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Cargando... Unsung Eagles: True Stories of America’s Citizen Airmen in the Skies of World War IIpor Jay A. Stout
   Ninguno Actualmente no hay Conversaciones sobre este libro.  evil_cyclist | Mar 16, 2020 |  sin reseñas | añadir una reseña
The nearly half-million American aircrewmen who served during World War II have almost disappeared. And so have their stories. Award-winning writer and former fighter pilot Jay A. Stout uses Unsung Eagles to save an exciting collection of those accounts from oblivion. These are not rehashed tales from the hoary icons of the war. Rather, they are stories from the masses of largely unrecognised men who--in the aggregate--actually won it. They are the recollections of your Uncle Frank who shared them only after having enjoyed a beer or nine, and of your old girlfriend's grandfather who passed away about the same time she dumped you. And of the craggy guy who ran the town's salvage yard; a dusty, fly-specked B-24 model hung over the counter. These are "everyman" accounts that are important but fast disappearing. Ray Crandall describes how he was nearly knocked into the Pacific by a heavy cruiser's main battery during the Second Battle of the Philippine Sea. Jesse Barker--a displaced dive-bomber pilot--tells of dodging naval bombardments in the stinking mud of Guadalcanal. Bob Popeney relates how his friend and fellow A-20 pilot was blown out of formation by German antiaircraft fire: "I could see the inside of the airplane--and I could see Nordstrom's eyes. He looked confused...and then immediately he flipped up and went tumbling down." The combat careers of 22 different pilots from all the services are captured in this crisply written book which captivates the reader not only as an engaging oral history, but also puts personal context into the great air battles of World War II. REVIEWS: The combat careers of 22 pilots from all services are captured in this crisply written book. It is an engaging history that gives a personal context to the great air battles of World War Two. -Flypast Magazine SELLING POINTS: The combat careers of 22 different pilots from all the services are captured in this crisply written book which captivates the reader 24 pages of illustrations No se han encontrado descripciones de biblioteca. |
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 Google Books — Cargando...GénerosSistema Decimal Melvil (DDC)940.5426History and Geography Europe Europe 1918- Military History Of World War II Campaigns and battles by theatre PacificClasificación de la Biblioteca del CongresoValoraciónPromedio: (4.25)
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Unsung Eagles gave me three surprises. First, looking at the cover I thought another book about the Army Air Corps in Europe. It's not. Stout covers both theaters and Army, Navy, and Marine pilots. Second, I thought its going to cover famous raids. Again, no. The book covers a wide variety missions and none that stood out as famous air battles or bombing missions. The third surprise came after the realization of the first two surprises. Who would write about the “average Joe” pilot? Who else but a Marine. Of course, I am a bit biased in that last statement.
Unsung Eagles does what few war time books have done. It highlights the men who joined the war to fight. Men who left their homes and families and signed up, not the professional airmen. Many joined, and when the war was over quietly went on back to the civilian world leaving the military behind. These are the men whose uniforms are put away deep in a closet and never talk about the war except when prodded after a few beers. Twenty-two such pilots have their stories told in this fast paced history. The stories told, show all sides of the war from good deployments with plenty of support to cannibalizing planes to keep as many flying as possible. One absolutely amazing story is of a USAAF bomber pilot found himself flying in the dark behind two Japanese bombers and followed them in their landing pattern. The Japanese mistakenly assumed that the American was one of their own and proceeded to land. As the Japanese landed the American dropped his bombs on the Japanese planes and runway.
Unsung Heroes tells some fine stories of American pilots who you probably never heard of, flying missions that aren't in very many history books, but still were very important in the Allied war effort. There were over a half million aircrewmen who served in World War II. This is a staggering number, it is more than twice the number of Marines serving when I was on active duty. Unsung Eagles is an outstanding history, and a personal history too. It is a reminder that not everyone who flew is recorded in history and that many who served then and now made important contributions that few will ever know about. Very well done. Semper Fi, Colonel. (