Helion & Company, 2024. — 92 p. The J-20 fifth generation stealth fighter program has epitomised China’s rise from a laggard in combat aviation into a potential world leader. J-20 Mighty Dragon: Asia’s First Stealth Fighter in the Era of China’s Military Rise details the J-20’s technologies, capabilities, production timeline, design priorities, roles, evolution, and the...
Classic Publications, 2021. — 228 p. This is the story of one the Third Reich's most advanced night fighters - the Ta 154. The driving force behind its gestation was Professor Kurt Tank, designer of the Fw 190. He and a small team of designers and engineers combined state-of-the-art technology with elegant aerodynamics to create an innovative and potent warplane. Inspired by...
Osprey Publishing, 2023 — 481 p. — (Osprey General Military) On August 7, 1942, two events of major military importance occurred on separate sides of the planet. In the South Pacific, the United States went on the offensive, landing the First Marine Division at Guadalcanal. In England, 12 B-17 bombers of the new Eighth Air Force's 97th Bombardment Group bombed the...
Kindle Edition, 2022. — 198 p. The night air battles in the Pacific Theatre are one of the lesser-known episodes of World War II. In 85 pages of text and 44 pages of scale drawings, this book describes the operational history, radar types, weaponry and combat tactics of 29 night fighters used by USAF, U.S. Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Fleet Air Arm, Royal Air Force,...
Osprey Publishing, 2020 — 336 p. — ISBN-13 9781472840035. — ISBN-10 1472840038. Bill Reed had it all – brains, looks, athleticism, courage and a talent for leadership. After a challenging childhood in Depression-era Iowa, Reed joined the US Army Air Corps, but the outbreak of World War II saw him give up his commission. Instead, he travelled to China to fly for the American...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1994. — 100 p. 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...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1994. — 100 p. Totally outnumbered throughout their short two-year sojourn in the Western Desert, the crack fighter pilots of the handful of Jagdgeschwader in-theatre fought an effective campaign in support of Rommel's Afrika Korps against the British and American forces. Relying almost exclusively on the Luftwaffe's staple fighter of...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1995. — 100 p. Arguably the most important piston-engined single-seat fighter design ever to see service with the US Navy and Marine Corps, the aesthetically inelegant F4F Wildcat achieved much acclaim during its bloody frontline career. Thrown into combat at Coral Sea, Midway and Guadalcanal, the handful of Wildcat units of the Navy...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1995. — 100 p. The first virtually all-jet war, the conflict in Korea saw F-86 Sabres of the USAF take on MiG-15s of the North Korean and Chinese air forces. Although the Allied pilots were initially taken aback by the ability of the communist fighter in combat, sound training and skilful leadership soon enabled Sabre pilots to...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1995. — 100 p. Although the Spitfire is undoubtedly best known for its exploits against the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, its later war service with Fighter Command on all fronts against the Axis alliance was equally as important. This volume features the exploits of pilots who turned the tide against the Luftwaffe on the...
Illustrator: Mike Chappell. — Osprey Publishing, 1995. — 100 p. Of all the fronts fought on by the Jagdflieger during World War 2, the Russian, or Eastern, was easily the most lucrative in terms of targets for the experten. Marry an abundance of targets with the Luftwaffe's best piston-engined fighter of the war - Focke-Wulf's Fw 190 'Butcher Bird' - and it quickly becomes...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1995. — 100 p. 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 RAF 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...
Illustrator: Mark Styling. — Osprey Publishing, 1995. — 100 p. The speed with which the Corsair was rushed into service as a land-based fighter obliged the pilots to learn on the job. The aircraft soon proved to be superior to the Japanese Zero and played a major part in the destruction of Japan's elite air forces in the South Pacific. Later, in an effort to counter the Kamikaze...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 1996. — 100 p. The Fw 190 was the scourge of Fighter Command from the moment it appeared on the Western Front at Abbeville in August 1941 with II./JG 26. A nimble, speedy and well-armed adversary, the 'Butcher Bird' quickly proved superior to all Allied fighters of the time, particularly at medium to low altitude. Led by Experten of the...
Illustrator: Mark Styling. — Osprey Publishing, 1996. — 96 p. Grumman's successor to the pugnacious Wildcat, the Hellcat embodied many of the lessons learnt by F4F pilots in the opening months of the Pacific war. Introduced to the fleet in January 1943, and blooded in combat against the Japanese by VF-5 seven months later, the F6F served as the principal US Navy fighter on board...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 1996. — 100 p. The period covered in this volume was considered to be the 'glory years' for the Jagdwaffe fresh from the experience gained in the Spanish Civil War and for the Bf 109 in particular. Many famous pilots scored their first kills in the classic dogfights staged over Poland, Western Europe, the Channel and finally southern...
Illustrator: Keith Fretwell. — Osprey Publishing, 1996. — 100 p. Spitfire Mk Is and IIs served only briefly in the frontline with the RAF, but their pilots were responsible for achieving impressive scores against the Luftwaffe during 1940/41. This volume details the RAF's first aces of World War 2 who helped stem the German tide during Britain's struggle for survival in the bitter...
Illustrator: Grant Race. — Osprey Publishing, 1997. — 100 p. Little has been published in English on the Japanese Army Air Force (JAAF), let alone its most successful fighter pilots no less than 150 of them achieved ace status during eight years of near-constant war, and they are all listed in this volume. From the arid plains of the Mongolian border region to the lush jungles of...
Illustrator: Tom Tullis. — Osprey Publishing, 1997. — 100 p. The P-38 was used on virtually every front to which the USAAF were committed, but enjoyed its greatest successes in the Pacific and China-Burma-India (CBI) theatres. The speed, range and firepower of the P-38 made it the favourite of nearly all aircrew fighting in the Solomons, New Guinea and the Philippines, and over...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 1997. — 100 p. No single volume in English has ever appeared in the West dealing with this intriguing subject area, but now that restrictions have relaxed in the former Soviet Union, records of the deeds of the elite pilots of the various Soviet Air Forces are coming to light. Although initially equipped with very poor aircraft, and...
Illustrator: Keith Fretwell. — Osprey Publishing, 1997. — 100 p. As the first Spitfire variant to see extensive service outside of Britain, the Mk V fought the Axis alliance over the deserts of North Africa, the waters of the Mediterranean and the vast expanses of the Indian Ocean off the northern coast of Australia. Initially produced in haste to combat the arrival of new German...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 1998. — 100 p. The Third Reich's last ditch efforts to sweep the massed Allied bomber formations from the skies of Germany centred around the new crop of jet 'wonder weapons' that were issued to the Jagdwaffe from mid-1944 onwards. Far in advance of anything the Allies had even in the experimental phase, types like the Me 262, He 162,...
Illustrator: Keith Fretwell. — Osprey Publishing, 1998. — 132 p. The Hawker Hurricane was the RAF's first monoplane fighter, and it dragged the air force into a position where it could defend Britain in its 'hour of need'. Prior to the Battle of Britain, a number of squadrons equipped with the fighter had seen action firstly in the 'Phoney War', and then during the disastrous...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 1998. — 100 p. When the Luftwaffe entered World War 2, its nightfighter force was virtually nonexistent thanks to its leader, Reichmarschall Hermann Göring, who boasted that bombs would never fall on Germany. By mid-1940 his folly was evident; the first night fighter wing was hastily formed with Bf 110s. Initially capable of detecting...
Illustrator: Robert Gretzyngier. — Osprey Publishing, 1998. — 100 p. Pilots of the Polish Air Force saw action from the first day of World War 2 until the final victory in Europe. Flying hopelessly outmoded P.11 fighters in defence of their country in September 1939, a handful of aviators inflicted serious losses on the Luftwaffe before being overwhelmed. The survivors escaped to...
Illustrator: Tom Tullis. — Osprey Publishing, 1998. — 116 p. The outcome of the Pacific War was heavily influenced by the results of naval battles between the Imperial Japanese fleet and the US Navy. One of the key elements was Japan's large fighter component, which had gained experience over Manchuria, China and Mongolia in the late 1930s. Flying A5Ms, at least 21 pilots achieved...
Illustrator: Mark Styling. — Osprey Publishing, 1998. — 100 p. Always outnumbered by their Soviet counterparts, the small band of Finnish fighter pilots who defended their Scandinavian homeland from the 'communist hordes' in three separate wars between 1939 and 1945 amassed scores only bettered by the Luftwaffe's Jagdflieger. Initially equipped with a motley collection of biplane...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1998. — 100 p. 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...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 1999. — 106 p. This volume is the first of its type to be devoted exclusively to the Zerstörer day fighter aces, spanning the war years from Poland to the defence of the Reich. Although Messerschmitt's single-engined Bf 109 has received most of the plaudits for achieving virtual air superiority over Europe in 1939-40, the exploits of...
Illustrator: Tom Tullis. — Osprey Publishing, 1999. — 100 p. Although far better known for their exploits over the war torn skies of Germany and Italy, the USAAF's premier fighters, the P-47 and P-51, also made significant contributions to the victory against Japan from 1943 onwards. This book relates the appearance of the Allison-engined A-36As and P-51As over Rangoon from India...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1999. — 96 p. Hawker Typhoon and Tempest two aircraft types with widely differing reputations. The former was a technical nightmare redeemed as a ground attack machine, whilst the latter proved to be the most superlative low and medium level fighter to see service with the RAF, and arguably any air force, during the latter stages of...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 1999. — 100 p. The follow--on volume to Osprey Aircraft of the Aces 11 Bf 109D/E Aces 1939-41, this book charts the story of the myriad aces who flew the later marks of Messerschmitt fighter through to VE-Day. As good as the Emil had been during the opening 18 months of the war, the aircraft was being progressively bettered in virtually...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 1999. — 100 p. 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....
Illustrator: Tom Tullis. — Osprey Publishing, 2000 . — 144 p. This volume focuses on the little known official Army Air Force report commissioned by the Eighth Air Force's VIII Fighter Command (FC) in May 1944. The detailed document chronicled the experiences of 24 pilots who had seen extensive service in the frontline escorting B-17s and B-24s on daylight raids deep into Germany....
Illustrator: Harry Dempsey. — Osprey Publishing, 2000 . — 100 p. The Albatros family of fighters were amongst the most effective aircraft employed by the Idlfieg (Imperial German Air Service) for much of World War 1, with the D.III and D.Va being flown by most of the 363 pilots who qualified as aces at some point in their often brief careers. The Albatros was the scourge of the...
Illustrator: Richard Caruana. — Osprey Publishing, 2000 . — 96 p. Flying aircraft such as the Macchi 200-202, Fiat G.50 and biplane Fiat CR.42, the Italian fighter pilots were recognised by their Allied counterparts as brave opponents blessed with sound flying abilities, but employing under-gunned and underpowered equipment. Following the Italian surrender in September 1943, a...
Illustrator: Jim Laurier. — Osprey Publishing, 2000 . — 96 p. This book details the colourful experiences of the elite pilots of the AAF's Tenth and Fourteenth Air Forces in the 'forgotten' China-Burma-India theatre during WW2. Inheriting the legacy of the American Volunteer Group (AVG), units such as the 23rd FG 'held the line' against overwhelming Japanese forces until the...
Illustrator: Jim Laurier. — Osprey Publishing, 2001 . — 96 p. The first American fighter fitted with a tricyle undercarriage and mid-mounted engine, the P-39 proved less than successful in the hands of its launch customer, the US Army Air Force (AAF). Hampered by unreliabilty and poor engine performance at high altitude, the P-39 nevertheless served alongside the P-40 and P-38 in...
Illustrator: Iain Wyllie. — Osprey Publishing, 2001. — 96 p. The highest scoring aces of any aerial conflict were the Luftwaffe pilots involved in the bloody combats on the Russian Front. The most common fighter used by these pilots was the Bf 109, which was involved in the action from Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, through to the doomed Defence of the Reich in 1945. Units...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 2002 . — 112 p. Deemed unsuitable for the Channel Front, lend-lease Tomahawks and Kittyhawks instead became the staple fighters of the Desert Air Force in 1941-42, flying with RAF, South African and Australian squadrons in North Africa and the Middle East. Although usually outclassed by the Bf 109, a number of pilots enjoyed some...
Illustrator: Harry Dempsey. — Osprey Publishing, 2001 . — 96 p. Built by the 'Société Anonyme Pour l'Aviation et ses Dérivés', (SPAD), the SPAD VII was the first successful fighting scout design to emerge from the company that had traded as Duperdussin pre-war. Flown ‘from the off' by aces Paul Sauvage and Georges Guynemer, the scouts made an immediate impression. Indeed, the...
Illustrator: Harry Dempsey. — Osprey Publishing, 2001 . — 96 p. Undoubtedly the most famous fighter type to see service on either side during World War 1, the Fokker Dr I was a revelation when it entered service on the western front in 1917. Manfred von Richthofen's JG 1 ‘circus' was the first Jasta to completely re-equip with the new fighter, and in the skilled hands of its...
Illustrator: Jim Laurier. — Osprey Publishing, 2001 . — 96 p. The American Volunteer Group, or 'Flying Tigers', have remained the most famous outfit to see action in World War II. Manned by volunteers flying American aircraft acquired from the British, the AVG fought bravely in the face of overwhelming odds in China and Burma prior to the US entry into World War II. Pilots such as...
Illustrator: Harry Dempsey. — Osprey Publishing, 2001 . — 96 p. 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...
Illustrator: John Weal. — Osprey Publishing, 2002. — 96 p. Never before has a single volume been devoted exclusively to the intrepid and disparate band of pilots who could claim to be Gladiator aces. Flying the ultimate British biplane fighter, pilots in China, Finland, East Africa, North Africa, Western Europe, the Mediterranean, Norway and the Middle East all scored the...
Illustrator: Mark Rolfe. — Osprey Publishing, 2001 . — 96 p. 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...
Illustrator: Mark Rolfe. — Osprey Publishing, 2002. — 96 p. — — ISBN-10 1841763764, ISBN-13 978-1841763767. 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...
Illustrator: Harry Dempsey. — Osprey Publishing, 2002. — 96 p. This book details the exploits of the pilots who flew the hugely successful SPAD XIII and the trickier SPAD XII. Built in response to the combat inadequacies of the SPAD VII, the XIII first entered service with the French Aviation Militaire in late 1917. Despite suffering engine unreliability, the XIII enjoyed great...
Illustrator: Stephan Boshniakov. — Osprey Publishing, 2002. — 96 p. Like Germany, Hungary was forbidden from having an air force following the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the end of World War 1. However, again like Germany, the new state of Hungary created an air arm in secret during the 1930s. Hungarian fighter pilots first saw action against their Slovakian...
Illustrator: Chris Davey. — Osprey Publishing, 2003. — 128 p. '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...