Osprey Aircraft of the Aces Series

At the time of its operational debut the fighter's design features offered the revolutionary combination of an all-round vision canopy, cannon armament and a jettisonable drop tank giving it phenomenal range. Together with the flying and tactical proficiency of superbly trained pilots, this made the Zero-sen a true strategic fighter, spearheading Japan's offensive in the Pacific. It was also the mount of a plethora of successful and flamboyant naval aces engaged in both sea and land campaigns.

About this Osprey Publishing BookThe 325th FG was activated under General Order number 50 on 30 July 1942 and set up training operations at Theodore F Greene Field in Providence, Rhode Island. By mid-December 1942 the group was considered ready for combat and the alert for overseas duty arrived on 2 January 1943. The pilots and their P-40s departed on the carrier USS Ranger on 8 January and flew their aircraft off the vessel into Cazes airfield, near Casablanca, on 19 January 1943. After the...

About this Osprey Publishing BookJagdgeschwader 3 may not have the same immediate resonance as some of the more famous Luftwaffe fighter units, such Jagdgeschwader 2 -Richthofen', but it is arguably the archetypal German fighter formation of World War 2. Not only did it participate in every campaign fought by the Luftwaffe (with the exceptions of Poland and Norway), it flew every major variant of the two legendary German wartime fighters, the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 -...

Aces of Jagdgeschwader Nr III from Osprey Publishing Item Number:OSPACE128 Author: Greg VanWyngarden Illustrator: Harry Dempsey, Mark Postlethwaite Short code: ACE 128 Publication Date: 20 Jan 2016 Number of Pages: 96 About this Osprey Publishing Book Royal Prussian Jagdgeschwader Nr III was the third of Germany's vaunted fighter wings to be formed during World War 1. Commanded by the Pour le M-rite winner and well-respected ace Hauptmann Bruno Loerzer for its entire existence, it was composed...

About this Osprey Publishing BookInitially formed to assist in the defence of the city of Metz against French bombing raids, Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 17 would go on to become one of the most distinguish German fighter units of World War 1. Its first victory was scored by the pilot whose story is inextricably interwoven with that of his unit - the -Blue Max' recipient Julius Buckler. He was largely responsible for inspiring the unit's unique Esprit de Corps, expressed in its famous and unique...

The ace pilots of the Republic of China Air Force have long been shrouded in mystery and obscurity, as their retreat to Taiwan in 1949 and blanket martial law made records of the RoCAF all but impossible to access. Now, for the first time, the colourful story of these aces can finally be told. Using the latest research based on released archival information and full-colour illustrations, this book charts the history of the top scoring pilots of the RoCAF from the beginning of the gruelling,...

About this Osprey Publishing BookDubbed the -Eagles of Duxford', the 78th Fighter Group (FG) was unique in being the only fighter unit in the -Mighty Eighth' to fly the P-38 Lightning, P-47 Thunderbolt and P-51 Mustang operationally. Arriving in the European Theatre of Operations (ETO) in November 1942, and eventually committed to combat five months later, the 78th, along with the 4th and 56th FGs, -wrote the book' on long-range fighter escort by VIII Fighter Command in the ETO. This volume...

Aces of the Legion Condor by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE99For Germany, the Spanish Civil War proved a perfect testing ground for new technologies and tactics. During the war, some 19,000 German 'volunteers' formed an aviation group called the Legion Condor in support of the fascists. Originally flying He-51s, they were soon upgraded to 109s. These fighters proved dominant in the Spanish skies, and many members of the legion scored five or more kills during the fighting.Contents *...

Albatros Aces Of Ww-I Pt1 by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE32Author: Norman FranksIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookThe Albatros family of fighters were amongst the most effective aircraft employed by the Idlfieg (Imperial German Air Service) for much of World War 1, with the D.III and D.Va being flown by most of the 363 pilots who qualified as aces at some point in their often brief careers. The Albatros was the scourge of the RFC on the Western Front in 1916-17, with pilots of the calibre...

Albatros Aces Of Ww-I Pt2 by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE77Aircraft of the Aces 77Author: Greg VanWyngardenIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this book From September 1916 until late 1918, biplanes from the Albatros firm formed the primary equipment of Germany's fighter forces. Starting with the D I of 1916, these aircraft underwent a continuous programme of development and production to the D Va of late 1917. Albatros fighters reached their zenith of deadly efficiency in the spring of 1917, when...

Allied fighter pilots began encountering German jets - principally the outstanding Me 262 fighter - from the autumn of 1944. Stunned by the aircraft's speed and rate of climb, it took USAAF and RAF units time to work out how to combat this deadly threat as the Luftwaffe targeted the medium and heavy bombers attacking targets across the Reich. A number of high-scoring aces from the Eighth Air Force (Drew, Glover, Meyer, Norley and Yeager, to name but a few) succeeded in claiming Me 262s, Me 163...

About this Osprey Publishing BookThe Japanese High Command realised that the loss of Okinawa would give the Americans a base for the invasion of Japan. Its desperate response was to unleash the full force of the Special Attack Units, known in the west as the Kamikaze (-Divine Wind'). In a series of mass attacks in between April and June 1945, more than 900 Kamikaze aeroplanes were shot down. Conventional fighters and bombers accompanied the Special Attack Units as escorts, and to add their own...

American Aces Of Ww-I by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE42Author: Norman FranksIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookAmerican fliers arriving in Europe from September 1917 brought with them no aircraft. Instead, US units had to obtain machines mainly from the British and French. From early 1918 American pilots were issued with SPAD fighters and they never looked back. As this volume details, the first American trained pilot to become an ace was Lt Douglas Campbell, who shot down five...

Author: Warren ThompsonIllustrator: Chris DaveyAbout this book ? The Americans lagged behind their European contemporaries in military aviation in the late 1930s, and it took the Battle of Britain to awaken America to the necessity of having aircraft that could defend targets against night-time attack by bomber aircraft. This book examines the numerous aircraft types that were used by the US in this role, beginning with the early stop-gap conversions like the TBM Avenger, Lockheed Ventura and...

American Spitfire Aces Ww-Ii by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE80Aircraft of the Aces 80Author: Andrew ThomasIllustrator: Chris DaveyAbout this bookThe first few American volunteers in World War 2 flew Spitfires with the RAF during the Battle of Britain. Many more joined their ranks, often posing as 'Canadians', eventually forming three Eagle squadrons who earned a fierce fighting reputation. When the United States entered the war its fighter sections were issued with Spitfires and eventually the...

American Volunteers Gp Colours by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE41Aircraft of the Aces 41Author: Terrill J ClementsIllustrator: Jim LaurierAbout this bookThe American Volunteer Group, or 'Flying Tigers', have remained the most famous outfit to see action in World War II. Manned by volunteers flying American aircraft acquired from the British, the AVG fought bravely in the face of overwhelming odds in China and Burma prior to the US entry into World War II. Pilots such as 'Pappy' Boyington, R T...

Once Nazi Germany had conquered Norway in 1940, just a handful of Gruppen flying the Bf 109 and Bf 110 fighters were able to shatter all opposition and dominate the air in the Arctic Circle. Yet as the dual threats of the RAF and the Red Air Force grew, the Luftwaffe was forced to increase its fighter presence to full Geschwader strength with the formation of JG 5 Eismeer (Ice-sea) in early 1942.The struggle for the frozen skies of the arctic raged on until the end of the war as the embattled...

Austro-Hungarian Aces Of Ww-I by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE46Aircraft of the Aces 46Author: Chris ChantIllustrator: Mark RolfeAbout this bookStarting the war with only 35 aircraft, Austro-Hungarian industry went on to produce only moderate numbers of poor quality aircraft. The fliers of the Austro-Hungarian Empire operating on the Serbian and Russian fronts were fortunate at first, finding themselves faced by small numbers of aircraft yet more obsolescent than their own. Serbia fell in 1915,...

Author: Paolo VarrialeIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookAustro-Hungarian industry produced a series of poor fighter types such as the Ph_nix D I and Hansa-Brandenburg D I during the early stages of the war, and it was not until licence-built examples of the battle-proven Albatros and D II and D III began to reach Fliegerkompagnien, or Fliks, in May 1917 that the fortunes of pilots began to look up. Unlike the German-built Albatrosen, the Oeffag aircraft were far more robust than German...

Balloon-Busting Aces of World War 1 by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE66Aircraft of the Aces 66Author: Jon GuttmanIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookTethered balloons reached their zenith as a means of providing a stationary observation platform above the battlefield during World War I. It took a special breed of daredevil to take on such odds deep in enemy lines in order to destroy a balloon, with Balloon specialists such as Willy Coppens, Pierre Bourjade and Michel Coiffard rising...

Beaufighter Aces Of Ww-Ii by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE65Aircraft of the Aces 65Author: Andrew ThomasIllustrator: John WealAbout this bookEntering service at the end of the Battle of Britain, the pugnacious Bristol Beaufighter was deployed in numbers by Fighter Command just in time for the start of the Luftwaffe's night 'Blitz' on Britain. Flown by specialised nightfighter squadrons ' several of them elite pre-war Auxiliary Air Force units ' it was the first nightfighter to be equipped with an...

Bf 109 F/G/K Aces of the Western Front by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE29Aircraft of the Aces 29Illustrator: John WealAbout this bookThe follow--on volume to Osprey Aircraft of the Aces 11 - Bf 109D/E Aces 1939-41, this book charts the story of the myriad aces who flew the later marks of Messerschmitt fighter through to VE-Day. As good as the Emil had been during the opening 18 months of the war, the aircraft was being progressively bettered in virtually all aspects of aerial combat by...

Bf-109 Defence Of The Reich Ac by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE68Aircraft of the Aces 68Illustrator: John WealAbout this bookThis volume tells the story of the daylight air battles over Germany through the eyes of the Bf 109 aces involved. It traces the development of the aerial defence of the Reich from its small beginnings to arguably the most savage and costliest campaign in the history of aerial warfare. The Luftwaffe pilots explain their tactics and relate their experiences ' in the early...

Bf-109d/E Aces 1939-41 by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE11About this bookThe period covered in this volume was considered to be the 'glory years' for the Jagdwaffe - fresh from the experience gained in the Spanish Civil War - and for the Bf 109 in particular. Many famous pilots scored their first kills in the classic dogfights staged over Poland, Western Europe, the Channel and finally southern England. Some 40 Knight's Crosses were awarded in 1940 alone. However, after sweeping all before them in...

Brewster F2a Buffalo Aces Ww-2 by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE91 Aircraft of the Aces 91Authors: Kari Stenman Andrew ThomasIllustrator: Chris DaveyAbout this bookAlthough designed and built for the US Navy, the F2A fought in only one major US engagement, the battle of Midway, in which F2A pilots managed to shoot down a number of Japanese fighters. Soon replaced by the navy, the F2A was exported to Britain, where it was nicknamed the -Buffalo- thanks to its stubby appearance. The...

Bristol F2 Fighter Aces Ww-I by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE79Aircraft of the Aces 79Author: Jon GuttmanIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookThis is the history of the best Allied fighter-destroyer of World War I and the pilots who flew it. Numerous ace teams earned the 'Biff' grudging respect from its German opponents, as the crews operated the plane not as a standard two-seater, but as a single-seat with a 'sting in the tail' in the form of a rear gunner with a Lewis machine gun. This book...

British & Empire Aces Of WW I by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE45At the outset of World War I the British had some 110 assorted aircraft, used mostly for the visual reconnaissance role. With the advent of faster and more agile single-seaters, the Allies and their adversaries raced to outdo each other in the creation of genuinely effective fighters with fixed forward-firing machine gun armament. It was not until 1917 that the British developed a truly effective interrupter gear, which...

Corsair Aces Ww-Ii by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE8Aircraft of the Aces 8Illustrator: Mark StylingAbout this bookThe speed with which the Corsair was rushed into service as a land-based fighter obliged the pilots to learn on the job. The aircraft soon proved to be superior to the Japanese Zero and played a major part in the destruction of Japan's elite air forces in the South Pacific. Later, in an effort to counter the Kamikaze threat, the Corsair was once again hurriedly pressed into service;...

Defiant,Blemheim & Havoc Aces, Osprey Publishing Item Number OSPACE105

Dolphin & Snipe Aces Of Ww-I by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE48Aircraft of the Aces 48Author: Norman FranksIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookThis book focuses on the combat careers of the last of the famous Sopwith fighters to enter service during World War 1, the Dolphin and the Snipe, both of which were built on the strong scouting heritage of the Pup and Camel. The Dolphin featured the unique negative-staggered biplane wing arrangement, which provided the pilot with the best possible...

Early German Aces Of Ww-I by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE73Aircraft of the Aces 73Author: Greg VanWyngardenIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookThe Fokker Eindecker (monoplane) started the true age of fighter aviation. With the development of its revolutionary synchronised machine gun system, the Eindecker caused consternation in the ranks of Allied airmen as its pilots began to reap a grim harvest of victims in 1915. The exploits of aces like Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelke became legendary...

F-86 Sabre Aces 4th Fw by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE72Aircraft of the Aces 72Author: Warren ThompsonIllustrator: Mark StylingAbout this bookThe entry of the United State's premier jet interceptor into the Korean War was triggered by the ever-increasing presence of the Soviet-built MiG-15 south of the Yalu River. The possibility of the USAF losing air supremacy over the Korean Peninsula was unacceptable. The 4th Fighter Wing got the call for combat in Korea. They were made up of a combination of...

F-86 Sabre Aces 51st Fg by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE70Aircraft of the Aces 70Author: Warren ThompsonIllustrator: Mark StylingAbout this bookThe 51st Fighter Wing initially flew the F-80C in the Korean War, but in 1951, the 51st brought in high-scoring World War 2 ace Colonel Francis Gabreski to assume command when it converted from the F-80 over to the newly arrived F-86E. His recruits included his elite 4th Wing pilots, and by the end of the war, the 51st had two pilots who achieved the...

About this Osprey Publishing BookThe first VF-2 was a prewar unit that had been dubbed the -hottest outfit afloat' due to the skill of their non-commissioned pilots. This first unit only saw combat at the Battle of the Coral Sea, although VF-2 pilots flying Grumman F4F Wildcats were able to rack up 17 claims there during the bitter 48-hour period of fighting. The second -Fighting Two' was armed with the new Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat fighter. Arriving in Hawaii in October 1943, the squadron so...

About this Osprey Publishing BookVF-9 was activated in March 1942 as part of Carrier Air Group (CAG) 9, one of the many air groups the US Navy was hurriedly forming in the aftermath of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Equipped with Grumman F4F Wildcats, VF-9 first saw combat during the Allied invasion of North Africa in November 1942, where the squadron engaged Vichy French fighters over Morocco. Returning to the United States, VF-9 became one of the first squadrons to receive the Grumman...

Fiat Cr.42 Aces Of Ww-Ii by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE90Authors: Hakan Gustavsson Ludovico SlongoIllustrator: Richard CaruanaAbout this bookThe Fiat CR.42, a logical development of the Fiat CR.32, was the last single-seat fighter biplane to be produced. It entered service with the Italian Regia Aeronautica in May 1939 before being exported to Belgium, Hungary and Sweden. Its combat debut came when the Belgian air force threw its fleet into action during the German invasion of the Low...

Finish Aces Of Ww-Ii by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE23Aircraft of the Aces 23Author: Kari StenmanIllustrator: Mark StylingAbout this bookAlways outnumbered by their Soviet counterparts, the small band of Finnish fighter pilots who defended their Scandinavian homeland from the 'communist hordes' in three separate wars between 1939 and 1945 amassed scores only bettered by the Luftwaffe's Jagdflieger. Initially equipped with a motley collection of biplane and monoplane fighters garnered from sources...

Focke Wulf Fw-190 Aces Russ Fr by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE6Aircraft of the Aces 6Author: John WealIllustrator: Mike ChappellAbout this bookOf all the fronts fought on by the Jagdflieger during World War 2, the Russian, or Eastern, was easily the most lucrative in terms of targets for the experten. Marry an abundance of targets with the Luftwaffe's best piston-engined fighter of the war ' Focke-Wulf's Fw 190 'Butcher Bird' ' and it quickly becomes apparent why so many Jagdflieger achieved...

Focke Wulf Fw-190 Aces West Fr by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE9Aircraft of the Aces 9Author: John WealAbout this bookThe Fw 190 was the scourge of Fighter Command from the moment it appeared on the Western Front at Abbeville in August 1941 with II./JG 26. A nimble, speedy and well-armed adversary, the 'Butcher Bird' quickly proved superior to all Allied fighters of the time, particularly at medium to low altitude. Led by Experten of the calibre of 'Pips' Priller, Heinz Bar and Walter Oesau, the...

Fokker D.Vii Aces Of Ww-I Pt1 by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE53Aircraft of the Aces 53Authors: Greg VanWyngarden Norman FranksIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookDesigned in a great rush at the end of 1917 just in time to take part in the German standard fighter competition held in January/February 1918, the D VII easily walked away with first prize. As Germanys premier fighter unit, von Richthofens JG I (led by Hermann G'ring in the wake of the 'Red Baron's' recent death) received the first...

About this Osprey Publishing BookThe Dutch D.XXIs saw less than a week of action following the German invasion of the west on 10 May 1940, with many of the country's 28 fighters being destroyed on the ground. However, those that survived the initial onslaught inflicted losses on the Luftwaffe. By then, however, the D.XXI had found everlasting fame in Finland during the Winter War of 1939-40. Proving itself a real thorn in the side of the Soviets, the fighter, operating in primitive conditions...

Fokker Dr.1 Aces Of Ww-I by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE40Aircraft of the Aces 40Author: Norman FranksIllustrator: Harry DempseyAbout this bookUndoubtedly the most famous fighter type to see service on either side during World War 1, the Fokker Dr I was a revelation when it entered service on the western front in 1917. Manfred von Richthofen's JG 1 'circus' was the first Jasta to completely re-equip with the new fighter, and in the skilled hands of its numerous aces the Dr I proved a formidable...

Fw 190 Defence of the Reich Aces by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE92Aircraft of the Aces 92About this bookRenowned aviation author and artist, John Weal, presents the last volume of Fw 190 Aces not previously covered in the Aircraft of the Aces series. From mid-1942 until the end of the war, German fighter pilots were deployed in the defence of the homeland in an effort to halt the near-constant bombing raids by Britain and America. This book tells their story, from the moment when the...

Griffon-Spitfire Aces by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE81Aircraft of the Aces 81Author: Andrew Thomasllustrator: Chris DaveyAbout this bookModified for low-level operations to counter Luftwaffe attacks on the south coast, the Griffon-powered Spitfire XIV became the best low-level fighter of World War II. Squadrons moved to south-eastern England to counter the V1 flying bomb offensive, where daring pilots pioneered the technique of tipping the V1 over with the aircraft's wingtip to disorientate the...

Hellcat Aces WW II by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE10Author: Barrett TillmanIllustrator: Mark StylingAbout this bookGrumman's successor to the pugnacious Wildcat, the Hellcat embodied many of the lessons learnt by F4F pilots in the opening months of the Pacific war. Introduced to the fleet in January 1943, and blooded in combat against the Japanese by VF-5 seven months later, the F6F served as the principal US Navy fighter on board carrier decks until VJ-Day. Despite its lethality in the air when...

Hungarian & Bulgarian Aces Ww2 by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPACE50Like Germany, Hungary was forbidden from having an air force following the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the end of World War 1. However, again like Germany, the new state of Hungary created an air arm in secret during the 1930s. Hungarian fighter pilots first saw action against their Slovakian neighbours in early 1939, following the annexation of Czechoslovakia by Germany. In June 1941, Hungarian armed forces...

Hurricane Aces 1939-40 by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE18Aircraft of the Aces 18Author: Tony HolmesIllustrator: Keith FretwellAbout this bookThe Hawker Hurricane was the Raf's first monoplane fighter, and it dragged the air force into a position where it could defend Britain in its 'hour of need'. Prior to the Battle of Britain, a number of squadrons equipped with the fighter had seen action firstly in the 'Phoney War', and then during the disastrous campaign in France. Pilots like 'Cobber' Kain...

Hurricane Aces 1941-45 by OspreyItem Number: OSPACE57Aircraft of the Aces 57Author: Andrew ThomasIllustrator: John WealAbout this bookThe Hurricane saw widespread action with Allied forces, as the RAF's first monoplane fighter. This book describes its many feats throughout 1945. It served as a fighter-bomber on the Channel Front, where the American Eagles and Polish units were amongst the Fighter Command squadrons flying the Hurricane, and where some of its highest-scoring aces operated. The...