Customer Reviews

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

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

Intending authors of Group histories - and yes, there are a few still to be written - would do well to read Tom Ivie/Paul Ludwig's book. The book is not new, it was published in 2005 and neither is it the first work for the authors; both have had plenty of practice. The book covers the 52nd's complete operational history, including handy coverage of the Spitfire era. The book is a pleasure to read, well laid out with lots of B&W photos. It lacks completely the 'facsimile' bastardry that characterises so many of the unit histories. The book is full of color plates of the Group's various aircraft, so it will please the avid modeler as well as the historian. The book strikes a nice balance between 'personal anecdotes' and heavier organisational history. It provides a relatively even treatment of the three flying squadrons, although there is a slight bias towards the 2nd Fighter Squadron. Even the weakest intuitor will be able to discern the markings of the respective Squadrons as these are well covered, though not described. Well done men. Great book and a 'must' for the shelf. Potential authors, please take note.