P-38 Lightning Aces of the ETO/MTO

P-38 Lightning Aces of the ETO/MTO

Aircraft of the Aces - Vol 19 - Paperback - 96 pages

The P-38 made its combat debut in Europe in mid-1942, the first American fighters being flown to the UK before heading further east to Twelfth Air Force units in North Africa. Its service in this theatre, and later over the heartland of Germany itself, earned the P-38 the nickname 'der gabelschwanzer Teufel' (the 'fork-tailed' devil). This volume traces the careers of many previously unknown aces within the USAAF in Europe, and helps redress the balance which has in the past seen all the 'glory' for the fighter victories in this theatre shared between the pilots of the P-47 and P-51. Some 17 pilots scored 7 or more kills on the P-38 in the ETO/MTO.

Contents

Introduction

Pioneer P-38 Aces

Desert War

Mediterranean War

Eighth and Ninth Air Force Aces

Ground Claims

Appendices

Author: John Stanaway

Illustrator: Tom Tullis