The American 345th Bomb Group - the Air Apaches - was legendary in the war against Japan. The first fully trained and fully equipped group sent to the South Pacific, the 345th racked up a devastating score against the enemy. Armed to the teeth with machine guns and fragmentation bombs, and flying their B-25s at impossibly low altitudes - often below fifty feet - the pilots and air crews strafed and bombed enemy installations and shipping with a fury that helped cripple Japan. One of the sharpest tools in the U.S. arsenal, the 345th performed essential missions during Gen. Douglas MacArthur's campaigns in New Guinea and the Philippines, earning an impressive four Distinguished Unit Citations. This was punishingly dangerous work, and the 345th lost 177 aircraft and 712 men - young men doing their duty in the spirit of the Greatest Generation. Neither was this the more gentlemanly war of Europe, with its more temperate climate, resistance networks aiding downed crews, and POW camps. Airmen shot down in the Pacific theater faced drowning in the ocean, disappearing in the jungle, or torturing and beheading by the Japanese in a war of no quarter expected, no quarter given. A compelling follow-up to Stout's Hell's Angels, Air Apaches reconstructs the missions of the 345th Bomb Group in striking detail, with laser focus on the men who manned the cockpits, navigated the B-25s, dropped the bombs, serviced the planes, and helped win the war. To tell this remarkable story, Stout worked closely with the group's surviving veterans and dug deep into first-hand accounts. The result is a compelling narrative of men at war that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

About the Author
Veteran fighter pilot and historian Jay A. Stout writes with the authority of someone who knows the terror of combat, the heartbreak of loss and the life-sustaining goodness of love. An award-winning author, he writes with a clarity, empathy and depth of knowledge that fascinates, informs and keeps pages turning.

Reviews
Combat aviator-historian Jay Stout again demonstrates mastery of his subject, providing an intimate look at the Air Apaches as they bombed and strafed their way from New Guinea to the Philippines and Okinawa. It's all there-the appalling climate, treacherous weather, and a determined, lethal enemy. All honor to Stout for another last-minute grab at history that is rapidly disappearing beyond our national horizon. -- Barrett Tillman, author of Whirlwind: The Air War Against Japan 1942-1945
Informative, exciting, thorough, and stirringly well-written. -- Eric Hammel, author of Two Flags over Iwo Jima
In his latest aviation treasure, historian Jay Stout chronicles the actions of the 345th Bomb Group, better known as the Air Apaches. Gripping firsthand accounts from pilots and airmen make this an enjoyable read about a unit credited with sinking 260 vessels and destroying 367 enemy aircraft during the war in the Pacific. Highly recommended. -- Stephen L. Moore, author of Uncommon Valor



Book Information
ISBN 9780811738019
Author Jay Stout
Format Hardback
Page Count 448
Imprint Stackpole Books
Publisher Stackpole Books