Hitler's Fall Guys: An Examination of the Luftwaffe by One of America's Most Famous Aces [Hardcover]

Walker M. Mahurin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1999

This new book by famed U.S. ace Walker Bud Mahurin, is an examination of Germanys Luftwaffe by one who fought against them in the skies over Europe, and who befriended them after the war. Having found himself lucky enough to be included in some of the history of the United States Air Force because of his exploits during World War II and the war in Korea, Mahurin has become acquainted over the years with a number of ex-enemy airmen he fought against. Never expecting to destroy a number of enemy aircraft in his combat experiences, he considered himself fortunate to get to know leading combat airmen in his own air force as well as in the United Kingdom and Germany.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 190 pages
• Publisher: Schiffer Pub Ltd; First edition (August 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764308718
• ISBN-13: 978-0764308710
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #137,221 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A True Expert's Inside View, January 5, 2000

By 

Walter Boyne (Ashburn, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hitler's Fall Guys: An Examination of the Luftwaffe by One of America's Most Famous Aces (Hardcover)

Walker Marhurin is one of America's greatest heroes, having shot down enemy aircraft in Europe, the Pacific and Korea, and having himself been shot down in all three theaters. He was also a marvelous leader in the air, and his comments on the Luftwaffe are invaluable. "Bud" takes both the contemporary German accounts and the later review of German activity by their leading aces, and analyzes them in simple straight forward language. This is a book that anyone with an interest in World War II aviation must have!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting but disappointing, January 13, 2002

By 

Kaynine Lover "American by Birth, Southern by... (South of Mason-Dixon Line) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hitler's Fall Guys: An Examination of the Luftwaffe by One of America's Most Famous Aces (Hardcover)

I looked forward to reading this book very much and perhaps that is why I'm disappointed with it. It starts off well but somewhere along the line is sidetracked. I can't tell if its poor editing or if a significant part of the text is pulled from the interview text with Galland after the war (the English usage is poor; too poor for a someone who's first language is English). Despite other reviews to the contrary, I didn't find the "analysis" to be hardhitting. I found it redundant. It seemed like the only "analysis" was that of Galland, a supporter of the fighter service, which states over and over that the fighter service was mishandled. It's almost a sour grapes refrain. The very end of the book seems to try to make a case of how effective the Luftwaffe fighter arm was by quoting lots of statistics that don't seem to add up. Editing again or poor research? It reads quickly so give it a go if the subject is a favorite but don't expect anything from the "analysis" side.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Sloppy Work, Lazy Editing, August 18, 2011

By 

Bomberodavid - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hitler's Fall Guys: An Examination of the Luftwaffe by One of America's Most Famous Aces (Hardcover)

I purchased this book on Bud Mahurin's reputation, and the mostly complementary reviews here. I began reading the book the day it arrived, and must say I am very, very disappointed.

I think some of the reviewers have not actually read this book. Many sentences are incomplete, or even incoherent. 'Wore' is used in place of 'Were' in several places. I see this book is published in a country where English is not spoken. No surprise! It appears no native english speaker even read the galleys.

Larges portions of this book are excerpts from 'Horrido' and 'Last of the Many'. Anyone with an interest in WW II Luftwaffe probably already has these books. They are superior to Mahurin's.

To achieve a combat record such as Mahurin's requires precise flying and accurate gunnery. This book is neither accurate or precise, rather it comes across as lazy and sloppy.

Looking again at the Amazon reviews, I was surprised to see that all 4 of the 5-star reviews were posted by one person. Buyer, beware!