Gabby: A Fighter Pilot's Life (Schiffer Military History) [Hardcover]

Francis Gabreski (Author), Carl Molesworth (Author)

Book Description

Series: Schiffer Military History | Publication Date: February 1, 1998

If ever a man has earned his place in the annals of military history, that man is Francis Gabby Gabreski. His exploits as a fighter pilot in World War II and Korea are legendary; his rise from humble beginnings to success in military and business career

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Gabreski was a top American ace in both WW II and Korea: in the European theater he downed a record 28 aircraft, and in Korea scored six kills. His accomplishments were perhaps astonishing because he came close to washing out in flight training. But his career had some other unusual twists as well. Son of Polish immigrants, Gabreski flew with a Polish squadron of the RAF before he joined the U.S. Air Force and, on the day he was to fly home after 166 missions, he was shot down and captured. He left the Air Force in 1967 and worked in the aircraft industry until 1978, when he became president of the Long Island Rail Road. He retired in 1987. His autobiography is a tale of high adventure and, with an assist from Molesworth, editor of the Skagit Valley Herald in Washington, he tells it with a matter-of-factness that heightens the impact. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Colonel Gabreski is the highest-scoring American ace. He has a history in fighter planes that begins with the attack on Pearl Harbor, continues through the Battle of Britain with the Royal Air Force and as a commander of fighter units of the Army Air Force against the German Luftwaffe (who shot him down and captured him on his last mission), and culminates over Korea where in jet fighters he scored over six more opponents. Unlike many other fighter pilots, Gabreski's descriptions of these events are matter of fact and understated, at times even humble. His view of World War II and the Korean conflict contains perceptive insights and angles that are new and fresh, as are his compelling descriptions of air combat. Aviation readers have been hoping he would tell his story. (Illustrations not seen.)-- Mel D. Lane, Sacramento, Cal.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. (February 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764304429
• ISBN-13: 978-0764304422
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,218,439 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gabby is what we yearn for--a real American hero!, October 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Gabby: A Fighter Pilot's Life (Schiffer Military History) (Hardcover)

If current events leave your head spinning...if you go to bed at night wondering where have all the heros gone and wake-up in the morning still searching, read "Gabby A Fighter Pilot's Life" by Francis Gabreski.

In this age, when everybody has an excuse for every meaningless thing, it is humbling and skin dingling to unfold the tale of Gabby's life through each chapter. Gabreski, a man of simple elegance, scripts a tale of greatness throughout the book. This is greatness earned by actions. From humble beginnings, Gabreski travels the American dream through a never boring progression of character challenging and character building struggles. Gabby tells his story with the humility and directness only a real honest hero can possess.

If you never want to be bored, always want to be inspired and feel good throughout, then this book is a "must read". Gabreski's story will leave you shaking your head, with a tear in your eye and a smile on your face.

"Gabby" is a primer in character development. If it needs to be said, Gabreski makes the point that determination, faith, morals and hard work combine to pay a big dividend. Yet, he is subtle, entertaining and a real "class act". Thank you Gabby.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For many years Gabby was America's living "Ace-of-Aces", May 2, 2006

By 

Marvin D. Pipher (Houston, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gabby: A Fighter Pilot's Life (Schiffer Military History) (Hardcover)

I read an abridged paperback version of this book many years ago and found it to be both stirring and informative. I particularly enjoyed reading about the more human side of being a fighter pilot. Gabreski, for example, became so excited in his first aerial combat that he didn't even see the German fighter that was in his gun sights even when his flight leader told him to shoot it down. He only saw it much later when they reviewed his gun camera footage. How human can you get?

The smaller paperback excerpted the combat sequences from this autobiography and condensed them into a much smaller more action packed book obviously intended for a broader audience. After reading it, I was anxious to read the whole story; the larger, more comprehensive story of Gabby Gabreski's life. And this book did not disappoint. It tells the story of Gabreski's life from the time of his birth in Oil City, Pennsylvania, through his many actions in both World War II and in Korea, on through the post war years until his final retirement from Grumman Aircraft in 1987.

America has a tendency to forget its heroes all too soon and sadly, except in certain circles, Gabby Gabreski is all but forgotten today. But with 28 aerial victories in World War II, making him America's living "ace-of-aces" for most of his life, and having added another 6 ? MiGs flying jets in Korea, he shouldn't be forgotten. So, if you want to read a good book about a great American and true hero, this is a good place to start.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Story of the Ace Fighter Pilot, April 17, 2009

By 

Acute Observer (By the Shore NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gabby: A Fighter Pilot's Life (Schiffer Military History) (Hardcover)

Francis Gabreski was born to poor immigrants in Oil City Pennsylvania. His father was able to buy a grocery store and Frank helped. After graduation from high school he went to Notre Dame and became interested in flying. Frank signed up to become an aviation cadet with the Army. He learned on various machines and the Link trainer. After graduating the course he was sent to Wheeler Field in Hawaii to fly fighter aircraft (P-36, P-40). At 8AM December 7, 1941 Frank saw the attack on Pearl Harbor. With others they salvaged what they could. He flew a P-36 to defend the base. Some pilots in P-40Bs shot down seven Japanese planes. He was sent to England in 1942 as part of the initial build-up and to learn about fighter tactics. He flew a Spitfire Mark IX which had a high rate of climb and maneuverability with faster speed and high altitude performance. It had a higher power-to-weight ratio than the P-40 (Chapter 4).

Military strategy in the 1930s advanced bombers to the detriment of fighters (Chapter 5). The Battle of Britain showed the need for interceptor fighters like the P-38 and P-47 (p.77). The turbo-supercharger gave high altitude performance to the P-47. There were new tactics (p.87). The P-47s stayed with and protected the bombers (p.103). There is a problem with tracer ammunition and their false trajectory (p.123). Armor-piercing incendiary was best (p.124). Two new improvements for the P-47 was water injection and the paddle-blade propellor (p.139). Gabby had the paint on his plane sanded for smoothness and then waxed (p.140). In July 1944 Gabreski became the top ace with 28 kills (p.166). But on July 20 his P-47 was damaged, he landed and was taken prisoner (Chapter 10).

Chapter 11 tells of his months as a POW until the Russian army arrived (p.199). There was a concentration camp nearby (p.200). Gabby felt proud to help defeat the Germans. In Chapter 12 he tells of his flying in an F-86 in Korea. There were differences with jet airplanes (p.211). Gabby won 6.5 victories in Korea, making him the only flyer to be an ace with both propellor and jet airplanes (Chapter13). They had to be careful to stay south of the Yalu river. A new flying formation proved more productive (p.237). He was later invited to the White House (p.246). The `Epilogue' tells of his later life with aircraft development, and overseas. After his retirement he worked for Grumman on Long Island. He was appointed president of the Long Island Railroad and inspected every inch of the line. A shortage of funds led to hardware problems. The design of the air conditioners eventually resulted in failures (p.261). The last page gives his philosophy.

This is a very readable book, but seems to cover his experiences in a very restrained manner. Surely he must have heard and seen a lot more than is written in this book. You can compare this to Paul Brickhill's "Reach for the Sky" or Larry Forrester's "Fly For Your Life" as more interesting books.