Fighter Pilot
Author : William R. Dunn
Publisher : University Press of Kentucky
Page : 276 pages
File Size : 36,64 MB
Release :
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9780813127774
Oswald Boelcke
Author : R.G. Head
Publisher : Grub Street Publishers
Page : 241 pages
File Size : 39,75 MB
Release : 2016-08-05
Category : History
ISBN : 191069066X
Book Description
This biography of the pioneering WWI flying ace who mentored the Red Baron is “fascinating . . . [it] captures combat aviation at its inception” (MiG Sweep: The Magazine of Aviation Warriors). With a total of forty victories, Oswald Boelcke was Germany’s first ace in World War I—and a century later he remains a towering figure in the history of air warfare, renowned for his character, inspirational leadership, organizational genius, development of air-to-air tactics, and impact on aerial doctrine. Paving the way for modern air forces across the world with his pioneering strategies, Boelcke had a dramatic effect on his contemporaries. The famed Red Baron’s mentor, instructor, squadron commander, and friend, he exerted a tremendous influence upon the German air force. He was one of the first pilots to be awarded the famous Pour le Mérite, commonly recognized as the “Blue Max.” All of this was achieved after overcoming medical obstacles in childhood and later life with willpower and determination. Boelcke even gained the admiration of his enemies: After his tragic death in a midair collision, Britain’s Royal Flying Corps dropped a wreath on his funeral, and several of his captured foes sent another wreath from their German prison camp. His name and legacy live on, as seen in the Luftwaffe’s designation of the Tactical Air Force Wing 31 “Boelcke.” This definitive biography reveals his importance as a fighter pilot who set the standard in military aviation.
First Fighter Ace
Author : Stanislaw Skalski
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
Page : 177 pages
File Size : 37,73 MB
Release : 2017-08-01
Category : History
ISBN : 0811765881
Book Description
Stanisław Skalski was the top Polish fighter ace and the first Allied fighter ace of World War II. His combat career began on the war’s very first day, September 1, 1939, and within two weeks, Skalski had achieved ace status, with six German kills to his credit. After Poland’s surrender, Skalski and other Polish pilots ended up in England to join the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain. He later took command of the Polish Fighting Team, known as Skalski’s Circus, which claimed twenty-six enemy aircraft shot down in a mere two months in North Africa. Skalski then became the first Pole to command an RAF squadron, which he led in Sicily and Italy until he took over a Polish fighter wing and saw action in France after D-Day. According to official tallies, he had scored some twenty aerial victories.
Richard Bong
Author : Pete Barnes
Publisher : Wisconsin Historical Society
Page : 130 pages
File Size : 10,83 MB
Release : 2009-08
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN : 0870204343
Book Description
Wisconsin-born Richard Bong was the highest-rated flying ace in World War II, famous for having shot down 40 Japanese planes during a 3 year career as a fighter pilot. The recipient of a Silver Star and a Congressional Medal of Honor, Bong was killed after the war in a flying accident just months after marrying the love of his life, Marge Vattendahl. Badger Biographies is a series intended to integrate reading and Wisconsin history for 4th through 8th grade students or for ELL/ESL high school students.
Pushing the Envelope
Author : Marion Carl
Publisher : Naval Institute Press
Page : 160 pages
File Size : 28,29 MB
Release : 2014-03-15
Category : History
ISBN : 1612515487
Book Description
First published in 1994, this stirring autobiography of a fighter and test pilot takes readers full throttle through Carl's imposing list of "firsts." Beginning with his World War II career, he gained such commendations as first Marine Corps ace, among the first Marines ever to fly a helicopter, and first Marine to land aboard an aircraft carrier. His combat duty included the momentous battles at Midway and Guadalcanal. Not one to rest on his laurels, however, he participated in photoreconnaissance operations over Red China in 1955 and flew missions in Vietnam. In peacetime he gamed fame for "pushing the envelope" as a test pilot, adding the world's altitude and peace records to his wartime feats and becoming the first U.S. military aviator to wear a full pressure suit. Such achievements also led to Carl's being the first living Marine admitted to the Naval Aviation Hall of Honor, as well as the first Marine to be named to the Navy Carrier Aviation Test Pilots Hall of Honor. This very readable memoir is as forthright and compelling as the man it chronicles.
Race of Aces
Author : John R Bruning
Publisher : Hachette Books
Page : 534 pages
File Size : 28,93 MB
Release : 2020-01-14
Category : History
ISBN : 0316508640
Book Description
The astonishing untold story of the WWII airmen who risked it all in the deadly race to become the greatest American fighter pilot. In 1942, America's deadliest fighter pilot, or "ace of aces" -- the legendary Eddie Rickenbacker -- offered a bottle of bourbon to the first U.S. fighter pilot to break his record of twenty-six enemy planes shot down. Seizing on the challenge to motivate his men, General George Kenney promoted what they would come to call the "race of aces" as a way of boosting the spirits of his war-weary command. What developed was a wild three-year sprint for fame and glory, and the chance to be called America's greatest fighter pilot. The story has never been told until now. Based on new research and full of revelations, John Bruning's brilliant, original book tells the story of how five American pilots contended for personal glory in the Pacific while leading Kenney's resurgent air force against the most formidable enemy America ever faced. The pilots -- Richard Bong, Tommy McGuire, Neel Kearby, Charles MacDonald and Gerald Johnson -- riveted the nation as they contended for Rickenbacker's crown. As their scores mounted, they transformed themselves from farm boys and aspiring dentists into artists of the modern dogfight. But as the race reached its climax, some of the pilots began to see how the spotlight warped their sense of duty. They emerged as leaders, beloved by their men as they chose selfless devotion over national accolades. Teeming with action all across the vast Pacific theater, Race of Aces is a fascinating exploration of the boundary between honorable duty, personal glory, and the complex landscape of the human heart. "Brings you into the cockpit of the lethal, fast-paced world of fighter pilots . . . Fascinating." -- Sara Vladic"Extraordinary . . . a must-read." -- US Navy Captain Dan Pedersen"A heart-pounding narrative of the courage, sacrifice, and tragedy of America's elite fighter pilots." -- James M. Scott"Vivid and gripping . . . Confirms Bruning's status as the premier war historian of the air." -- Saul David
The First Fighter Pilot - Roland Garros
Author : Ed Cobleigh
Publisher :
Page : 328 pages
File Size : 19,98 MB
Release : 2019-06-06
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781629671567
Book Description
Roland Garros enjoyed an exciting life. An aviation pioneer in the early 1900s, he taught himself how to fly a bamboo airplane despite crashing it at Versailles. He was a world-class athlete, a lawyer who wouldn't learn Latin, a sports car salesman on the Champs-Elysées, an airshow pilot and racer. He demonstrated flight to huge crowds up and down the Americas. Ultimately, Roland Garros became the world's first fighter pilot. Leaving his comfortable life in Paris, he flew and fought in the lethal skies of the first World War. Never before had a lone pilot hunted other men in the air. Shot down and captured, he escaped prisoner of war camp, evaded his way across Germany, and crossed the front lines. After a torrid fling in Paris with an exotic dancer, he rejoined his squadron. Garros needed two more aerial victories to become an ace. This creative non-fiction biography puts you in an open cockpit, in air combat, and in Paris experiencing Belle Epoque pleasures. What was it like to fly across the Mediterranean in a rickety monoplane? How did pilots dogfight in WWI? Fasten your seatbelt for exciting aerial action and the adventure-packed life of Roland Garros, the first fighter pilot!
One in a Thousand
Author : Graham Broad
Publisher : University of Toronto Press
Page : 202 pages
File Size : 13,12 MB
Release : 2017-03-20
Category : History
ISBN : 1442607483
Book Description
This short microhistory details the life and death of Eddie McKay, a varsity athlete at Western University, who flew with the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War. Graham Broad switches creatively from telling McKay's fascinating story to teaching valuable lessons on how to do history: why the past matters, why historians take different approaches, how to pose historical questions, how to identify relevant source materials, and the importance of thoughtful, intelligent, and respectful treatment of historical subjects. The book includes a timeline of the subject's life, a map of relevant combat areas in the Battle of the Somme, and nine illustrations. It concludes with four unsolved events in McKay's life: a mysterious woman, a strange advertisement for batteries, an empty envelope, and an unknown grave—demonstrating that even a detailed history about one person's life is never really complete.
Fighter Pilot
Author : Christina Olds
Publisher : Macmillan
Page : 417 pages
File Size : 44,76 MB
Release : 2010-04-13
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 142992909X
Book Description
Fighter Pilot is the memoir of legendary ace American fighter pilot and general officer in the U.S. Air Force, Robin Olds. Robin Olds was a larger-than-life hero with a towering personality. A graduate of West Point and an inductee in the National College Football Hall of Fame for his All-American performance for Army, Olds was one of the toughest college football players at the time. In WWII, Olds quickly became a top fighter pilot and squadron commander by the age of 22—and an ace with 12 aerial victories. But it was in Vietnam where the man became a legend. He arrived in 1966 to find a dejected group of pilots and motivated them by placing himself on the flight schedule under officers junior to himself, then challenging them to train him properly because he would soon be leading them. Proving he wasn't a WWII retread, he led the wing with aggressiveness, scoring another four confirmed kills, becoming a rare triple ace. Olds, who retired a brigadier general and died in 2007, was a unique individual whose personal story presents one of the most eagerly anticipated military books in recent memory. Please note: This ebook edition does not include the photo insert from the print edition.
Fighter Aces of the U.S.A.
Author : Raymond F. Toliver
Publisher :
Page : 404 pages
File Size : 36,73 MB
Release : 1979
Category : Technology & Engineering
ISBN :
Book Description
Lists American fighter pilot aces who flew during the U.S. engagements in aerial warfare from World War I to Vietnam.
