Luftwaffe Fighter Aces: The Jagdflieger and Their Combat Tactics and Techniques

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0804116962 ISBN 13: 9780804116961

Publisher: Ballantine Books, 1997

HOW THE LUFTWAFFE FIGHTER ACES ACHIEVED THEIR SUCCESS

The Luftwaffe's leading fighter aces outscored their Allied counterparts astonishingly during World War II--so much so that when the records of these pilots (the Jagdflieger) first became available after the war they were greeted with disbelief. A single ace with a hundred victories might have been credible, but one hundred six aces each recorded one hundred victories or more, and the top scorer claimed three hundred fifty-two. However, postwar research proved that German shoot-down confirmations were given only after rigorous checking.

To discover the secret of the Luftwaffe pilots' success, aviation historian Mike Spick examines the exploits of Nazi Germany's most famous pilots, focusing on the methods and tactics of individual aces, examining the importance of machinery, training, climate, numbers, and theater of war, and using firsthand accounts to put the reader in the pilot's seat. This book is easily the best possible guide to how the German aces achieved such amazing results in battle.

About the Author:

Mike Spick is an author and consultant specializing in air combat and helicopter tactics, and has written more than thirty books on military aviation.