Flown exclusively by the US Marines, the PBJ was one of those rare examples of an air force type being procured by the navy due to its ability to do exactly the job that was required of it. Bought as a land-based patrol bomber for operations in the Atlantic and Pacific during World War II (1939-1945), the PBJ (Patrol, Bomber, North American) was kitted out to hunt down submarines as well as surface vessels. Identical to its air force counterpart, except for its ability to lay mines, deploy depth charges and launch torpedoes, some 706 PBJs were delivered to the Marine Corps from 1943-45. This book outlines the aircraft’s history and technology, and takes a closer look at the men who flew it.
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Highly recommended and good value for money.
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Osprey's Combat series combines the best archival photography available with specially commissioned artworks and first hand accounts, making these books favourites amongst historians, modellers and aviation enthusiasts everywhere.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gyrene B-25s in Action!,
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This review is from: Combat Aircraft 40: PBJ Mitchell Units of the Pacific War (Paperback)
Mention of Mitchell bombers brings to mind USAAF B-25s plowing through flak-filled European skies or skip-bombing enemy shipping in the Pacific. Yet the Marine Corps took on 700+ B-25s, forming 16 squadrons of which seven saw action in the PTO. Jerry Scutts tells the fascinating story of these 'Gyrene Mitchells' in this Osprey "Combat Aircraft" volume.
The Marines' need for longer-ranging aircraft surfaced as early as 1941, the U.S. Navy eventually funneling 706 Mitchells to Marine VMB squadrons. VMB-413 introduced the now-renamed PBJ to combat in March 1944. Marine units operated various Mitchell models comparable to AAF B-25Cs, -Ds, -Gs, etc. though USMC models carried APS-3 search radar in a special ventral mounting. Later models mounted the radar in a special, pug-ugly "hose nose" mounting. Using machine guns, bombs and rockets including massive 'Tiny Tim' rockets, VMB-413, -423, -433, -443, -611, -612 and -613 fought across the Pacific, flying conventional bombing hops, CAS, night heckling missions, shipping strikes, etc. Scutts does a fine job of relating the diverse and exciting combat experiences of each unit. The narrative is illustrated with over 80 black and white photographs of aircrew, aircraft, weapons and combat scenes along with eight pages of color profiles of various PBJ aircraft by Jim Laurier. Laurier is a fine artist and his work in this volume is top-notch. Likewise, the cover art by Mark Postlethwaite is super, being a dramaric night-time scene of a PBJ dueling with Japanese AAA batteries. All in all, a very well done effort by author and artists alike. Highly recommended.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
B25 History,
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This review is from: Combat Aircraft 40: PBJ Mitchell Units of the Pacific War (Paperback)
Being a WWII aircraft buff, I enjoyed the history and information gleaned for this book. Localized to the B25 in the Pacific theater.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
The Unites States Marine Corps' contribution to victory in World War 2 is remembered principally for the bloody land campaigns to eject the Japanese from their island garrisons on the 'road back' from Pearl Harbor. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
dorsal turret, flak batteries, search missions, medium bombers Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Iwo Jima, Marine Corps, North American Aviation, New Britain, Cherry Point, Alan Carey, Robert Millington Collection, Green Island, Stirling Island, Del Monte, South Pacific, Thomas Honeycutt, National Archives, Jack Cram, North Carolina, Marine Mitchell, New Ireland, Bukidnon Valley, Col Sarles, Herb Lentsch, Kibawe Trail, Moret Field, Operational Training Squadron, Espiritu Santo, Fifth Air Force New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
The Unites States Marine Corps' contribution to victory in World War 2 is remembered principally for the bloody land campaigns to eject the Japanese from their island garrisons on the 'road back' from Pearl Harbor. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
dorsal turret, flak batteries, search missions, medium bombers Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Iwo Jima, Marine Corps, North American Aviation, New Britain, Cherry Point, Alan Carey, Robert Millington Collection, Green Island, Stirling Island, Del Monte, South Pacific, Thomas Honeycutt, National Archives, Jack Cram, North Carolina, Marine Mitchell, New Ireland, Bukidnon Valley, Col Sarles, Herb Lentsch, Kibawe Trail, Moret Field, Operational Training Squadron, Espiritu Santo, Fifth Air Force New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 2
books:
- The Air Force (Defending the Nation) by John Hamilton on page 33
- Iwo Jima by Turner Publishing on page 75
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