War in the Air: True-Life Accounts of the 20th Century's Most Dramatic Air Battles-- By the Men Who Fought Them [Large Print] [Paperback]

Stephen Coonts (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1998

The author of Flight of the Intruder presents twenty-six real-life accounts of aerial warfare, drawn from a variety of sources, including ""The Hero's Life"" by Captain Eddie V. Rickenbacker, ""The Flight of the Enola Gay"" by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan Witts, and Ted Lawson's ""The Doolittle Raid.""

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Armchair aerial warriors will want to cinch up their seatbelts for Stephen Coonts's War in the Air: True-Life Accounts of the 20th Century's Most Dramatic Air Battles?by the Men Who Fought Them. The bestselling novelist (Flight of the Intruder) presents excerpts from 25 classic accounts of combat in the skies (from Frank Elkins's The Heart of a Man, from Ted W. Lawson's Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, etc.), as well as one original piece, his own essay on the Vietnam exploits of "the last American ace," Air Force Captain Steve Richie.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

YA. A collection of stories that focuses on fighter pilots and the battles they fought rather than the planes they flew. Although the accounts start with the poorly trained pilots who flew the canvas-covered biplanes of the First World War and finish with the high-tech machines of the Vietnam War, most of the narratives are about World War II. Coonts places readers inside the cockpit with highly decorated American, British, German, and Japanese flyers. He concludes that technological advances and the end of the Cold War have doomed the "ace" to the annals of history. YAs will experience the same emotions as the pilots?ranging from the exhilaration of shooting down enemy aircraft to the terror of being caught inside a burning plane to the sorrow for lost comrades. This exciting book will appeal to both history buffs and general readers.?Robert Burnham, R. E. Lee High School, Springfield, VA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Thorndike Pr; Large Prnt edition (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786209747
• ISBN-13: 978-0786209743
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,300,358 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad...Thrilling...And OK, January 20, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: War in the Air: True-Life Accounts of the 20th Century's Most Dramatic Air Battles-- By the Men Who Fought Them (Paperback)

This book describes what it is like to be a fighter pilot - from the biplanes of World War I to the jet fighters of Viet Nam. The best stories were from the Viet Nam era, one from Korea and a few from World War II - especially the story from Ted Lawson (30 Seconds Over Tokyo) and the story about the Enola Gay. Wow! The rest of the stories were OK but I didn't find them to be a knock-down jaw dropper as others found them. Nevertheless, what each of these pilots went through is amazing. It's just that some of the stories were OK to read, but others from the book were fascinating...therefore the 3 stars. I do recommend the book to any aviation enthusiast.

5.0 out of 5 stars Heroic deeds, thankfully captured for all time..., July 17, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: War in the Air: True-Life Accounts of the 20th Century's Most Dramatic Air Battles-- By the Men Who Fought Them (Paperback)

Stephen Coonts has compiled a work of non-fiction from many different sources and put together an OUTSTANDING book of the legacy of fighter pilots spanning the 20th century. This book is excellent reading, very entertaining and thought provoking. From World War I, through to present day (including the oft negelected Korean War), each story will bring you as close to being there as possible. This book is broken down into many excerpts, and would make a supreme bedstand novel for anyone even remotely interested in war, aviation, air combat, or even just incredible stories of humans and their machines under pressure. I give this book an easy 10 stars for entertainment. You wont be displeased.

5.0 out of 5 stars Heroic deeds, thankfully captured for all time..., July 17, 1998

By 

Rich Foster ([e-mail]) (Marine Corps Base Hawaii) - See all my reviews

This review is from: War in the Air: True-Life Accounts of the 20th Century's Most Dramatic Air Battles-- By the Men Who Fought Them (Paperback)

Stephen Coonts has compiled a work of non-fiction from many different sources and put together an OUTSTANDING book of the legacy of fighter pilots spanning the 20th century. This book is excellent reading, very entertaining and thought provoking. From World War I, through to present day (including the oft negelected Korean War), each story will bring you as close to being there as possible. This book is broken down into many excerpts, and would make a supreme bedstand novel for anyone even remotely interested in war, aviation, air combat, or even just incredible stories of humans and their machines under pressure. I give this book an easy 10 stars for entertainment. You wont be displeased.