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A very good military read

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A very good military read

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Old 11th Aug 2020, 07:26
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Originally Posted by Mogwi
Covid reading has included Malta Spitfire Pilot by Denis Barnham. A brilliantly written account of his 10 weeks flying Spitfires from Malta in the early summer of '42. It makes my 6 weeks in the South Atlantic look like very tame!

Also Going Solo by Roald Dahl. This covers his story from the start of the war as a volunteer pilot in East Africa, through his near-fatal crash in a Gladaitor in the dessert and then flying Hurricanes in Greece as the Germans advanced ever closer.

Both rivetting stuff.

mog
Al Murray reads Denis Barnam's book on We Have Ways of Making You Talk. He is currently working his way through Pierre Clostermann's book 'The Big Show' the experiences of a French fighter pilot flying for the RAF in WWII. Both worth a punt.
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Old 11th Aug 2020, 22:36
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" The Limits of Air Power "-(Mark Clodfelter) does a good job of explaining why the greatest military force the world had ever known was still unable to win a conventional war against a basically peasant Vietnamese army .
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Old 9th Nov 2020, 16:31
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A great read (or listen)

For those who have an interest in air combat or the legend of John Boyd, then this book is a great read.

It explains where a lot of the Threatweb and kinematic data we have used for yrs has come from and the background to the OODA Loop.




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Old 9th Nov 2020, 16:41
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Second that motion. A really good read.
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Old 9th Nov 2020, 18:41
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Col. Boyd gave us the greatest jet fighter the world has ever known - the F-15 Eagle.

For that, he will always be a legend alone... and that doesn't scratch the surface of his excellence.

He really did change the air war.
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Old 9th Nov 2020, 20:30
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Originally Posted by BVRAAM
Col. Boyd gave us the greatest jet fighter the world has ever known - the F-15 Eagle.

For that, he will always be a legend alone... and that doesn't scratch the surface of his excellence.

He really did change the air war.
I think you need to read the book... his was the F16 - he was against the F15.
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Old 9th Nov 2020, 20:30
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Also Going Solo by Roald Dahl. This covers his story from the start of the war as a volunteer pilot in East Africa, through his near-fatal crash in a Gladaitor in the dessert and then flying Hurricanes in Greece as the Germans advanced ever closer.
The inflexibility of his command chain was gobsmacking. I thought by that stage of the war sqn cdrs etc were more switched on.
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Old 14th Nov 2020, 11:45
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An Officer. Not a Gentleman. Mandy Hickson
The Service autobiography of one of the first Lady RAF fast jet Pilots.
The author takes you through, in a candid manner, her progress in the system up to and including operational flying on II(AC) Tornadoes.
Recommended.
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Old 14th Nov 2020, 15:28
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Combat Crew by John Comer. As riveting a read as Wellum's First Light, B17 turret-gunner Comer draws us into his life of nissen huts and muddy Norfolk airfields, of towering clouds and terror in the skies over Germany. Available on Kindle.
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Old 14th Nov 2020, 18:38
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I hope I have not committed a PPrune no-no but there is a rather good reading list on the WHWOMYT website here at https://wehavewayspod.com/books/


 
Old 16th Nov 2020, 15:11
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Team,

I'm looking for a definitive but relatively concise guide to the evolution of air combat in WW1. Anyone know any good academic papers or shortish book on the subject?

Target
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Old 16th Nov 2020, 15:45
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Originally Posted by pba_target
Team,

I'm looking for a definitive but relatively concise guide to the evolution of air combat in WW1. Anyone know any good academic papers or shortish book on the subject?

Target
Try Aces High - The War in the Air Over the Western Front 1914-18 by Alan Clark.
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Old 16th Nov 2020, 21:00
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Try, “A brief history of The Royal Flying Corps in World War One” by Ralph Barker.
It is an excellent read.
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Old 16th Nov 2020, 21:27
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Originally Posted by Geriaviator
Combat Crew by John Comer. As riveting a read as Wellum's First Light, B17 turret-gunner Comer draws us into his life of nissen huts and muddy Norfolk airfields, of towering clouds and terror in the skies over Germany. Available on Kindle.
My god........I'd forgotten all about that book! Fabulous and moving read!
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Old 9th Feb 2021, 21:45
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Originally Posted by Airborne Aircrew
A Rumour of War - Philip Caputo - Vietnam War Infantry Officer

The Devils Guard - George Robert Elford - Ex-German SS Foreign Legion in Vietnam

The Big Show - Pierre Closterman DFC & bar - WWII Free-French fighter pilot in the RAF
Reading the latter, and for three days now, enjoyed it. However by day four as he's bounced by another 40 190'a I'm thinking of all the other books i've read, Paul Richey etc, were nowhere near this exciting. Hope im not doing Pierre a disservice, but I can't help but question the heroics and smell a bit, well. Bovine.

Anyway. Back to the book.
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Old 10th Feb 2021, 07:09
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My current read (2nd time around) which I'm really enjoying: The Silver Spitfire by Tom Neil. The tale (in his own words) of a 23 year old Sqn Ldr seconded to the yanks at the beginning of 1944 .. and an illicitly acquired personal spitfire!
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Old 10th Feb 2021, 07:31
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Hi a hope this hasn't been mentioned before:
"The history of Dive Bombing" by Peter C. Smith. The idea that it covers, along with the history, are the reasons that the upper echelons of the RAF desired not to be too involved, at the time, in dive bombing because they saw themselves as upholders of strategic bombing ideology ( Trenchard and Douhet ) not Army cooperation. There is more about the history of dive bombing from the start in 1911 to 2007 and is very informative.

I found this book very good, it can be found here at the longest river also other quality book sellers. For those with a kindle £0.82 !

https://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Dive-Bombing-Comprehensive-Onward/dp/1844155927/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2UFYDYUL45746&dchild=1&keywords=a+history+of+dive+bombing&qid=1609489971&sprefix=History+of+Dive+Bombing%2Caps%2C230&sr=8-1 https://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Dive-Bombing-Comprehensive-Onward/dp/1844155927/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2UFYDYUL45746&dchild=1&keywords=a+history+of+dive+bombing&qid=1609489971&sprefix=History+of+Dive+Bombing%2Caps%2C230&sr=8-1
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Old 10th Feb 2021, 08:55
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Hostile Skies released as an audio book shortly.


Amazon Amazon
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Old 10th Feb 2021, 09:01
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Just finished reading it, and agree with your comments.

It was also flagged up on the famous "Gaining an RAF Pilot's Brevet in WW II" thread", where the late Danny42C featured so often and was a Vengeance pilot in the Far East.
Gaining An R.A.F Pilots Brevet In WW II
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Old 10th Feb 2021, 11:04
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+1 for Clostermann.

Carrier Pilot by Norman Hanson who ended up flying Corsairs in the Pacific theatre.
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