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Reconnaissance and Bomber Aces of World War 1 by Jon Guttman Pdf
Often overshadowed by the fighters that either protected or threatened them, two-seater reconnaissance aircraft performed the oldest and most strategically vital aerial task of World War 1 a task that required them to return with the intelligence they gathered at all costs. Bomber sorties were equally important and dangerous, and the very nature of both types of mission required going in harm's way. A remarkable number of British, French and German two-seater teams managed to attain or exceed the five victories needed to achieve the acedom popularly associated with their single-seat nemeses, and in this book, with rich illustrations and first-hand accounts of the veterans themselves, they receive their long-overdue recognition. Many high-scoring single-seat fighter aces also began their careers in two-seaters, particularly in the early stages of the conflict, and their exploits as either pilots or observers are detailed here too.
British and Empire Aces of World War 1 by Christopher Shores Pdf
At the outset of World War I the British had some 110 assorted aircraft, used mostly for the visual reconnaissance role. With the advent of faster and more agile single-seaters, the Allies and their adversaries raced to outdo each other in the creation of genuinely effective fighters with fixed forward-firing machine gun armament. It was not until 1917 that the British developed a truly effective interrupter gear, which paved the way for excellent single seaters such as the Sopwith Triplane Camel and the RAF S.E.5., later joined by the Bristol F.2B - the war's best two-seat fighter. This volume traces the rapid development of the fighter in World War I and the amazing exploits of the British and Empire aces who flew them.
Although the Russian Imperial Army Air Service consisted of no more than four BAGs (Boevaya Aviatsionniy Gruppa – battle aviation groups), each controlling three or four smaller AOIs (Aviatsionniy Otryad Istrebitelei – fighter aviation detachments) equipped with a variety of aircraft types, its fighter pilots nevertheless gave a good account of themselves. Indeed, during three years of war they claimed more than 200 Austro-Hungarian and German aircraft shot down, creating 13 aces – these elite aviators accounted for around half of the victories claimed on the Eastern Front. Pilots flew a variety of fighter types, with French Nieuport scouts and SPAD VIIs proving to be the most popular, and effective, aeroplanes to see service on this front. The exploits of these aces are detailed here, with information based on material newly sourced by the author from Russian military and private archives. Many previously unpublished photographs are used to illustrate this book, supported by full-colour profiles that reveal how striking some of the aces' fighters were in this often-forgotten theatre of World War 1.
Fighter Aces of the Great War by Stephen Wynn,Tanya Wynn Pdf
History has recorded that the first ever powered flight took place at Kitty Hawk in America, on 17 December 1903 and was carried out by the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, who were aircraft designers and manufacturers. By the time of the outbreak of the First World War, aviation was only eleven years old. The daddy of battlefield warfare until that point in time had been the cavalry, a position it maintained even as war was declared on the Western Front. Aircraft were not initially seen as an offensive weapon and were instead used by both sides as observation platforms, or to take aerial photographs from. Even when they were eventually used in an offensive capacity, they did not have machine guns attached to them; if the crew wanted to open fire then they had to use a pistol or rifle. As the war progressed so the use of aircraft changed from being an observational tool, to that of a fighter and bomber aircraft - something that had never been foreseen at the outbreak of the war. The book then looks at the fighter aces from all sides. These were pilots who had been credited with shooting or forcing down a minimum of five enemy aircraft, of which their were hundreds. While some of these aces survived, many of them were killed. The most famous fighter ace of all is without doubt the German pilot known as the Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen.
American fliers arriving in Europe from September 1917 brought with them no aircraft. Instead, US units had to obtain machines mainly from the British and French. From early 1918 American pilots were issued with SPAD fighters and they never looked back. As this volume details, the first American trained pilot to become an ace was Lt Douglas Campbell, who shot down five German aircraft by the end of May 1918. He was a member of the celebrated 94th 'Hat in the Ring' Aero Squadron, which created the bulk of American aces in World War I.
"Spyplanes is an illustrated history of manned spyplanes, with profiles, pictures, and technical specifications for each plane."--Provided by publisher.
P-36 Hawk Aces of World War 2 by Lionel Persyn,Kari Stenman,Andrew Thomas Pdf
The Curtiss P-36 was considered a revolution in performance design in comparison to other US fighters. Yet by the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor the P-40 was increasingly supplanting the P-36, which the US then exported to France under the guise of the Hawk 75. Flown by the French, captured by the Germans, sold to the Finns, transferred to India and Africa, and even incorporated into the RAF, the Hawk 75 saw service in every theatre of operations and in a variety of combat environments. This book depicts the fascinating life of a plane that fought on both sides in the war, with colour artwork, photographs and first-hand accounts.
The French Air Force in the First World War by Ian Sumner Pdf
The French air force of the First World War developed as fast as the British and German air forces, yet its history, and the enormous contribution it made to the eventual French victory, is often forgotten. So Ian Sumner's photographic history, which features almost 200 images, most of which have not been published before, is a fascinating and timely introduction to the subject. The fighter pilots, who usually dominate perceptions of the war in the air, play a leading role in the story, in particular the French aces, the small group of outstanding airmen whose exploits captured the publics imagination. Their fame, though, tends to distract attention from the ordinary unremembered airmen who formed the body of the air force throughout the war years. Ian Sumner tells their story too, as well as describing in a sequence of memorable photographs the less well-known branches of the service the bomber and reconnaissance pilots and the variety of primitive warplanes they flew.
Austro-Hungarian Aces of World War 1 by Chris Chant Pdf
Starting the war with only 35 aircraft, Austro-Hungarian industry went on to produce only moderate numbers of poor quality aircraft. The fliers of the Austro-Hungarian Empire operating on the Serbian and Russian fronts were fortunate at first, finding themselves faced by small numbers of aircraft yet more obsolescent than their own. Serbia fell in 1915, but when Italy declared war the Austro-Hungarians were still faced with a two-front war – a static front against Italy, and a far more fluid one against Russia. Austro-Hungarian fighter pilots performed bravely and often very effectively under extremely difficult geographic, climatic and operational conditions.
Austro-Hungarian Aces of World War 1 by Chris Chant Pdf
Starting the war with only 35 aircraft, Austro-Hungarian industry went on to produce only moderate numbers of poor quality aircraft. The fliers of the Austro-Hungarian Empire operating on the Serbian and Russian fronts were fortunate at first, finding themselves faced by small numbers of aircraft yet more obsolescent than their own. Serbia fell in 1915, but when Italy declared war the Austro-Hungarians were still faced with a two-front war – a static front against Italy, and a far more fluid one against Russia. Austro-Hungarian fighter pilots performed bravely and often very effectively under extremely difficult geographic, climatic and operational conditions.
The RAF's Cross-Channel Offensive by John Starkey Pdf
The story of the RAF, and in particular Fighter Command, during the Battle of Britain has been told many times. It is a tale of the gallant pilots of ‘The Few’, in their Hurricanes and Spitfires, with the nation’s back to the wall, fighting off the Luftwaffe’s airborne assault against enormous odds. But the story of Fighter Command’s operations immediately after the Battle of Britain is less well known. Marshal of the Royal Air Force Hugh Montague Trenchard commanded the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War. His policy then had been for his aircraft and men to be continually on the offensive, always over the German lines taking the fight to the enemy. After being promoted to command the RAF, Trenchard retired in 1930. In November 1940, Trenchard showed up again at the Air Ministry and proposed that the RAF should ‘Lean Towards France’ – that it should go on the offensive. The RAF would, claimed Trenchard, win the resulting battle of attrition. One of the main outcomes of the RAF’s new offensive stance was the introduction of the Circus sorties. These were attacks undertaken by a small force of bombers with a powerful fighter escort. They were intended to lure enemy fighters into the air so that they could be engaged by RAF fighters, the primary objective being the destruction of Luftwaffe fighters, followed by the protection of the bombers from attack. A further development of the Circus missions were Ramrods, Rhubarbs and Rodeos, all of which were variations on the same theme. A Ramrod was similar to a Circus, though in this instance the primary objective was the destruction of the target, the main role of the accompanying fighters being to protect the bombers from attack. A Rhubarb was a small-scale attack by fighters using cloud cover and/or surprise, the object of which was to destroy German aircraft in the air and/or striking at ground targets, while a Rodeo consisted of a fighter sweep over enemy territory with no bombers. Drawing on official documents and archive material, as well as accounts by many of those involved, James Starkey reveals just how Trenchard’s views won through and the RAF went on the offensive from late 1940 into 1941. Was it a failed strategy? If so, why was it not halted once the results began to be seen?
“Simply superb! . . . easily the best book (in English) available on the French Air Service . . . The book is a gem.”—The Aerodrome In comparison to their British and German counterparts, the French airmen of the Great War are not well known. Yet their aerial exploits were just as remarkable, and their contribution to the war effort on the Western Front was equally important. That is why Ian Sumner’s vivid history of the men of the French air force during the war is of such value. He tells their story using the words of the pioneering pilots and observers themselves, drawn from memoirs, diaries, letters, and contemporary newspapers, magazines and official documents. The recollections of the airmen give an authentic portrait of their role and their wartime careers. They cover recruitment and training, reconnaissance and artillery spotting, aerial combat, ground strafing and bombing, and squadron life. They also highlight the technical and tactical innovations made during those hectic years, as well as revealing the airmen’s attitude to the enemy—and their thoughts about the ever-present threat of injury and death. “No stone unturned, well researched and well written, Kings of the Air should become the ‘go to’ title for information about the French contribution to the air war of the Great War.”—The Past in Review “The narrative provides a complete overview of developments in technology, service organization, naval aviation and the principle missions of the French Air Service, all laced with first-person accounts . . . Kings of the Air should be in the collection of any student of the first air war.”—Over the Front
The SE 5/5a British single-seat aircraft was one of the major fighting scouts of the last 18 months of the war in France during World War I and was a true workhorse of the Royal Flying Corps, handling fighter-versus-fighter actions, combating the high-flying German photo-reconnaissance planes as well as balloons. A total of five SE 5/5a pilots, including the legendary Albert Ball, received the Victoria Cross, Britain's highest award for gallantry. A detailed account of the SE 5/5a, this title covers the development of the machine and its first tentative initiation into combat on the Western Front until it grew in stature to become a machine feared by the German Air Service. Packed with first-hand accounts and combat reports, this is a thrilling insight into the dangerous dogfights and fearless actions of the pilots who flew the SE 5/5a, bringing to life the deadly exploits of these "knights of the air" as they dueled for dominance over the Western Front.
Though storytelling, period and contemporary photos and the words of the flying aces themselves, this book brings the history of WWI air combat to life.
The impact of the unsung heroes of WWI—“a must for any aviation enthusiast to further complement work on aerial reconnaissance in modern warfare” (Roads to the Great War), Beyond the heroic deeds of the fighter pilots and bombers of World War I, the real value of military aviation lay elsewhere; aerial reconnaissance, observation, and photography impacted the fighting in many ways, but little has been written about it. Balloons and airplanes regulated artillery fire, infantry liaison aircraft followed attacking troops and the retreats of defenders, aerial photographers aided operational planners and provided the data for perpetually updated maps, and naval airplanes, airships, and balloons acted as aerial sentinels in a complex anti-submarine warfare organization. Reconnaissance crews at the Battles of the Marne and Tannenberg averted disaster. Eyes All Over the Sky fully explores all the aspects of aerial reconnaissance and its previously under-appreciated significance. Also included are the individual experiences of British, American, and German airmen—true pioneers of aviation warfare. “With an interesting selection of photos, the book is not only an excellent reference—it is historically important.” —Classic Wings “This well-researched history belongs on the shelf of anyone with a serious interest in the air war or the ground war of 1914-1918.” —Steve Suddaby, former president of the World War One Historical Association