Customer Reviews

P-38 Lightning Aces of the Pacific and CBI (Osprey Aircraft of the Aces No 14)

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2 star:		(1)
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John Stanaway has long been one of the experts on the P-38 and other WWII aircraft. This volume along with No. 19 should be in every P-38 nut's library. Pictures and drawings are great. For more about P-38 in the Pacific and McGuire check out a new book: THE LAST GREAT ACE.

This was a Christmas present for my father in law. He is 90 years old and was an engineer for Lockeed. He helped design the P-38,U2 and SR71. He was asigned as an engineer to some of the squadrons in the book. He loved the book has read it 3 times already. Knows many of the pilots in the book. It brought back many good memories.

Lots of photos and information. Perfect for P-38 and aircraft enthuseists. Exelent drawings of dozens of P-38,s. Lots of information on specific battles, and encounters with the Japanese air forces. Good info on Bong and McGuire, the top-scoring U.S. aces. I want to emphasize the exellent color drawings of aircraft in this book, which really adds to it.

John Stanaway has authored a number of outstanding aviation books, both large and small, hard and soft cover, for various reading levels and age groups. Here is a book (100 pages or less) suited for young people who want to know the key facts about the best WWII fighter and the most important people involved with the P-38. This is also a good quick reference book for those arm-chair generals who have forgotten a fact about the Lightning and its pilots. The larger books are great and offer mountains of details and wonderful hours of reading. However, here is a book with "just the facts" in paragraph form. Its twin is the "P-38 Lightning Aces of the ETO/MTO" - get them both!

The P-38 was a classic fighter from WWII. It was not an easy plane to manage. But the men who piloted it were amazing. This is an excellent book for those interested in WWII airfare and/or the pilots.

The Tommy McGuire and Dick Bong aspect of it is amazing, and this book gives them their own (very honorably earned) chapter, which is what every publication should give. They were fascinating men with nerves of steel.

Definitely recommend adding this book to your library.

I like introduce my friend, a korean Military Aviation Researcher
in Seoul,Korea. He sent me a Review on this book as following:
During WWII,I had the chance to look at a Japanese concised handbook,
"Identification methods of Enemy,US and British Military Aircrafts"
On first page,there was a funny featured elegant twin [...], with
a fuselage pod mounted on the wing between the booms-P-38 Lightening !
It gave me deep impressions with excitement and became absentminded.
After,VJ-day,on15,Aug,1945,near the Christmas seasons, I accidenarlly
looked at the sky,a silvery white,P-38 was drawing a signs with flighting
vapors,X mas,at high altitude over the beaughtiful,blue sky,Seoul,Korea !
Bu late 1943, P-38 already proved high altitude sweeping fighter,
escorting B-17and B-24 Heavy bomber on Europian theater,medium altitude
"Dogfight" fighter,ground strafing and bombiing on Mediterian theater,
reconnaissence, and even night fighter.
In Pacific and CBI theater,first P-38 victories was two Kawanishi
flying boats kills in Aleutian Island.P-38's tactics over most strong
well knoown Japanese Navy fighter"Zero", promised long range,high speed
and enough power to climb or dive away from Zero.avoid turning in combat
from amazing maneuvrability.Japanese preferred "Dog fighting"below
the altitude,lower than 20,000ft,P-38's best choice was from higher altitude, high speed diving attack with heavier armament,1 20 mm cannon
and 4-12.7mm machine guns.straffing then fly away- "Hit and Run"technique.
Most memorable operation of P-38 was "The Yamamoto Mission"
On 14,April,1943, Nsvy intelligence intercepted Japanese Navy Admiral's
Radio tranmission of Admiral Yamamoto.US planned interception attack
with only possible long ranged available fighters of South Pacific was
P-38Gs at Henderson air field,Guadalcanal. they added special long-range external fuel tanks. On 18,April,1943,under the direction of Maj.Mitchell,
16 p-38Gs flight team flew as low altitude as possible.at 9:30AM,2 "Betty"
bombers escoted by 6 Zero was spotted.4 attacking group of P-38 attacked them,shot downed 2 "Betty" bombers and 2 Zeros.During this fighting,
Mag.Mitchel and remainig P-38G coverd higher altitude.
there are 106 Air Aces of WWII in the Pacific and CBI.
Among aces of P-38 in the pacific and CBI,Top Ace was Capt.Richard Bong
40 kills, 2nd Ace was Maj.Thomas McGuire 38 kills.
During WWII,US overall Aces are as folloting:
1) Capt. Richard Bong; total 40 Kills
2) Maj. Thomas McGuire: total 38 kills.
3) Capt. David McCampbell(USN) 34 kills.
4) CoL. Francis S.Gabreski(USAF)31 Kills.
Maj. McGuire died during dogfightng,WWII.
Capt.Bong died on Test piloting F-80 Shooting Star after WWII.

Always overshadowed by the war in Europe, read the exploits of many forgotten heroes and aircraft crews in the Pacific theater. The P-51 wasn't Americas only top line fighter! Read about the Lockheed P-38 and its pilots in the war against Japan. A great book for history buffs and modelers!

There were no color plates of the P-38s from the 44th Squadron known as the Vampire Squadron particulary Tom Westbrook (top 13th Air Force Ace) nor were there any 449th Fighter Squadron color plates even though there were 2 aces from that unit in the CBI theater.

Comparing to other titles of this colection, this book could be much better. It lacks coehesion and sequence, contraty to the books written by John Deal and the best of this collection, "HUrricane Aces", by TOny Holmes (who, by the way, is the editor os this series.