P-47 Thunderbolt Aces of the Eighth Air Force
P-47 Thunderbolt Aces of the Eighth Air Force

Author: Jerry Scutts

Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Published: 1998-10-30

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781855327290

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The US aviation industry produced three great fighter designs to equip its burgeoning army air force during World War 2, and of this trio, Republic's P-47 Thunderbolt was easily the heaviest. Powered, crucially, by a turbocharged Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engine that produced 2000 hp, the first production fighters reached the 56th FG in June 1942, and six months later the group joined the Eight Air Force in Britain. The arrival of the first P-47Cs in mid-1943 addressed the problem of the aircraft's short combat radius, as this model could be fitted with an external tank. Slowly, as combat tactics evolved in units like the 56th and 78th FGs, pilots learnt how best to fly the Thunderbolt in order to effectively counter the more nimble Luftwaffe fighters.

P-47 Thunderbolt Units of the Twelfth Air Force
P-47 Thunderbolt Units of the Twelfth Air Force

Author: Jonathan Bernstein

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-08-20

Total Pages: 234

ISBN-13: 1780960379

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The P-47 Thunderbolt, originally designed as a high-altitude interceptor, became the principal US fighter–bomber of World War II. First adapted to the ground attack role by units of the Twelfth Air Force in early 1944, the strength and durability of the P-47 airframe, along with its massive size, earned it the nickname 'Juggernaut', which was quickly shortened to 'Jug' throughout the MTO and ETO. By October 1943, with the creation of the Fifteenth Air Force, nearly half of the Twelfth's fighter groups would be retasked with strategic escort missions, leaving six groups to perform close air support and interdiction missions throughout the entire Mediterranean theatre. The groups inflicted incredible damage on the enemy's transport routes in particular, using rockets, bombs, napalm and machine-gun rounds to down bridges, blow up tunnels and strafe trains. Myriad first-hand accounts and period photography reveal the spectacular success enjoyed by the Thunderbolt in the MTO in the final year of the war.

Mustang Aces of the Eighth Air Force
Mustang Aces of the Eighth Air Force

Author: Jerry Scutts

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-11-20

Total Pages: 182

ISBN-13: 1782006753

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Unquestionably the best American fighter of World War 2, the North American P-51 Mustang served in large numbers with the USAAF's Eighth Air Force from late 1943 until VE Day, and was the mount of most aces in-theatre. Charged with the responsibility of escorting huge formations of B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator bombers on daylight raids deep into Germany, the P-51 pilots of the various fighter groups within the 'Mighty Eighth' went head to head with the cream of the Luftwaffe's fighter squadrons for control of the skies over the Third Reich.

‘Down to Earth' Strafing Aces of the Eighth Air Force
‘Down to Earth' Strafing Aces of the Eighth Air Force

Author: William N Hess

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-12-20

Total Pages: 129

ISBN-13: 1782008896

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

American Eagles
American Eagles

Author: Roger Freeman

Publisher: Classic Publications

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781903223185

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An essential reference guide to the P-47 Thunderbolts of the Eighth Air Force, profiling their service from the summer of 1942 to beyond D-Day. Details the progression of P-47 camouflage and markings, including photograph galleries of key Fighter Groups. Contains information on the bubble-top canopy Superbolts, plus biographies of the aces and combat reports.

Mustang Aces of the Ninth & Fifteenth Air Forces & the RAF
Mustang Aces of the Ninth & Fifteenth Air Forces & the RAF

Author: Jerry Scutts

Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Published: 1995-11-13

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781855325838

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Although best remembered for its exploits with Eighth Air Force units, the Mustang, in its various marks, actually made its combat debut firstly with the Royal Air Force in the Army co-operation role, and then with the USAAF's tactically-optimised Ninth and Fifteenth Air Forces. Seeing action in Western Europe and the Mediterranean, pilots like Glenn T Eagleston, John J Voll and Samuel J Brown notched up impressive scores flying P-51Bs and Ds with the 354th, 31st and 52nd Fighter Groups. Rarely given the exposure enjoyed by their high-scoring brethren in the 'Mighty Eighth', this volume at last sets the record straight on Europe's remaining Mustang aces.

P-47 Thunderbolt Aces of the Ninth and Fifteenth Air Forces
P-47 Thunderbolt Aces of the Ninth and Fifteenth Air Forces

Author: Jerry Scutts

Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Published: 1999-12-01

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781855329065

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This book charts the story of the lesser known aces who flew the mighty Republic aircraft as a tactical fighter-bomber with the Ninth Air Force, rather than as a long-range escort. It also details the exploits of the Mediterranean-based 325th FG, which was the only P-47 group within the strategic Fifteenth Air Force. Thunderbolt aces within the Ninth Air Force, particularly, were rare, despite some 15 groups flying the fighter. Supporting troops on the ground rather than searching out aerial foes, was the name of the game for the men of the Ninth. However, with the Luftwaffe often opposing such sorties through to April 1945, more than 20 pilots had the opportunity to score five or more kills and 'make ace'.

Corsair Aces of World War 2
Corsair Aces of World War 2

Author: Mark Styling

Publisher:

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 96

ISBN-13:

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Beretning om det amerikanske jagerfly F4U Corsair og piloter, der fløj det under 2. verdenskrig

Thunderbolt! The P-47
Thunderbolt! The P-47

Author: Martin Caidin

Publisher: ibooks

Published: 2010-09-23

Total Pages: 335

ISBN-13: 0743423976

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The key to victory in World War II lay in wresting control of the skies from the Nazis. America's most courageous pilots hurled their underrated P-47 Thunderbolts time and again against the Luftwaffe's over-whelming power, and won. This is the true story of one of the greatest Thunderbolt aces of all, Robert S. Johnson: his training, his early failures, his brushes with death and his 28 kills that helped smash the German juggernaut. Step-by-step, dogfight-by-dogfight, manoeuvre-by-manoeuvre, he details daring aerial exploits against monumental odds with America's fabled 56th Fighter Group, a special breed of men who changed the course of history.