such a high flying plane, to be shot out of the skies, is unreal to me - what went wrong? No matter what Powers' wrote, we will never know the complete truth, will we? Thank God he came home safe, as he *almost* gave his life for his country. A well done book and may he rest in peace as his son recounts his father's service to his country. God Bless. Trish Schiesser, whose brother SSGT Phil Noland served in the USAFSecurity Service during the time Powers took off and went missing in Russia.
A fine, well written book. I am glad it is out again.
An espionage reader .......2004-09-21
Enjoyed it immensely. A hard to put down, revealing look at this historical, military, political event of the 1960's. Covering some of Power's CIA training, U2 overflights, downing & capture, Russian trial(farse), imprisonment, possible Oswald & other defectors connection to the U2 shoot down, repatriation through a trade of a pro Russian, US held spy and some of Power's life afterwards.
Average customer rating:
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Stalin's Eagles: An Illustrated Study of the Soviet Aces of World War II and Korea (Schiffer Military History)
Hans D. Seidl
Manufacturer: Schiffer Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0764304763 |
Book Description
Stalin's Eagles is the most complete and detailed book ever published on the Soviet aces. All of the great names are here: Kozhedub, Pokryshkin, Rechkalov, Koldunov, Popkov and numerous others whose thrilling exploits were an inspiration to their comrades, and who handily outscored the top American and British aces. Hundreds of portraits illuminate the lives of many aces, most unknown to western readers, and the desperate struggles of these outstanding fighter pilots who in the end were to make the skies above Eastern Europe their fiefdom. The history of the Soviet fighter command in World War II began in tragedy with the slaughter of inexperienced squadrons by the triumphant Luftwaffe. Read here of their dramatic recovery and the terrible losses of the Luftwaffe at the hands of Russian elite pilots as they were winning complete supremacy in the air. In almost four years of continuous action, the Soviet air forces were credited with destroying over 43,000 enemy aircraft in aerial combat producing some 800 aces with 15 or more kills. Illustrated with over 300 photographs, many taken from the personal collections of veteran pilots, and supplemented by exhaustive statistical information this unique record represents a major research effort and will prove fascinating to all who have an interest in the history of aerial warfare. For the first time the deeds and feats of the Shturmovik aces Ð the tank hunters and assault aircraft of the Soviet Air Force Ð are recorded in detail, and an entire chapter presents the history of all Soviet fighter units. Little known in the West, Soviet pilots flew over Korea and many achieved ace status Ð all are named here with details of their careers and aerial victories. Forewords are by twice hero of the Soviet Union V.I. Popkov, himself an ace with 41 kills in World War II and three more in Korea, and GŸnther Rall, number three ace of all time with 275 aerial victories., over 470 b/w photographs, 16 color aircraft profiles, 9" x 12", appendices
Book Description
This is the latest among Midland's very successful 'Secret Projects' series. This, the second of three volumes covering Soviet secret aviation projects, is devoted to post-World War II fighters and will include designs from famous bureaus such as Lavochkin, Mikoyan, Sukhoi, Yakovlev, Myasishchev, and Tupolev. The book covers early post-war fighters, competitions for the first-generation supersonic designs (MiG-21 and Su-7/-9), advanced designs of the 1960s which led to the MiG-2 and competitions to build the specifications which resulted in the MiG-29, Su-27, and MiG I-44. A number of previously unpublished Yakovlev designs from the late 1950s and early 1960s form a separate chapter, followed by another covering Yakovlev's VSTOL work. The book also describes the competition between design bureaus for orders and shows the progress made in aircraft design behind the Iron Curtain. It will give both experts and enthusiasts the chance to compare this work to Western aircraft programs of the era.
Customer Reviews:
Should Have more information.......2007-04-18
The overall book content is very good but I think the autors were very succinct on projects description.
A powerful military aviation history of the achieved and proposed projects.......2006-08-20
Any reader of military history who wishes to follow the evolution of modern Soviet fighters must look at Soviet Secret Projects: Fighters Since 1945. It provides a powerful military aviation history of the achieved and proposed projects, including designs unknown to the West, and drafted as possible prototypes which never got off the ground. These projects were created by the former Union between 1945 to present and offer not only black and white photos and sketches of projects, but background history into the competition between projects.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Book Description
This is the extraordinary story of Vasily B. Emelianenko, the veteran pilot of one of the Soviet Union's most contradictory planes of WWII - the I1-2. This heavily armored aircraft was practically unrivalled in terms of fire power, but it was slow to maneuver and an easy target for fighters. I1-2 had to attack enemy flak columns at extremely low altitudes, which led to enormous tolls both in equipment and personnel. It is no wonder then that, having flown eighty combat sorties against the Germans, Emelianenko was awarded the highest decoration - the Hero of the Soviet Union. He went on to complete a total of ninety-two sorties. His plane was shot down three times, and on each occasion he managed to pilot the damaged aircraft home, demonstrating remarkable resilience and bravery in the face of terrifying odds. Emelianenko's vivid memoirs provide a rare insight into the reality of fighting over the Eastern Front and the tactics of the Red Army Air Force. With remarkable clarity, he recalls what it was like to come face to face with a skilled, deadly and increasingly desperate enemy. Hair-raising encounters with fighters, forced landings on enemy territory, and the death of friends are all brought dramatically and movingly to life in this rare first-hand account.
Customer Reviews:
Homegrown technology and homegrown heroes.......2007-05-23
In unpretentious verse, the author matter-of-factly sets out the course of the air war across the Kuban and Ukraine in World War Two. You see clearly in these pages why pilots in Eastern Europe - be they Soviet or German - suffered the war's highest casualty rates, perhaps second only to penal battalions. At times you feel you're flying in formation with Sturmovik pilots, chasing or being chased by Messerschmidts. The author merely suggests the fear - and does it with great modesty. The book also gives a good feel for the camaraderie in Soviet Air Force, which blossomed regardless of national origin or religion, and supports the notion that the esprit de corps of the Soviet military quickly bounced back after initial disasters. The book also touches on improvements in aircraft technology and in battle tactics, and suggests that Moscow's priority was directed almost entirely to war machines over creature comforts, as where some pilots, for example, had trousers sewn from parachutes, and scrounged for food from the local population - despite having air-to-ground rockets at their disposal.
The author wrote this book late in life as a tribute to all the friends who never returned from combat missions - that is, most of his friends. The book is a simple, easy read and you learn a great deal about the Eastern Front, and serves as an admirable companion piece to something like Catherine Merridale's Ivan's War, which explores everyday life in the Soviet infantry.
One Soviet Pilot's War in the Skies Over Russia.......2006-08-04
"Red Star Against the Swastika" is an extremely well written and compelling story, told for the first time.
The book is one of a series of new World War II memoirs by Red Army soldiers and airmen, which provide fresh and valuable insights into the Soviet armed forces of the Great Patriotic War. It remind us that Ivan, the Red Army soldier, was a living, breathing being, who cherished life as much as his counterparts in the West and who was willing to defend his family and his homeland fanatically and lay down his life dearly for all that he loved.
In "Red Star Against the Swastika" Il-2 Shturmovik pilot Vasily Emelianenko remembers his own war against the German Luftwaffe in the skies over Soviet Russia. Developed before the Second World War for the Soviet Air Force, the Il-2 was the first plane optimized for all ground attack and close air support missions. With an armored pilot's compartment, including specially armored glass, and equipped with multiple heavy machineguns and later cannon, the Il-2 played a major role in the Red Army's defeat of the Wehrmacht in Russia.
Emelianenko flew 92 sorties against the Germans, including 80 combat missions. Shot down three times, he always managed to reach home safely, once after another pilot in his squadron landed his own Sturmovik under fire to rescue Emelianenko. For his courage and successful completion of a number of critical missions, the author was awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union, Soviet Russia's highest award.
"Red Star Against the Swastika" reminds us of the tremendous sacrifices made by Red Army soldiers and airmen to stop the Germans, even when the odds were stacked against them. "After the first weeks of the war our troops did not have enough fighters and anti-aircraft guns left," writes Emelianenko. "Consequently, squadrons flew their attacks without any cover. German aircraft had complete superiority in the air. Soviet military pilots had to pay tremendous prices, and a very few of those who began the war in summer 1941 lasted until victory came."
But, fortunately, the battle did not always go the Wehrmacht's way, and time after time, the Red Army managed to catch the Germans by surprise: "Approaching Bobruysk the Shturmoviks were flying very low. Anti-aircraft guns began to fire....The leader turned and launched the attack. Missiles hit the row of [German] bombers and exploded, tracer bullets shredded the wings with black crosses....Junkers and Messerschmitts ready for operational flights blazed up. Our aircraft came in time and did not allow the enemy planes to take off!"
By 1943 the tide of battle had shifted and the resurgent Red Army seized the strategic offensive, never to lose it again. "In the fierce cruel struggle we managed to crush the enemy that brought war to our land," remembers Emelianenko, "and there is my part of strain, blood and sweat in it." Indeed. In four years of combat, the author's ground attack aircraft division lost 717 men. Two hundred of those were from the 7th Guards Ground Attack Aircraft Regiment, Emelianenko's unit.
Victory thus came at a horrendous price. By the end of the Second World War, Soviet Russia had lost some 27 million people in the war, including ten million soldiers, sailors and airmen killed. And those that survived were changed forever: "Few people lived through the war without deep scars on their bodies and on their hearts," admits the author.
Emelianenko concludes his story with the following words; "My friends said to me then: 'Those who were killed must live in a book. People myst know about them. And write the truth only!' I have done my best."
Loved it.......2006-01-28
One of the best memoirs I've read about the war. The stories in this memoir are at times very moving. The missions they had to accomplish, the sacrifices made (a pilot rams his plane into a column of German tanks and trucks), the lives lost whether to the enemy or by mere accident are incredible. The editing job on the book was quite poor, again and again I found grammatical mistakes on many pages. Yet that shouldn't take away from the great stories that this author was kind enough to share. If one wants to understand what really went on, in this war to the death on the Eastern Front, specifically in the skies, you will not be disappointed in this book. At the end is a helpful list of those pilots who were MIA and KIA throughout the war, the sheer volume of losses is impressive. Few survived the war, yet even so they flew on mission after mission and struggled to get to the front whether from rear area services or from hospitals after being wounded. One pilot who lost both his legs trained to fly again, but in the end was rejected. Another returned to lead a regiment but perished in an accident. As much as you will be presented with death in this book you will never get used to the fact that again and again someone will not return from a mission or will be seen diving toward the ground in a burning plane.
Boring through flak and fighters. . . Cheers for the IL-2s!.......2006-01-08
The Germans Lanser called it the Butcher Bird;a Luftwaffe pilot coined the term Panzerflieger---flying tank---to describe this incredibly tough as nails fighter bomber. The Soviet IL-2s and the heroic pilots and crews who flew them at low level through the tracers and bursting shells of sharp-shooting Flak gunners deserve the West's admiration for the important and often decisive role they played in tearing the guts out of the Wehrmacht in Russia. Now you can read a book about it by someone who was there. Vasily Emelianenko flew IL-2s with his comrades in the 7th Guards Regiment, 230th Kuban Ground-Attack Division. Unlike most Russian wartime memoirs, this one isn't dripping with love for the Communist Party. It's simply a pilot's story of his experiences and the experiences of his comrades, many of whom fell victim to flak and fighter attack, in the desperate life and death struggle waged in the East from 1941-45. Shot down numerous times, often behind enemy lines, Vasily used all his piloting and survival skills to emerge alive and victorious in the war. He is not a braggart and has no difficulties explaining what he did right or wrong in combat. The end of the book includes a list of all the 7th Guard Regiment's pilot losses,which alone is worth the price of the book. I salute Vasily's service and courage from afar. Thank you for your service in the war to defeat Hitler's Germany.
Not so much a combat memoir as a personal memoir.......2006-01-04
It's a good book, but it's not going to teach you anything about flying, combat tactics, or Russian air force procedures. The combat stories in the book are quite limited, and not much detail. In this respect, I was disappointed.
However, as a document of day-to-day life as a pilot, and surviving the war, it is excellent.
You do get a feel for the way the pilots and ground crews viewed the war (and their chances); what it was like to receive the endlessly catastrophic battle reports in the early days; and, life as a combat pilot in rough fields, rough weather, and rough living conditions.
It was interesting to see through eyes of one of the participants. The endless repetition of pilots and gunners being lost gives the reader an inkling of the incredible losses the Soviets endured, and just how lucky the author was to be one of those survivors.
The bottom line, this is a more personal view of wartime life as a pilot, and not so much a combat memoir. But, it is well worth reading.
Product Description
Adm. James Holloway describes this book as a contemporary perspective of the events, decisions, and outcomes in the history of the Cold War Korea, Vietnam, and the Soviet confrontation that shaped today s U.S. Navy and its principal ships-of-the-line, the large-deck, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. Without question, the admiral is exceptionally well qualified to write such an expansive history. As a carrier pilot in Korea, commander of the Seventh Fleet in Vietnam, Chief of Naval Operations in the mid-1970s, and then as a civilian presidential appointee to various investigative groups, Holloway was a prominent player in Cold War events.
Here, he casts an experienced eye at the battles, tactics, and strategies that defined the period abroad and at home. Holloway's first-person narrative of combat action conveys the tense atmosphere of hostile fire and the urgency of command decisions. His descriptions of conversations with presidents in the White House and of meetings with the Joint Chiefs in the war room offer a revealing look at the decision-making process. Whether explaining the tactical formations of road-recce attacks or the demands of taking the Navy s first nuclear carrier into combat, Holloway provides telling details that add valuable dimensions to the big picture of the Cold War as a coherent conflict. Few readers will forget his comments about the sobering effect of planning for nuclear warfare and training and leading a squadron of pilots whose mission was to drop a nuclear bomb.
Both wise and entertaining, this book helps readers understand the full significance of the aircraft carrier s contributions. At the same time, it stands as a testament to those who fought in the long war and to the leadership that guided the United States through a perilous period of history while avoiding the Armageddon of a nuclear war.
Customer Reviews:
Rare history.......2007-08-15
Very few admirals (or generals for that matter) pay much attention to history. (Examples abound, including recent events.) But Jim Holloway not only reads and writes history--he lived it as well. From his spellbinding account of the shootout in Surigao Strait to the bombardment of Haiphong 28 years later, his career both aloft and afloat would fill a book whether or not he became chief of naval operations.
Holloway's memoir is divided into numerous segments providing both the personal and the overall perspective of events in wars hot and cold. Probably the most illuminating portion is his extremely detailed description of Korean War operations, to a degree this reader has not previously seen.
There is plenty of other significant material including development of nuclear powered aircraft carriers (Holloway commanded USS Enterprise) and the post-Vietnam doldrums when the fleet's human and materiel condition had been permitted to degrade to alarming levels. However, his busy post-retirement career has benefitted everyone interested in nautical lore, especially the Naval History web site.
In an era when active-duty admirals think that Douglas Devastators flew alongside Grumman Bearcats, when a Canadian Spitfire ace knows more about carriers than many naval officers, Holloway's book comes as a refreshing change.
Aircraft Carrier Operations.......2007-05-28
Admiral Holloway's story begins with a destroyer torpedo attack on a battleship during the Battle of Suriago Strait in WW II. At the time Holloway was a lieutenant assigned as the gunnery and torpedo officer in the destroyer USS Bennion. There is a rule of thumb in the Navy that a destroyer making a torpedo attack on a battleship in a sea battle has a life expectancy of less than five minutes before being sunk. You can imagine the feelings of the crew aboard Bennion realizing as they turned in to attack that many of them probably had less than five minutes to live.
Less than a week after that battle Lieutenant Holloway departed for flight training. His parting comments to the commanding officer were "In the past 48 hours we have silenced two shore batteries, shot down three Zeros, battled a Japanese cruiser, sunk a destroyer by gunfire, and torpedoed a Japanese battleship. I think I'm ready to try something new."
The book goes on to describe Holloway's experience in flight training and eventual assignment as operations officer of a carrier air task group where he flew as a pilot with Fighter Squadron 111 in combat in Korea. Later in the war he served as executive officer and then commanding officer of Fighter Squadron 52. His descriptions of flying in that war are as detailed, readable and understandable as any air combat stories I have ever read. The intensity of the naval air campaign in Korea is little understood or appreciated. An example is that one of the squadrons in his task group, VF-653, lost 12 of its 26 pilots during his 1951-52 tour.
Aircraft Carriers at War could well have been titled A History of the US Navy in our Time. Admiral Holloway next describes many of the naval operations during the cold war where his assignments included command of Attack Squadron 83 whose mission was delivery of nuclear weapons. The operations of such squadrons are described in easily understood terms.
The most significant operational descriptions in the book are included in Holloway's command tour of the nuclear powered attack aircraft carrier Enterprise during the Vietnam War. We seldom read descriptions of carrier operations by carrier commanders and this book has the best description of carrier warfare I have ever read. The command responsibilities and day to day operations of a carrier captain are clearly described and explained.
The remainder of the book is the most important historically as Holloway describes his operational experiences as an admiral in command of various fleet components and his Washington assignments leading to his selection as Chief of Naval Operations (CNO). The description of his tour as CNO gives seldom revealed insights into the inner workings of the Department of Defense and the relationship of the service commanders with the president and congress.
Aircraft Carriers at War is a historical review of naval operations in our time including three hot wars, the cold war and numerous international incidents written by a participant rather than an observer. Admiral Holloway is generally considered the most knowledgeable and dedicated proponent of aircraft carriers in our time and this book clearly reflects his knowledge and experience.
You may have noted this is not an entirely unbiased review. I confess that I commanded an attack aircraft squadron and an attack aircraft carrier at the same time as Admiral Holloway and we sometimes operated together.
Average customer rating:
- Comprehensive book, huge technical database
- A Must-Have for aviation buffs
- Great MiG and fighter development history
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Okb Mig: A History of the Design Bureau and Its Aircraft
Piotr Butowski , and
Jay Miller
Manufacturer: Specialty Press (MN)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0904597806 |
Book Description
Following the formal birth of their design bureau in 1939, the Mikoyan and Gurevich design team ascended with extraordinary rapidity into the ranks of the aerospace elite. This meteoric rise was not without justification, as their perseverance had resulted in the development of a number of truly exceptional fighters in an environment that would have defeated a less tenacious pair in short order. Beginning with the MiG-1 and MiG-3 piston engine fighters, their work consistently represented the state-of-the art in the Soviet Union for some four decades and did not end with their respective deaths in 1970 and 1976. Talented engineers such as Rostislav Belyakov were quick to fill the voids left by their mentors, and as result, the legacy of excellence continues.
This is the culmination of many years' research. It is a complete and thorough textual and photographic history of this most-admired of Society fighter design teams, and includes highly detailed and authoritative historical and technical data describing every known MiG aircraft and missile. Additionally, brief but thorough biographical sketches are provided on a variety of MiG bureau personalities, and early chapters include significant insight into the Soviet system of hardware acquisition and development.
Customer Reviews:
Comprehensive book, huge technical database.......2003-05-14
Even now, I can not believe my luck, buying it from a "used book" store, in like new condition for almost nothing.
The book gives a thorough presentation of the MiG bureau, its history and more important, its planes.
From the MiG-1 of WW II age to the latest MiG, the "31" Foxhound, all planes are presented in detail, with A LOT of data! For example, you can find, FOR EACH plane version even, the initial and sustained turn rate, engine rating/type, armament, etc. Also, the countries who use/used them are also cited.
Each plane is presented in detail, from it's prototype stage to full operational status, with A LOT OF PHOTOS! In fact, the last part of the book is a HUGE photo album. In a good move, the airplanes engines are also presented, with pictures and data, and same for the armament and missiles.
THE BEST book, hands down, about the MiGs, you can get. One huge difference from all the others "russian" books I own and red...the writing style and the english is nice and easy to read and understand, maybe having an english native as second author helped.
I recomend this book with both hands! If you want to know more about the MiG history, about ALL MiG planes, this is the book to own.
I can not give it though five stars...towards the end, with the apparition of MiG-29 and -31, the information is somehow sketchy (but still the most complete one you can find outside military reports), maybe due to censorship and military secret. Also, the engine/guns/missiles chapter could have been a little more comprehensive, but maybe now I am geting picky.
Buy it and you will not regret it!
A Must-Have for aviation buffs.......1998-08-25
Relatively error free and lacking editorial slant, this book is a great ref for historians, modellers, fans and the like. Not without blemish, but an excellent resource.
Great MiG and fighter development history.......1998-07-29
This is the first book with comprehensive information of MiG and those figter series. With details of history, design and performance, this is a great book to read and reference to.
Customer Reviews:
A very good read for all IL-2 Sturmovik sim fans.......2007-01-17
I found this book to be much more accurate than any internet source about the same subject. Further credibility is lent by the fact that many of those interviewed reflected upon the same events, from different perspectives (e.g., the so unfortunate death of the their contemporary idol, Marina Raskova). As with all eyewitness accounts, you can also get a grim reality of life during the war in Soviet-held territories. Imaging a mother, who has to put her children into an orphanage, because her skills are needed on the front-line. There is nearly no account at all without mentioning the death of a husband, brother or father in the war - everyone seems to have lost someone very dear. This book is a must-read for every fan of IL-2 Sturmovik air combat simulator.
A book with death defying acts of bravery and sacrifice, told by the real people........2005-09-09
That's exactly what this book is. Their story. The Soviet Airwomen in WW2 were very overlooked by the international community. This book is one of the best sources of information on them. When you read it you hold your breath during the tense parts, even though you know they make it out fine.
It's amazing how these girls were able to laugh in such a desperate time, and indeed, in many places where it is defined, the girls found that things happened where you just couldn't afford not to laugh. For example, their boots were so big, because they only wore male suits, that when given the command to face another direction, one girl turned the complete opposite direction but her boots stayed in the same place!
very good book.......2001-10-31
I loved this book about the brave women who fought in world war 2. Not many people had known that women flew in combat so long ago. This book will make the readers see what it was like when everybody had to fight. These women are heroines. I like the photos of the women in their old age with all their medals. They look like anybodies Grandmother! I would be proud to know them. This book makes me feel like I do.
Veterans remember.......2000-05-14
In this excellent book, surviving Soviet veterans of World War ll are interviewed about their service in the Red Air Force. Not only pilots and navigators, but gunners and ground crew also, relate their experiences of what is commemorated in Russia as the Great Patriotic War. Ms. Noggles'recent photos (taken in the early 1990's) contrast poignantly with the black-and-white photos, taken over half a century ago, of the young airwomen in uniform. I highly recommend this book. Read about the courage and sacrifice of these aviators, and the horrific circumstances and conditions which they endured, and remember that these were perfectly ordinary young Soviet women. Some had personally experienced Stalinist oppression, but when their country's existence was threatened, they all voluntarily joined in her defense.
A SUPERLATIVE "EYE-OPENER"!.......1998-08-11
A superlative book..action packed! I was astonished at their courage and patriotism. (Who would actually go out on nightly bombing attacks in a PO-2? They did!) Their continual struggle against the Nazis was made so much more burdensome under the unjust tyranical yoke of Communism. What fine women and what a great "eye-opener".
Book Description
From the start of the Cold War to the fall of Saigon, from the jungles of Africa and beaches of Cuba to the polar icecap and mountains of Tibet, this book presents a comprehensive overview of U.S. air-supported covert operations against the Soviet bloc. Author Curtis Peebles brings a sense of continuity to the shifting, shadowy battlefronts of the Cold War with one fascinating account after another of American intelligence services fighting against some of the most formidable secret police states the world has ever seen. To provide the big picture he draws on recent scholarship and Soviet-era archives and weaves together the known with the unknown. He describes early attempts to set up spy cells behind the Iron Curtain that were doomed by the infamous British traitor Kim Philby, Operation Mongoose, clandestine airlines, and offers details of the CIA's secret spy plane that appeared in James Bond's "Thunderball." He reminds readers that many of the operations ended in tragedy, with the agents knowing full well that if captured, their government would disavow them. In relating each operation to the others, he illustrates the changes in U.S. Cold War strategy and governmental policy from the late 1940s to the mid 1970s.
Those looking for an exciting read won't be disappointed with this globetrotting account of gutsy spies, nor will those seeking substantive facts about covert operations in the skies. Peebles provides just the right blend of drama and realistic detail to attract a broad audience.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent overview history.......2005-06-28
"Twilight Warriors" is an excellent overview history of air-supported special operations against the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, North Vietnam and other hostile locations during the Cold War up through the early 1970s. The author shows how the operations were conceived, how they worked (or didn't, in too many cases) and what the results were. He provides a good discussion of Air America and the use of non-US nationals in these operations such as Nationalist Chinese, Tibetans and Cubans. He also mentions why certain aircraft were chosen for certain missions. Peebles compares the success of the Special Operations Executive and the OSS in World War Two with the failures during the Cold War, and his summary of the meager results of these later covert operations is straight-forward and honest: while the operations might have had some greater degree of success, the very nature of the totalitarian states they were aimed at presented a huge obstacle in infiltrating outsiders who could effectively create and sustain a resistance movement. For readers who want to know more about a particular operation, the bibliography is a great starting place. My chief reservations about this title are (1) a lack of maps (not the author's fault!) and (2) no discussion of whether there any new air-supported covert ops after the fall of South Vietnam--did they stop completely, or is sufficient information lacking to say anything about them? Despite those (minor) criticisms, this book is highly recommended, especially for libraries who may not have much else on Cold War covert operations.
We Were Luckier than we Knew.......2005-06-05
As you might guess from the title, this book talks about airborne operations conducted against the Soviet Bloc during the cold war. It includes not only operations against Russia, but also the covert operations during the Viet Nam war, operations against Cuba, etc.
As I was reading this book I couldn't help but think of the older book "Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage" by Sherry Sontag, Christopher Drew, and Annette Lawrence Drew.
I didn't realize just how close we and the Russians were going at each other during the Cold War. We are very, very lucky that some of these incidents didn't turn out to be really nasty.
The one thing that I kept expecting in this book was more on the RB-47 intrusions into Russia during the late 1950's and early 1960's. It is my understanding that about 40 US planes were shot down with a loss of a couple of hundred men.
One thing that I really liked about the book was the summary chapter at the end. His analysis of what we did, what the Russians were doing and the results were surprising and very informative. I'd like to see this part expanded another fifty pages or so in the next edition.
Meanwhile it's still a great book, get it and "Blind Man's Bluff."
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