Duels in the Sky: World War II Naval Aircraft in Combat PDF
Preview Duels in the Sky: World War II Naval Aircraft in Combat
UELS SKY in the World War II Naval Aircraft Combat in RN Captain Eric M. Brown, DUELS V C|T in the Was the Hellcat a greater fighter than the Zeke? FW TheSpitfirebetterthanthe 190? The Stukaa more effective dive bomber than the Dauntless? Questions such as these have long provoked disputes amongaviationenthusiasts, whotothisdayarguethe meritsofoneWorldWarIIairplaneoveranotherand attempt to relive their phenomenal duels in the sky. Now one of the greatest naval aviators of all time puts these controversies to rest. In this book the Royal Navy's famed test pilot Captain Eric Brown pits various Allied and Axis aircraft against one another in theoretical combat to determine which deservetobecalledthegreatest. Drawing on his own experiences test-flying these planes, Captain Brown evaluates their strengths and weaknesses and in dramatic single-combat scenarios decidesthevictors. Evenpotentiallyclassicduelsthat never occurred—aerial fights between friends and between combatants from different operational theaters—are included in his scenarios. These pages are also filled with valuable technical descriptions and subjective impressions of Allied naval aircraft and their opponents, all put in historical perspective by Captain Brown's fascinating narrative of the air war. Having flown a remarkably wide range ofcap- tured German, Italian, and Japanese combat air- planes, he is able to offer unique insights into the handling characteristics of enemy aircraft. He fol- lows his assessments of individual warplanes with a final, comparative analysis of the top fighters, dive bombers, andtorpedobombers. A highly decoratedWorldWarII fighterpilot him- self, Captain Brown is eminently qualified to write this book. He holds world records for flying the greatest variety ofaircraft (487) and for completing the greatest number of carrier landings (2,400). By applying his extensive technical knowledge to the flight evaluations and combat verdicts presented here, he settles questions that have remained unan- swered fordecades. Jacket painting: The F4U Corsair :uk\ Folke-Wulf 190 intheoretical combat, by Morgan Wilbur BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY Duels in the Sky Duels in the Sky WORLD WAR NAVAL AIRCRAFT IN COMBAT II RN by Captain Eric M. Brown, Naval Institute Press Annapolis, Maryland May 1989 codman square Copyright © 1988 by the United States Naval Institute Allrights reserved. Nopartofthis bookmay be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. LibraryofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Brown, EricMelrose. Duels in the sky. Includes index. 1. Airwarfare. 2. Airplanes, Mili—tary. 3. Naval aviation. 4. WorldWar, 1939-1945 Aerial operations. 5. WorldWar, 1939-1945—Naval operations. I. Title. /UG700.B76 1988 J" 940.54'4 88-15258 ISBN 0-87021-064-7' DesignedbyMoira Megargee Printed in the United States ofAmerica Contents Preface vii Prewar State of the Art 1 1 2 1940: Year of Isolation 29 3 1941: Year of Crisis 46 4 1942: Year of Mixed Fortunes 75 5 1943: The Corner Turned 119 6 1944: Victory in Sight 139 7 1945: Climax 172 8 Theoretical Combat 195 Index 218 Captain Eric M. Brown, R.N., 1969
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