Spitfires and Yellow Tail Mustangs: The 52nd Fighter Group in World War II [Hardcover]

Tom Ivie (Author), Paul Ludwig (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 23, 2005

The USAAF 52nd Fighter Group enjoyed an outstanding record in World War II, but to date its story has never been told.

Activated in January 1941, it moved to England in July 1942 for an assignment with the Eighth Air Force. It flew combat missions in Spitfires to France during the summer of 1942 before being reassigned to the invasion force attacking North Africa in November 1942.

After moving to North Africa, it was assigned to the Twelfth Air Force and was again equipped with Spitfires. As part of the Twelfth Air Force, it flew combat missions in the Tunisian campaign, and during the invasion of Sicily.

In mid-1944, the 52nd was reassigned to the Fifteenth Air Force and converted to P-51 Mustangs. During the remainder of the war, it flew bomber escort and strafing missions to targets in Italy, France, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, Rumania, and Yugoslavia. For its outstanding service the Group was twice awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation.

During its long campaign, the Group destroyed more than 425 enemy aircraft in aerial combat and damaged 135 plus many more on the ground. The 52nd Fighter Group produced 21 Aces.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Hikoki Publications / Specialty Press; 1st edition (October 23, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1902109430
• ISBN-13: 978-1902109435
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 8.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #694,010 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Long-Overdue Tribute to a Top USAAF Fighter Group!, May 25, 2006

By 

Michael OConnor "Wordsmith" (Wausau, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spitfires and Yellow Tail Mustangs: The 52nd Fighter Group in World War II (Hardcover)

The 52nd Fighter Group was one of the top-scoring Army Air Force units to fly and fight in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations in WWII. First equipped with Lend-Lease Spitfires, the Group later switched to P-51s, scoring some 425 aerial and 200+ ground kills by war's end. The Group's brief but eventful history is related in this fine book from Hikoki Publications by Tom Ivie and Paul Ludwig.

The 52nd came to life in January 1941, was briefly assigned to the 8th AF in July 1942 before being transferred to the 12th AF in North Africa in November. Later assigned to the 15th AF, the Group saw extensive combat over Tunisia, Italy, France, Germany and the Balkans, winning two DUCs. Those combats produced 21 aces including 'Sully' Varnell, Sylvan Field, Barry Lawler, Jim Tyler and 'Dixie' Alexander.

Using a variety of books, records and personal reminiscences, the authors recreate the life and times of the Group. While emphasis is on combat ops, much detail is given on behind-the-scenes life on the ground. As with other Hikoki books, the text is complemented by hundreds of black & white and color photos along with 24 beautiful color profiles by ace illustrator Tom Tullis.

Books on MTO fighter groups aren't that common. Nor are the few such books that are out there as well-done as this. All in all, it's a nice package - and a fine tribute to the 52nd Fighter Group.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nothing but the facts..., September 26, 2008

By 

Patrick Foley "Schloss" (PA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spitfires and Yellow Tail Mustangs: The 52nd Fighter Group in World War II (Hardcover)

This is an excellent book. Like every other Hikoki publication I've read to date, it is outstanding for the amount of research that obviously went into it. On top of being well researched it is also much needed... so little has been written about the Americans in the Mediterranean air war and the follow-on strategic air war of the 15th Air Force. As part of their marvelous research the authors provide some great aircraft profile illustrations and many absolutely wonderful photos, most of which I have never seen before.

So if at this point you are wondering why I didn't give the book five stars instead of four it is simply this... it is too dry. For personal accounts it depends almost exclusively on military after-action reports, reports that were by design short, factual and emotionless. There were sections where I felt I was reading quick notes on a calendar... on this day this happened, on the next day this happened, on the day after that this happened, etc. etc. etc. Some post-war interviews along with some more colorful writing could've made this book so much better.

Don't let me scare you off however. If you are interested in military aviation in general or more specifically the USAAF's struggle in the Med this is a very valuable addition to your library, but I would not recommend it for someone with a casual interest.

4.0 out of 5 stars Much deserved coverage, October 1, 2011

By 

Barrett Tillman (Mesa, AZ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spitfires and Yellow Tail Mustangs: The 52nd Fighter Group in World War II (Hardcover)

This volume provides much-deserved coverage of the 52nd Fighter Group, one of the widely overlooked units of the widely overlooked 15th Air Force. It maintains Hikoki's reputation for solid information combined with outstanding artwork. Tom Tullis' excellent aircraft profiles are superbly rendered in full-page spreads. While some of the black and white photos are of marginal quality, most of those are worth publishing because of their rarity. Additionally, five multi-color maps help set the geographic stage.

The text is full of contemporary comments--not only combat reports but you-are-there observations about living conditions, morale, and other non-glamorous but essential ingredients in a wartime chronicle. Those citations do much to provide the reader with an insight to the 52nd's corporate personality--a factor sometimes missing in unit histories.

The biggest fault by far is the index, which is almost unusable. One ace has 28 page listings but he's only mentioned on six of those pages, including the index itself! He's mentioned on four pages not included in his index citations. Another pilot has 13 mentions (including the index page) but he's actually on six, plus at least two more absent from the index. Obviously there was a major disconnect somewhere along the line.

Despite the index problems, Ivie and Ludwig earn high praise for their treatment of a deserving subject.