Mighty Eighth, The(ISBN=9780440226482)pdf/txt下载_在线阅读全文

内容简介

　　Until World War II aircraft had played only a minor role incombat, but with the RAF and Luftwaffe fiercely dueling in theBattle of Britain it was apparent that air superiority would be thedeciding factor in the war. The Eighth Air Force quickly grew fromits first modest effort into the mightiest aerial armada inhistory, eventually launching thousand-plane raids. WhileFortresses and Liberators attacked factories, fuel supplies, andtransportation networks, Lightnings, Thunderbolts, and Mustangsshot enemy fighters from the skies.
　　But the road to victory was paved with sacrifice. From itsinaugural mission on July 4, 1942, until V-E Day, the Eighth AirForce lost more men than did the entire United States Marine Corpsin all its campaigns in the Pacific. The Mighty Eighth chroniclesthe testimony of the pilots, bombardiers, navigators, and gunnerswho daily put their lives on the line. Their harrowing accountsrecall the excitement and terror of dogfights against Nazi aces,maneuvering explosive-laden aircraft through deadly flak barrages,and fending off waves of enemy fighters while coping with subzerotemperatures.

Until World War II aircraft had played only a minor role in
combat, but with the RAF and Luftwaffe fiercely dueling in the
Battle of Britain it was apparent that air superiority would be the
deciding factor in the war. The Eighth Air Force quickly grew from
its first modest effort into the mightiest aerial armada in
history, eventually launching thousand-plane raids. While
Fortresses and Liberators attacked factories, fuel supplies, and
transportation networks, Lightnings, Thunderbolts, and Mustangs
shot enemy fighters from the skies. 
　　But the road to victory was paved with sacrifice. From its
inaugural mission on July 4, 1942, until V-E Day, the Eighth Air
Force lost more men than did the entire United States Marine Corps
in all its campaigns in the Pacific. The Mighty Eighth chronicles
the testimony of the pilots, bombardiers, navigators, and gunners
who daily put their lives on the line. Their harrowing accounts
recall the excitement and terror of dogfights against Nazi aces,
maneuvering explosive-laden aircraft through deadly flak barrages,
and fending off waves of enemy fighters while coping with subzero
temperatures.
　　Beginning with the opening salvos from a mere dozen planes,
crewmen describe the raids on Berlin and Dresden, the fiasco at
Ploesti, Romania, and Black Thursday over Schweinfurt. They fell to
the terror of seeing aircraft destroyed--helplessly watching as
comrades crash and burn, or parachute over enemy territory, where
they will attempt to evade enemy capture through the underground.
Others tell of mourning downed airmen murdered by vengeful citizens
and soldiers, and of those who endured captivity in POW camps.

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作者简介

　　Gerald Astor is a World War II veteran and award-winning journalist and historian whose articles have appeared in The New York Times, Playboy, and Esquire. He is also the author of A Blood-Dimmed Tide: The Battle of the Bulge by the Men Who Fought It and Operation Iceberg: The Invasion and Conquest of Okinawa in World War II. He makes his home in Scarsdale, New York.

目　　录

　　Great reading.
　　--Stephen Ambrose

　　"Bold, brawny, epic in scope...Astor captures the fire and passion of these tens of thousands of U.S. airmen who flew through the inferno that was the bomber war over Europe."
　　--Stephen Coonts -- Review

Mighty Eighth, The(ISBN=9780440226482)

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