Warren Bodie's book is a marvel of completeness, including photos of all series and one-offs, and favorably presents what was arguably the best all-around fighter of World War Two. All the subjective criticisms of the famous Lockheed twin-boom plane are clearly discussed in their proper historical context, with ample support from the main historical actors. The book also demonstrates that the P-38, as a good child of Clarence "Kelly" Johnson's genius, was several years ahead of its time both in its technology and in the capacity of air strategists and pilots to fully exploit the advances it had over current aviation designs, as well as to foresee its potential. For example, the P-51 Mustang was a pig (and used the same Allison engine of the P-38) before being refitted with the famous Rolls-Royce Merlin engine which made it the masterpiece we know; just imagine a P-38 with two Merlins, something that never happened but that could have dramatically changed the air war before 1944 in all theaters. Bodie demonstrates that the P-38 was already the long-range fighter the Allies needed a couple of years before the P-51D and P-47N, but was stupidly underused and underdeveloped; its firepower was overwhelming and almost unparalleled throughout the war; it could turn with any enemy fighter and outrun most of them and, finally, having another engine was a priceless safeguard in the long flights over the Pacific Ocean and the Mediterranean. Highly recommended reading about my favorite fighter plane.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Definitive Book on the Fork-Tailed Devil,
By
This review is from: The Lockheed P-38 Lightning (Paperback)
Warren Bodie's book is a marvel of completeness, including photos of all series and one-offs, and favorably presents what was arguably the best all-around fighter of World War Two. All the subjective criticisms of the famous Lockheed twin-boom plane are clearly discussed in their proper historical context, with ample support from the main historical actors. The book also demonstrates that the P-38, as a good child of Clarence "Kelly" Johnson's genius, was several years ahead of its time both in its technology and in the capacity of air strategists and pilots to fully exploit the advances it had over current aviation designs, as well as to foresee its potential. For example, the P-51 Mustang was a pig (and used the same Allison engine of the P-38) before being refitted with the famous Rolls-Royce Merlin engine which made it the masterpiece we know; just imagine a P-38 with two Merlins, something that never happened but that could have dramatically changed the air war before 1944 in all theaters. Bodie demonstrates that the P-38 was already the long-range fighter the Allies needed a couple of years before the P-51D and P-47N, but was stupidly underused and underdeveloped; its firepower was overwhelming and almost unparalleled throughout the war; it could turn with any enemy fighter and outrun most of them and, finally, having another engine was a priceless safeguard in the long flights over the Pacific Ocean and the Mediterranean. Highly recommended reading about my favorite fighter plane.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is the P-38 Bible, pure and simple.,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Lockheed P-38 Lightning (Hardcover)
If you had to select only one P-38 book from the 50+ on the shelves, this is the one. Excellent quality from author Warren Bodie, outstanding quality in production, details that just don't quit, and a ton of photos. What more can I say. If there is one fault with this book, it has so much information, an index would be nice.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Required reading for P-38 Fans,
By Michael T. Terry (michael_terry@abtassoc.com (Reading, Massachusetts) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Lockheed P-38 Lightning (Hardcover)
I have been a fan of the P-38 Lightning for many years, despite having no personal ties to it. I had been looking for a book on the Lightning which would combine pictures and text to tell its story. Bodie's book is well written and shows his passion for the subject. It is well organized and there are many excellent pictures (including a color section) accompanied by wonderfully informative captions. If there is a fault with the book, it is that Bodie spends perhaps too much time on the period before the P-38 was developed. Background is important, but I felt that it was somewhat excessive. Still, this is a required book for any Lockheed P-38 Lightning fan's bookshelf. I struck up a correspondence with Bodie after reading the book and found him to be very friendle and helpful in my research on the P-38.
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