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Low and Slow: Liberation of the Philippines as viewed from 800 feet above the ground

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he title comes from the mother who urged: "Son, be careful; fly low and slow." Low and slow is where a pilot doesn't want to be, but it's where a U.S. Army Artillery spotter had to spend his time. Moore is quick to point out that the hazards of flying 800 feet above the Philippines paled in comparison to combat on the ground: war is hell, but his war was "more funky than demonic."

Moore once had a dogfight with a Zero: two cannon and two machineguns vs. a Piper Cub armed only with a carbine. As long as the planes were closely entwined, Moore had the upper hand, since he could turn inside the Japanese fighter. Then the Zero moved off, setting up for a fast attack that the 65 hp Cub couldn't have dodged. Moore dove for home, and he and his rear-seat "gunner" were out of the Cub and into a trench before the Zero passed over.

More terrifying, actually, was the time he was sucked into a cloud. Anti-aircraft guns were popping off beneath him, U.S. bombers roaring through the cloud beside, and Moore had to fly IFR with only a compass, tachometer, airspeed indicator, and altimeter. Against all logic, he made it home that time as well. Still, as his commander warned him, the odds didn't favor a liaison pilot: "All you have to do is fly one of these things long enough, and it will get you."

When Moore doesn't remember the details, he says so. The effect is like a favorite uncle, yarning to his nephews about a 55-year-old adventure so extraordinary that he still can't quite believe that he took part in it. A delightful book.

Dare I say "enchanting" about a war memoir? Honest, Don Moore has accomplished that feat. Nearly 50 years on, he wrote this yarn about his service, flying a Piper Cub L-4 500 feet above Japanese lines, as a spotter for American artillery. His only armament was a Colt forty-five and sometimes an M-1 carbine in the hands of his backseat passenger. He had a dogfight with a Zero (no damage done on either side) and a harrowing flight through the clouds without IFR instruments, while Japanese ack-ack shells exploded around him and fast American bombers dashed through the soup beside him. There's a great chapter also about the Brodie Device, which enabled a Cub to fly off a landing craft, running along a wire suspended to one side--and even to "land" again on the same wire. First class.

This book was a gift to my father who was a spotter in the L4's and L5's in Luzon. There is virtually no record of the contributions of the brave pilots and spotters who radioed back important strategic sightings so that an artillary strike could be laid down more accurately. They were also used to evac injured soldiers from the field to aid stations and hospitals which saved many lives. My father, who actually LIVED this experience enjoyed the book tremendously. He said it was very well-written. If you want more information about what these pilots and spotters did, I suggest that you get the DVD, "L Bird: The Little Plane That DID" so you can see how some of these planes landed and took off from ships that were NOT carriers. You will not believe it!

Very little has been written about these brave pilots. this book goes a long way to correct that. Don has put together a book that is rich in detail, thoroughly entertaining and full of all the facts he can remember. He did everything from flying brass around to spraying DDT!