Half a Wing, Three Engines and a Prayer: B-17s over Germany [Paperback]

Brian O'Neill (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 30, 1999

Incorporating a wealth of new material, here is the riveting story of the bombing raids that broke the back of Nazi Germany, praised as "a well-researched, highly readable account of a B-17 combat crew's experience ... excellent." (Roger A. Freeman, author of The Mighty Eighth)

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

In 1943, when the outcome of World War II hung in the balance, B-17 crews of the Eighth Air Force flew harrowing, unescorted daylight bombing missions deep into Occupied Europe and Germany. These devastating raids have long been storied in film and fiction, but here is a firsthand, blow-by-blow account of these perilous missions as they really happened. In these pages, you'll see the events unfold as they were recorded and recalled by one crew's officers and enlisted men (pilot, copilot, navigator, radioman, and gunners), corroborated by other crews they flew with, and painstakingly correlated with the official records of the men's 303rd "Hell's Angels" Bomb Group.

The publication of Half a Wing, Three Engines, and a Prayer in 1989 prompted a flood of fresh recollections, correspondence, and personal records from other veterans of the 303rd. This Special Revised Edition incorporates that wealth of new material into a vivid, thorough recreation -- complete with actual combat photographs -- of one of the most dramatic chapters in military aviation history.

New in this Special Revised Edition:
* New veteran interviews
* Expanded coverage
* Revised data
* 90 photographs & illustrations
* Epilogue: crewmen's post-war careers

"A well-researched, highly readable account of a B-17 combat crew's experience...excellent." -- Roger A. Freeman, author of The Mighty Eighth

"The best collection of stories about a B-17 Bomb Group that has ever been published." -- Harry D. Gobrecht, President, 303rd Bomb Group Association and author of Might in Flight: Daily Diary of the Eighth Air Force's 'Hell's Angels' Bomb Group

About the Author

Brian D. O'Neill, is the General Counsel of Curtiss-Wright Corporation, the famous aviation company that manufactured the Curtiss P-40 fighter and the B-17's Wright Cyclone engines during World War II. Before becoming an attorney, he served with the U.S. Navy as a detroyer gunner officer and shipyard repair officer. An avid student of Eighth Air Force history, he resides in East Windsor, New Jersey.

Product Details

• Paperback: 454 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional; 1st edition (April 30, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071341455
• ISBN-13: 978-0071341455
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,409 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #9 in Books > Travel > Specialty Travel > Air Travel
  • #51 in Books > Professional & Technical > Transportation > Aviation

More About the Author

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

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Understandable, Educational, Inspirational and Readable!, September 21, 2000

By 

"abitt62" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Half a Wing, Three Engines and a Prayer: B-17s over Germany (Paperback)

In 1972, at the age of ten, I was first exposed to historic World War 2 aircraft in flight. In that moment, a lifelong fascination with the history represented by these planes was born. There were many planes present that day, bombers, fighters, transports and trainers; but for me, none of them captured my attention or my imagination like the majestic B-17 Flying Fortress. Since then, I have read books, watched movies and documentaries, spoken with veterans of the World War 2 air forces, walked through and even flown in a B-17. It's been almost like a desperate search to find some kind of comprehension or understanding of the magnitude of the commitment, dedication and sacrifice made by the men who fought in this unique theater of operations. Even though I know I can never truly relate to the experiences of these heroes, I keep trying.

Half A Wing, Three Engines And A Prayer by Brian D. O'Neill, is an amazing book. Through apparently exhaustive research and cross-referencing of records, and veteran recollections, Mr. O'Neill has given us an experience of actually flying daylight bombing raids over Europe that is unparalleled in depth and in its' multi-dimensional nature, conveying the spatial relationships of activity within the bomber combat formations. While following one particular crew through a 25 mission (late '43-early '44) tour, with the 303rd Bomb Group, "Hell's Angels", he visits other crews, corroborating combat events from differing points of view in the bomber formation. While one man, in one plane, in one position in the formation might've been looking up and to his left, when he saw a particular bomber explode in the midst of a formation; the same explosion was seen by a tail-gunner in another plane, looking down and right. Yet another airman, a co-pilot, watched the same plane disappear in a blinding explosion right off his right wing. With this type of spatial cross-referencing and "story-triangulation", the complex flight formations suddenly become three-dimensional. Fully-fleshed out and given personality in the non-flying moments of the book, the pilots, crews and even the individual aircraft, are then glimpsed, from all sides, as they go about their grim task.

I have spent the majority of my life, reading books on this one subject. I have, long since, had an organizational understanding of how "elements" are comprised of planes, "squadrons" are comprised of elements, "groups" are comprised of squadrons, "wings" are comprised of groups, and so on. For the first time, a book has given me some physical understanding of the movement of these huge numbers of combat aircraft through the European skies; as well as numerous harrowing, hair-raising, tragic and sometimes even humorous tales of the men manning those planes. From take-off, and assembly, over the IP (Initial Point) and target and through the agonizing, clock-dragging return home, this is one of the very best books ever written on this subject. Buy it.

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Acount of B-17's in the Air War over Germany, October 26, 1999

By 

Aussie Reader ""Rick"" (Canberra, Australia) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Half a Wing, Three Engines and a Prayer: B-17s over Germany (Paperback)

This is an excellent account of the American Air effort over Europe during 1943-44. The author follows the wartime experiences of one crew from the 303rd "Hell's Angels" Bomb Group using personal accounts and official records. This book is very much like Gerald Astor's 'The Mighty Eight' and is as just as good, if not better. The story of Sgt Joseph Sawicki, pages 207 to 217, brings home the horror and absolute bravery of these men. I would hope that one day soon Sgt Sawicki's exceptional bravery is recognised and he receives the medal of Honour, even though its over 50 years too late! Recommended to all who enjoy this period of history and well done to the author!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Untold Story, February 17, 2000

By 

Douglas Ruppel (Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Half a Wing, Three Engines and a Prayer: B-17s over Germany (Paperback)

I want to publicly thank Brian O'Neill for the time he took in developing the "Half a Wing, Three Engines and a Prayer". For my father, Sgt Edward Ruppel (my he rest in peace) this was very difficult for him to talk about the war. Over the years he would talk to me from time to time about some of the things that happened, but as a rule he wouldn't say very much about the war. Brian was able to get alot of the stories to print. I remember something my dad said to Brian," your asking me to bring back memories that has taken me almost 40 years of my life to forget" Maybe the true inner stories can never be told, but Brian you have shown at least the what really happened. May he truely rest in pease now that his story has been told.