Fledgling Eagles: The Complete Account of Air Operations During the 'Phoney War' and Norwegian Campaign, 1940 [Hardcover]

Christopher Shores (Author), Chris Ehrengardt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1991

The "phoney war" of September 1939 to April 1940 was far from phoney for the air forces of Britain, France and Germany. Luftwaffe veterans of the Spanish Civil War were pitted against well-trained British and French airmen, and losses over the Franco-German border and the North Sea were heavy. This book chronicles the aviation events of this period of World War II.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Grub Street (July 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0948817429
• ISBN-13: 978-0948817427
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,847,043 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Fledgling Eagles" Unmatched Look at Phony War & Norwegian Air Campaigns, May 19, 2006

By 

Jason Wisniewski (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fledgling Eagles: The Complete Account of Air Operations During the 'Phoney War' and Norwegian Campaign, 1940 (Hardcover)

"Fledgling Eagles" by Christopher Shores et. al. probably provides the most comprehensive and meticulously researched account of two often overlooked air battles of the early World War II period: the "Phony War" on the Western front from September-May 1940, and also the battles for Norway and Denmark from April-June 1940.

The book uses Shores' standard methodology of objectively describing every single air action captured by historical records of the combatant powers, organized chronologically by date. While some have criticized this approach for leaving out broader historical analysis and resulting in a rather bland day-by account, it in fact serves two important functions. First, Shores brings to the light of day less glamorous yet nevertheless important air actions that are left out of other books. Second, the author's analytical rigor dispels some of the myths surrounding WW2 air warfare. It is interesting to compare, for example, victory claims by both sides with actual losses, which clearly shows how inflated the former tends be.

Finally Shore's book provides other important information such as orders of battles and previously unpublished photographs of the two campaigns. Overall these factors make "Fledgling Eagles" an important book to own for serious World War II aviation buffs.