Description
Using the parallel stories of Gregory 'Pappy' Boyington and Joseph 'Smokey Joe' Foss, the two top-scoring US Marine Corps fighter aces of all time, this fascinating new book explores US Marine Corps aviation over the South Pacific.
About the Author
Bill Yenne is the author of more than three dozen non-fiction books, as well as ten novels. His work has been selected for the Chief of Staff of the Air Force Reading List. He is the recipient of the Air Force Association's Gill Robb Wilson Award for the 'most outstanding contribution in the field of arts and letters [as an] author whose works have shaped how thousands of Americans understand and appreciate airpower.' He lives in California, USA.
Reviews
America's Few describes Marine Corps aviation's few: the two dozen 'double digit' aces who gained hard-won air superiority in the first year of the Pacific War, many of whom contributed en route to VJ Day. Bill Yenne not only describes their combat careers but the youthful backgrounds that shaped who they were beyond what they did. * Barrett Tillman, author of 'U.S. Marine Corps Fighter Squadrons of World War II' *
Readable and well researched, America's Few chronicles the combat history of the 'double-digit' fighter aces, an elite cohort of Marine Corps aviators who shot down ten or more Japanese warplanes while flying the famed F4F Wildcat and F4U Corsair. An essential addition to the bookshelf of readers interested in the F4U Corsair and the remarkable pilots who flew them. * Steven K. Bailey, author of 'Bold Venture: The American Bombing of Japanese-Occupied Hong Kong, 1942-1945' *
Author Bill Yenne captures the true essence of this great generation of young pilots who sacrificed so much. In 1942 the War in the Pacific Theater was not going well for the Allies and, the USMC pilots had an uphill battle to wage. The reader is immediately drawn into each dogfight, as Yenne displays a unique talent for capturing precise details. For the pilots, the obstacles were significant and an enormous psychological weight to bear. Base operations were austere, shoot down the enemy or be shot down, AAA threats, will the aircraft hold up under the stress. Every second in the air were the vivid haunting threats-bailing out over the ocean or crashing in the jungle. Will I be quickly killed or, become a POW of the Japanese? Yenne preserves the legacy of a generation of USMC airmen that deserve lasting respect. * Erik Simonsen, author of 'A Complete History of US Combat Aircraft Fly-Off Competitions' *
Book Information
ISBN 9781472847492
Author Bill Yenne
Format Hardback
Page Count 352
Imprint Osprey Publishing
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Weight(grams) 748g