Aircraft (WW 2) - Germany - Luftwaffe: Illustrated History Books & Guides (1/2)

The Last Year of the Luftwaffe : May 1944 to May 1945

The classic story of a once all-conquering force struggling to stave off an inevitable and total defeat. This superbly written book gives a complete account of Luftwaffe operations during the last twelve months of the fighting in Europe - including the dramatic Bodenplatte (or 'Baseplate') offensive over the Ardennes in December 1944.

In this comprehensive examination of Hitler's air force, Dr Alfred Price examines its state from May 1944 to May 1945, analysing not only the forces available to it, but also the likely potential, and impact, of new aircraft and weapons systems. He also assesses the Luftwaffe's High Command's performance and the effect of Allied attacks and operations.

In doing so he rejects a number of long-standing myths, clarifies the impact of the jet and rocket fighters, and demonstrates that the Luftwaffe performed as well as could be expected under the harsh circumstances of fighting a losing war.

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Captured Eagles - Secrets of the Luftwaffe

The growth in size, lethality, and technology of the German Luftwaffe was of concern to some defense planners in the United States before American entry into the war. Learning about the Luftwaffe became a significant effort once the conflict broke out in Europe.
From defectors with German aircraft to battlefield trophies and combat crew reports, the race to understand German aero technology took on sometimes heroic proportions.

After the war, German technology infused American aerospace developments in many ways: German ribbon parachutes were evaluated for high-speed bailouts; sweptwing leading edge slat technology benefited the F-86 Sabre; overall comprehension of sweptwing benefits to fast jet aircraft was validated; pulse jet V1s and supersonic V2 rockets boosted American drone weapon, ballistic missile, and space exploration efforts.

In this volume Frederick A. Johnsen traces that path of discovery.

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Foreign Planes in the Service of the Luftwaffe

No airforce in the Second World War would make more use of captured planes than the Luftwaffe. With this in mind, Jean-Louis Roba has undergone a considerable amount of work in tracking down hundreds of aircraft used by the Luftwaffe and illustrating their uses, careers and eventual fates.

The book examines the full history of foreign planes in the Luftwaffe, from its inception in the prewar years to the end of the Second World War. More than just an account of the Luftwaffe's use of captured aircraft, the book debunks myths about how prepared the Germans were for war in 1939, and shows how important even such an unreliable source of supplies as captured planes would become to the Luftwaffe.

Translated into English for the first time, Roba's investigative work is supported by over a hundred pictures of the planes themselves, and gives a rare opportunity to see British and American planes repainted in German colours and symbols.

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Küstenflieger - The Operational History of the German Naval Air Service 1935-1944

The impact of the Treaty of Versailles on the build-up of German forces in the interwar period and the influence of Hermann Göring greatly influenced the design, capability and size of the Küstenfliegergruppen. While Germany operated seaplanes throughout the war, the Kriegsmarine's naval air arm was constantly under threat from the Luftwaffe.

This book covers the history of the German naval air arm between the two World Wars as well as unit histories for the major Küstenfliegergruppen during the Second World War.
In 1944, the last Küsenfliegerstaffeln was disbanded in favour of the Luftwaffe's own naval air units. Covering operational histories, the title also looks at the involvement of various Sonderkommandos during the war, but also in the Spanish Civil War. The book also covers the camouflage and marking systems of the Küstenfliegergruppen prior to and during the Second World War. tried to blow him up with RPGs.

"Küstenflieger: The Operational History of the German Naval Air Service 1935-1944" is a must for military historians, modellers and those fascinated in the Second World War on an more obscure but heavily engaged Luftwaffe unit. Also, the book contains many unpublished photographs and memoirs making it highly collectable.

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Luftwaffe in Colour : From Glory to Defeat 1942-1945 (Volume 2)

Eighty years after its creation, the Luftwaffe is still one of the most fascinating forces in the history of aviation. A companion to Luftwaffe in Colour Volume 1, which covered the victory years from 1939 up to Spring 1942, this volume with nearly 400 images contains even more fascinating material on the machines of the Luftwaffe and the men who flew them, as their fate took an increasingly grim path.

Initially the Luftwaffe ruled the skies but thereafter fought an increasingly futile war of attrition which when combined with vital strategic mistakes in aircraft production, was its death knell.

Despite this the Luftwaffe produced the most successful air aces of all time who feature in this volume. Among many remarkable images we see one of the last Junkers 87 B-2 operational on the front line on the Eastern Front during the winter of 1942-1943, the huge BV 222 V-5 of Lufttransportstaffel in the port of Heraklion in late 1942, pilots in Tunisia in 1943, the aces Hans Philipp, Wolfgang Spate and Heinz Schnaufer and a vivid demonstration of the reversal in fortunes in 1944 as Allied bombers destroy 106 places, engulfing them in fire at Schwabisch-Hall on German soil.

In this painstakingly pieced together collection, originally published in France, the full detail behind the propaganda is once more revealed, in rare colour photographs.

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Luftwaffe Over Germany - Defense of the Reich

Definitive guide to the German air defense system until its collapse in 1945. It tells the story of one of the longest and most intense air battles in history. The daylight air struggles over Germany during World War II involved thousands of aircraft, dozens of units, and hundreds of aerial engagements.
Until now, there has been no single book that covers the complete story, from the highest levels of air strategy to the individual tales of Fw 190s, Bf 109s and Me 262s in air combat against the American bomber streams.

This ground-breaking work explores the detrimental effect of Luftwaffe theory and doctrine on the German air arms ability to defend the homeland once the Allied Combined Bomber Offensive began in earnest. By mid-1944, they had lost the battle - but had exacted a terrible price from the Americans in the process.

The product of a ten-year collaboration between two noted Luftwaffe historians, this work fills a major gap in the literature of World War II. The authors have examined original war diaries, logbooks, doctrine manuals, after-action reports, and interviews with many combat veterans to produce a richly detailed account. Illustrated with nearly two hundred photographs, as well as new maps and diagrams, this is the standard work on the subject.

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Phoenix - A Complete History of the Luftwaffe 1918-1945 (Volume 1) - The Phoenix is Reborn 1918-1934

The Phoenix Project presents an exhaustive historical account of the German Luftwaffe during World War II, meticulously researched over four decades. Beyond recounting famous air battles, this work extensively utilizes original documents, secondary sources, and contemporary accounts to provide a comprehensive understanding of the Luftwaffe's multifaceted operations.

Covering all theaters of the war, the project particularly underscores the Luftwaffe's critical role in the Eastern Front, an arena of paramount importance for the Wehrmacht. The narrative places Luftwaffe activities within the broader context of military operations, restoring its relevance in the larger European conflict.

Volume 1, "The Phoenix Reborn," sheds light on the overlooked period from the post-war Reichswehr to the unveiling of the Luftwaffe in 1935. It delves into the development of the distinct German concept of "operativer Luftkrieg," the covert air staff's efforts, and the roles played by the German Transport Ministry and the Flight Centre Lipetsk in aircraft development and aviator training. This volume reveals how Goring and Hitler inherited a pre-existing air arm, the result of 15 years of clandestine military professionalism.

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Phoenix - A Complete History of the Luftwaffe 1918-1945 (Volume 2) : The Genesis of Air Power 1935-1937

Based on forty years of detailed research, Phoenix - A Complete History of the Luftwaffe 1918-1945 is a unique history of the wartime German Luftwaffe. Going far beyond a simple description of famous air battles and operations, the overall work draws extensively on original documents, secondary sources and contemporary accounts to place the Luftwaffe within its proper historical context.

Volume 2: The Phoenix Matures 1935-1937 covers a still neglected area, namely the early years of post-Reichswehr development from March 1935. During this period the concept of operativer Luftkrieg was formalised, operational commands established, new units and bases created, new equipment introduced and the training of personnel expanded.
Key studies include: the formation of the Flakartillerie, the Luftwaffe General Staff, Luftwaffe uniforms, the construction programme of 1935-39, the development and production of new combat aircraft and weapons, flying training, the Luftwaffen-Reserve, the supply organisation, the development of the Regiment General Goring and the re-militarisation of the Rhineland.

In addition the Luftwaffe's involvement in Spain is considered in depth from initial operations by the German volunteers to the deployment of the Legion Condor in the battles around Madrid and on the Northern Front.

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The Luftwaffe : A Complete History, 1933-45

For long after the Second World War, the enduring popular image of the Luftwaffe was that of the howling, diving Ju 87 Stuka - a symbol of the impressive, fearsome and aggressive art of Hitler's Blitzkrieg; of mighty air power.
The Luftwaffe which emerged in 1933 made Europe tremble but it was a giant whose feet were made of clay. Against weaker nations the Luftwaffe triumphed in many early theatres of the war - in Spain, Poland, France, the Low Countries and the Balkans; but the weaknesses of its leadership and industrial base soon became apparent during the Battle of Britain.

After brief triumphs in the Mediterranean, the Luftwaffe reluctantly turned eastward, but the crusade against Bolshevism quickly exposed yet more fragility - in aircraft, strength and logistics - and, as the Germans began to retreat, the Luftwaffe came under threat on all fronts.
In its final year, from May 1944, the Luftwaffe was a spent force, capable only of Tactical air missions, or in desperate defence of the threatened homeland, albeit with very advanced aircraft, such as the jet-powered Me 262.

This scholarly history provides detailed insights into the dramatic rise and fall of Hitler's airforce, at one time the most formidable ever. It examines the issue of leadership and the personalities which were responsible for the victories and the failures.
There is detailed analysis of the campaigns in which the Luftwaffe fought, with fresh perspectives on the Battle of Britain, the air defence of Germany and much new material about the air war on the Eastern Front and anti-shipping campaigns.
"Luftwaffe - A Study in Air Power" is based on exhaustive research conducted in archives around the world. It provides an insightful and radical reassessment of the Luftwaffe and forms an essential reference work.

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The Luftwaffe in Colour : The Victory Years 1939-1942

This remarkable work pulls the lid off one of the legendary air forces in history at the very peak of its power-unveiling the and machines as they truly existed day-to-day, underneath the propaganda of their own regime and the scare stories of their enemies.

In Hitler's Germany, colour photography was primarily co-opted for state purposes, such as the military publication Signal, or the Luftwaffe's own magazine, Der Adler (Eagle). But a number of men had cameras of their own, and in this painstakingly acquired collection, originally published in France, we can witness true life on Germany's airfields during the period of the Luftwaffe's ascendancy.

Thus not only do we see famous planes such as the Me-109, Ju-87 or He-111, but the wide variety of more obscure types with which the Germans began the war. The array of Arados, Dorniers, Heinkels - not to mention elegant 4-engine Condors - that were initially employed in the war are here in plain sight and full colour, providing not only an insight into WWII history but a model maker's dream.

Just as fascinating are the shots of the airmen themselves, along with their groundcrews - full of confidence and cheer as they bested every other air force in Europe during these years, with the single exception of the RAF's Fighter Command in late-summer 1940. But that was no big stumbling block to the Luftwaffe, which had bigger fish to fry in Russia and North Africa the following year.

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The Luftwaffe: A History

John Killen's exhaustive work is a study of German air power between 1915 and 1945, from the early days of flying when Immelmann, Boelke, Richtofen and other First World War aces fought and died to give Germany air supremacy, to the nightmare existence of the Luftwaffe as the Third Reich plunged headlong to destruction.

Here are the aircraft: the frail biplanes and triplanes of the Kaiser's war; the great Lufthansa aircraft and airships of the turbulent Thirties; the monoplanes designed to help Hitler in his conquest of Europe.
Here are the generals who forged the air weapon of the Luftwaffe - the swaggering Goering, the playboy Udet, the ebullient Kesselring and the scapegoat Jeschonnek; here, too, are the pilots who tried to keep faith with their Fatherland despite overwhelming odds; Adolf Galland, Werner Molders, Joachim Marseille and Hanna Reitsch.

Not least are the actions fought by the Luftwaffe from the Spanish Civil War to the Battle of Britain, through the bloody struggle for Crete and the siege of Stalingrad to the fearful twilight over Berlin.

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War Prizes - Captured German, Italian and Japanese Aircraft of WWII

This book is a meticulously researched review of the many German, Italian and Japanese aircraft taken to Allied countries or flown by the Allies during or after the Second World War. The hsitory of these captured aircraft has been extensively researched and the book is copiously illustrated by an unrivalled selection of around 500 photographs, gleaned from around the world.

The book's chapters are devoted to chronological themes describing the individual histories of each aircraft and the units which flew them in the USA or France or in specific theatres of war, with a final chapter covering the use made of aircraft in other countries.
Coverage includes civilian aircraft and sailplanes as well as military types; post-war production of German designs and details of surviving aircraft in museums. Appendices and indexes cover designation and marking systems, information sources and other useful background.

The UK chapters include coverage of RAF Farnborough, 1426 (EA) Flight, individual squadrons, experimental organisations and manufacturers, the ATAIU in Malaya and the little-known Gremlin Task Force.
US chapters deal with evaluation at Wright Field, Freeman Field and in Europe by Watson's Whizzers, by the US Navy TAIC at Anacostia, ATAIUs in Australia and the Phillippines and many individual units.
The book also includes the most complete record published of British 'Air Min' and USAAF 'FE' and 'T2' aircraft numbering systems.

This new edition of an acclaimed title first published nearly thirty years ago has been fully revised and updated. The opportunity has been taken to use modern technology to improve the quality of the images and many new photos uncovered since the original publication have been included.

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Wings of the Luftwaffe - Flying the Captured German Aircraft of World War II

During more than two decades of uninterrupted flying Eric 'Winkle' Brown enjoyed the most extraordinary career of any test pilot and no pilot has a logbook with list a greater variety of aircraft types flown.
The first naval officer to head the élite Aerodynamics Flight at the world renowned Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, `Winkle` Brown fulfilled his childhood ambition to fly German aircraft. Indeed, he was to fly no fewer than fifty-five individual German aircraft types, ranging from such exotic creations as the push-and-pull Dornier Do 335 and the remarkable little Heinkel He 162 Volksjager to the highly innovative combat types that were entering the inventory of the Luftwaffe shortly before the demise of Germany's Third Reich.
'Winkle' Brown also interrogated many of the leading German wartime aviation personalities, such as Willy Messerschmitt, Ernst Heinkel, Kurt Tank and Hanna Reitsch.

From his unique knowledge of German aviation, 'Winkle' Brown has selected the most important and most promising aircraft employed by the Luftwaffe and those evolved for that air arm in Germany during World War II - the true wings of the Luftwaffe.
He describes their background and characteristics, and together with over 200 photographs, colour profiles and sectional drawings provides an in-depth assessment of the contribution made to the annals of military aviation in the late 1930s and early 1940s by an aircraft industry that proved itself truly second to none in ingenuity.

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Berühmte Flugzeuge der Luftwaffe 1939-1945 - Berichte eines Testpiloten

This book is truly something special: It was written by the then Chief Pilot of the Royal Navy, Eric Brown, who flew and evaluated 55 different captured German aircraft shortly after the end of the war.
Through his contacts with German designers, Brown obtained extensive background material. The result is this book, in which the development, characteristics and technology of the most famous German aircraft are described.

Pages of the book "Berühmte Flugzeuge der Luftwaffe 1939-1945 - Berichte eines Testpiloten"

The vivid descriptions, photos and meaningful cross-sections make the book a must for anyone interested in German aircraft of the Second World War.

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