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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Iron men, steel planes, straw house,
This review is from: The rise and fall of the Luftwaffe: The life of Field Marshal Erhard Milch (Hardcover)
Irving met Erhard Milch in Dusseldorf in the late 1960's, and admits that he was intrigued by the life of this old man who was once Gorings Deputy, the second most powerful man in the German Air Ministry, the chief architect and mobiliser of the Luftwaffe, a Field Marshal and the man Hitler said knew more about aviation than any other in Germany.It is obvious that Irving respected and liked Milch (you don't spend four years researching someone's life if you don't respect them and I doubt you can spend four years with someone without ending up liking them) The feeling was mutual as Milch gave all his diaries and notebooks to Irving. It is natural then to expect this book to be the most authoritative, well researched and detailed account of Milch's life. That it is. It is also one of the best histories of the Luftwaffe. The book tells the story of the Luftwaffe from the earliest days with the formation of the Air Ministry in 1933 through to its eventual defeat. Defeat was not by way of battle or any specific incident but was indicated by the Luftwaffe's impotence and total inability to stop the massive allied bombing raids on the Reich beginning in late 1943. Wheras the story of the Luftwaffe is about Milch and Goring it's also about others such as Ernst Udet and aircraft designers such as Willy Messerschmitt and Ernest Heinkel. It's about the successful planes Messerschmitt Bf109, Focke Wulf 190, Junkers 87 (Stuka) and the abject failures such as the Me 210 and He 177. There is discussion of those great 'might have beens' such as the Dornier 355 (front and rear, push-pull design) and perhaps the greatest example of a design that was too little, too late - the Me 262 jet fighter. Armaments, radar, production quotas, innovations and secret projects are all mentioned. So is the politics and infighting (such as the dislike that Milch and Messerschmitt had for each other) and the inefficiencies, bureaucracy and meddling that characterised the Air Ministry. If you have an interest in the Luftwaffe then this is a good item to add to your collection, but be warned, the writing style is very dry and I found it hard to read through.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
For Every Reader of WWII History!,
By
This review is from: The rise and fall of the Luftwaffe: The life of Field Marshal Erhard Milch (Hardcover)
Field Marshal Milch's eyewitness account of major events and personalities, including A.H., is priceless and unequalled. Author and honest, non-PC history-researcher David Irving has created another masterpiece of an absorbing read.
Field Marshal Milch supplies great material on the background of the V-1, V-2, and jets. The late-war production increases of aircraft arranged by Milch's own efforts, under the extreme war circumstances, are phenomenal to read about! The constant struggle for labor from various sources is excellent historical material seldom found laid out this way in other sources. "He suddenly tore the field marshal's baton from his hands and began raining blows on the back of Milch's skull" ... is how the section on his capture by the Allies begins.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Rare Account of Goerings Second In Command,
By 10th Legion "10th Legion" (Central Texas, United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Rise and Fall of the Luftwaffe (Paperback)
This is a biography of Luftwaffe Field Marshal Erhard Milch who rose to be second only to Herman Goering in the Luftwaffe high command only to be unceremoniously relieved of duties in June, 1944. David Irving mines Milch's extensive personal diaries and other source materials to provide a rare English-language biography of a senior military leader in Germany's Third Reich. Irving does an excellent job of weaving Milch's life against the background of Weimar Germany and the rise of the Nazis. It is clear that Milch embraced Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party and was faithful to him and his regime until the bitter end. What is remarkable about Milch was his effectiveness running the business side of the Luftwaffe despite rampant incompetence starting with Goering and Udet. For those readers who want both insight into the inner workings of the Luftwaffe High Command and the rise and fall of a remarkable, if not entirely sympathetic person, I highly recommend reading this book. There simply are not enough authors willing to go into the original German source material like David Irving. There are far too many books about German military aircraft and the wonder planes that did not quite make it into the war. Read this book and be amazed how well the Luftwaffe did despite the stupidity and ignorance at the highest levels and the bitter infighting among the aircraft designers and builders of the Third Reich. It was just as well for the Allies that there were not more men like Milch in charge of the Luftwaffe or the air war would have been much more challenging over central Europe.
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