This final volume of a new three-part series examines the dizzying aerial exploits that shaped the war in the air. Discover: - Why the Spitfire nearly missed the Battle of Britain - The inside story behind the famous Dambusters raid - How kamikaze pilots prepared for their fateful missions
Great Battles of WW2: War in the Air
WELCOME
DANGEROUS NEW HEIGHTS • Speaking from the backbenches, Winston Churchill spent the early 1930s bemoaning Britain’s lack of power in the air. As rumours of Nazi Germany’s growing aerial capabilities swirled, parliament finally began to heed his call, says Gavin Mortimer
TAKING TO THE SKIES
HOW THE SPITFIRE NEARLY MISSED ITS FINEST HOUR • Adored by its pilots and feared by the Germans, the Spitfire is rightly seen as the greatest British fighter ever built. However, as Leo McKinstry reveals, bureaucratic bungling meant that this iconic aircraft nearly remained on the ground
TIMELINE The making of an icon
THE FORMIDABLE FEW • The Battle of Britain has long been hailed as the triumph of the plucky underdog over the Nazi goliath. Yet, says James Holland, when rival fighters clashed over England in 1940, it was the RAF that held all the aces
WHERE THE GERMANS WENT WRONG • Ten reasons why the Luftwaffe didn’t stand a chance of beating the RAF in 1940
THE FLYING HELL-RAISERS • Living in close proximity to the civilian population enabled the Battle of Britain pilots to be warriors by day and playboys by night. Martin Francis reveals how they drank, danced and fell in love
BACK DOWN TO EARTH • As the summer waned, so did the hedonism
WHEN WOMEN FLEW SPITFIRES • Giles Whittell shares the stories of three intrepid women who flew the RAF’s legendary fighter and helped blaze a trail for female pilots in Britain
THE VIEW FROM BELOW • The Battle of Britain was a time of fear, excitement and danger for those on the ground as well as in the skies. Brett Holman takes up the story
A HOSTILE RECEPTION • How Britons greeted downed German pilots
Out of sight
THE MAKING AND BREAKING OF THE LUFTWAFFE • Feared, reviled and revered, few military organisations have carried a reputation quite like the Luftwaffe did during the Second World War. Victoria Taylor reveals how the Nazis shaped this formidable air force – and the reckless mistakes that underpinned its demise
FIVE PLANES THAT DEFINED THE LUFTWAFFE • From jet fighters to dive bombers, these aircraft helped heighten the Luftwaffe’s fearsome reputation in the skies
Melitta Schiller von Stauffenberg (1903–45) • Few women – and only one with Jewish ancestry – flew for the German Third Reich. Clare Mulley tells the story of a groundbreaking engineer, test pilot and anti-Nazi patriot
FIGHT AND FLIGHT
THE DANGERS OF THE BLITZ SPIRIT • The stoicism of the British people in response to the Luftwaffe raids of 1940–41 is seen as heroic, but their defiance resulted in needless deaths. Richard Overy reveals why civilians were surprisingly brazen about the bombs
WHEN HELL RAINED DOWN ON HAWAII • The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor shocked the United States, transforming what had previously been a neutral nation that embraced isolationism into one that was baying for war. Gavin Mortimer revisits the explosive episode
POWER TO THE PEOPLE • The Japanese believed that attacking Pearl Harbor would obliterate American morale – but it had the opposite effect
BOMBER BOYS • Patrick Bishop tells the story of Britain’s bombing offensive against Germany, and explains why the controversial campaign was a case of good men being asked to do a very ugly job
IN SEARCH OF SUPERIORITY • How Britain’s bombs left Germany overstretched
Blazing a trail
THE TRIUMPH OF THE DAMBUSTERS •...
