Combat Recon: 5th Air Force Images from the Sw Pacific 1943-45 [Hardcover]

Robert Stava (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 15, 2007

From shipping strikes, to strafing runs on airfields, step back in time and into the violent days of World War II in the Southwest Pacific. Based on Fifth Air Force photographer John Stava's collection, and undiscovered until the mid-1990s, captured here is a broad scope of the war in the Southwest Pacific, from mundane and ordinary moments to white-knuckle combat rides. Follow he and his 5th AF colleagues as they traverse the war from the turning point days of early 1943 in New Guinea with the 5th Air Force Advon Lab, to serving in the 17th Recon Bomber Group as a tail gunner in the liberation of the Philippines by spring of 1945.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Schiffer Pub Ltd (August 15, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764327771
• ISBN-13: 978-0764327773
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 8.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,669,675 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Images of the 5th AF at War!, January 3, 2009

By 

Michael OConnor "Wordsmith" (Wausau, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Combat Recon: 5th Air Force Images from the Sw Pacific 1943-45 (Hardcover)

Despite the crucial role it played in the Pacific, George Kenney's 5th Air Force never received the historical - or photographic - coverage it deserved. Happily Robert Stava's new book - COMBAT RECON - helps readdress that oversight, offering, as it does, hundreds of photos depicting the life and times of the 5th AF. With its dramatic, sometimes terrifying images, COMBAT RECON, published in 2007 by Schiffer, will be of interest to anyone interested in the Pacific air war.

In the spring of 1943, author Stava's uncle - photographer John Stava - was assigned to the Advanced Echelon Photo Section, a photo lab directly attached to the 5th AF's Advanced Echelon Headquarters. During the war Stava flew various combat missions as a photographer and sometimes gunner. By war's end he had compiled a collection of 5th AF snaps. Robert Stava later inherited that collection. Since many of the pix had no information on them identifying personnel, unit, etc., he spent years tracking down the who-what-where info thanks help from 5th AF vets, government agencies and so on.

The finished package is quite a treat for air war fans - dozens of shots of 5th AF bombers and fighters in flight and blasting away at Japanese shipping and ground targets at tree-top heights; air combat scenes showing Japanese aircraft under attack; life-on-the-ground snaps showing 5th AF personel at work and at leisure; 5th AF commanders, aces and other notables; Aussies, Filipinos and island natives; etc. Some of the images have been seen before but having all those striking images under one cover is a big plus. Cover price - $39.95 - is reasonable.

So, if your combat interests lie in Pacific skies, COMBAT RECON is the book for you. Pick up a copy and enjoy! Recommended.

*****
Note: COMBAT RECON readers might also want to check out WITH THE FIFTH AIR FORCE by James Gallagher.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Good, May 28, 2009

By 

S. J. Huse (Rehoboth, DE USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Combat Recon: 5th Air Force Images from the Sw Pacific 1943-45 (Hardcover)

I bought this book for my father. He was an A-20 and A-26 pilot in the 13th and 89th squadrons of the 3rd Attack Group of the 5th Air Force. He was pleased with this book and immediately recognized some pictures and unit designations on some planes.

Not much has been written about them. The Grim Reapers at Work in the Pacific Theater: The Third Attack Group of the U.S. Fifth Air Force was written by the CO of the 3rd Attack Group. But most of his book is about him and how he got on with those above him. Gen. Kenny's history of the 5th Air Force is good but hard to find. But again it spends an inordinate amount of time on officers and aces.