Customer Reviews

Von Richthofen: The Legend Evaluated

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"The French air force had many gifted fighter pilots, few of whom were outstanding tacticians or formation leaders. The national attitude to life is selfish, so it is logical that there was an abundance of young airmen who wished to make their best possible demonstration of patriotism, and to distinguish themselves most, by individual achievement rather than as part of a team." Boelcke is at various points in the book given conflicting victory tallies and even the date of his death! Richtofen is denounced as a murderer and yet men like Bishop and Mannock are let off the hook essentially because they flew for the RFC (he seems to think they both got 70+ victories--and never mentions Bishops, uh questionable claims. When Richtofen confides that his squadron had lost 6 pilots KIA, 1 wounded, and 2 having breakdowns--that such information "is hardly the information a considerate son would have given either of his parents." Where as when Albert Ball despairs of remaining in the war and mentions of a near death experience to his parents the author conclues: "That he should disturb their peace of mind with such frankness indicates how close he was to them and how ungregarious." yes, that's a quote! The book isn't a complete write-off, but you'd be better off getting Peter Kilduff's "The Red Baron Combat Wing" or some such decidedly more even-handed account. It's fine to say that there were a number of pilots during WWI that were as good, but do we have to spend half the book singing the praises of the RAF?

This was simply one of the worst books on WW1 aviation or Von Richthofen I have ever read. Chock full of inaccuracies, inuendo and misinformation. Why the publisher put it out I'll never know.

This book is a rather brutal and anti-Richthofen account by a WWII British Airfighter, comparing Richthofen to other aces, generally not in his (Richthofen's) favor, trying to pick him apart at every angle. Very Comprehensive, but...