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AAF Official World War II Guide To The Army Air Forces
A comprehensive guide to the history of the Army Air Force, tracing the development of U.S. military aviation from the Civil War to 1944
380 pages, Hardcover
First published July 20, 1988
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February 29, 2020
I absolutely loved this book- and I think just about any reader will too. In 1944, with WWII almost won, The US Army Air Force wanted to explain itself to the American Public and its own members. After all Powered Flight itself had only been "invented" 41 (!!!) years before in 1903! And yet working at full strength in 1944 there were over a Million people involved with American Military Aviation sending raids of hundreds of bombers and hundreds of fighters. Many involved over a thousand aircraft at a time. Perhaps with an eye to becoming the stand alone service they are now- the Generals wanted to tell the world about their stunning achievement. The result was this book 369 pages of History, facts, orders of battle, 64 pages of photos, 4 colour pages, and over a 175 drawings charts and maps. It's an amazing trip back in time and the reader can't help being transported into the past....
With chapters like Who We Are, How We Train, What we Fight With, Our Battlefield and Our Air Forces in Action you get wonderfully full explanation of just about all aspects of the AAF. I paid particular attention to "What We fight From" as my father served as an Engineer building Air Bases in the Philippines and then Japan in the Occupation and was rewarded with a cool treatise on base development that echoed my father's memories. But all the chapters strike chords and fill in the rich tapestry of WWII aviation for any level reader.
The presentation is very straight forward and there are no frank injury descriptions so this is a fine period book for a Junior reader over about nine years. For the Gamer/Modeller/Military enthusiast a real joy. There are some raid discussions and base descriptions that may help Scenario/diorama development but this is really for GREAT background on the American Air Force in its infancy and its overall approach to both peace and war. you really feel at moments like you are a member of the organisation- learning about your future training and your developing power. You learn something new or are reminded of some 40s facts every couple of pages. A strong rec for any Aviation, WWII or Military History library.
With chapters like Who We Are, How We Train, What we Fight With, Our Battlefield and Our Air Forces in Action you get wonderfully full explanation of just about all aspects of the AAF. I paid particular attention to "What We fight From" as my father served as an Engineer building Air Bases in the Philippines and then Japan in the Occupation and was rewarded with a cool treatise on base development that echoed my father's memories. But all the chapters strike chords and fill in the rich tapestry of WWII aviation for any level reader.
The presentation is very straight forward and there are no frank injury descriptions so this is a fine period book for a Junior reader over about nine years. For the Gamer/Modeller/Military enthusiast a real joy. There are some raid discussions and base descriptions that may help Scenario/diorama development but this is really for GREAT background on the American Air Force in its infancy and its overall approach to both peace and war. you really feel at moments like you are a member of the organisation- learning about your future training and your developing power. You learn something new or are reminded of some 40s facts every couple of pages. A strong rec for any Aviation, WWII or Military History library.
Displaying 1 of 1 review