Military aviation (WW 2) - USSR: books - history

Soviet Fighters of the Second World War

The Red Air Force had just started to re-equip with modern monoplane fighters when the Germans opened Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. Hundreds of fighters were destroyed in the first few days, but many of these were obsolete biplanes.

"Soviet Fighters of the Second World War" details fighter development from the dark days of Barbarossa to eventual triumph over Berlin. Starting with outdated aircraft such as the Polikarpov biplane and monoplane fighters, the Soviets then settled on two main lines of development: the inline-engine LaGG-3 and its radial-engine derivatives, the La-5 and La-7, and the inline-engine Yakovlev fighters, which were produced in greater numbers than any other series of fighters in history.

Not only are these aircraft accurately described, but experimental fighters are also dealt with. In addition, colour profiles illustrate these aircraft in terms of design, camouflage and markings. From the I-15bis biplane of the late 1930s to the superb La-7 and Yak-3 fighters of the last year of the war, all Red Air Force fighters are covered in this comprehensive volume.

Soviet Bombers of the Second World War

Soviet bombers were a varied lot during the Second World War, ranging from single-engined biplanes such as the 1920's era Polikarpov U-2 to the excellent and modern twin-engined Tu-2 medium bomber.
Although the use of four-engined strategic bombers was mostly limited to use of the huge Pe-8 bomber, the Soviets used many other aircraft for both strategic and tactical bombing. As the bombers of the Red Air Force were mainly tasked with supporting the Red Army, most of the bombers were used for tactical bombing, attacking tanks, troop convoys, trains, and airfields.

This book will deal with both strategic bombers and tactical bombers, but will concentrate on the smaller tactical bombers, as this is where the Red Air Force's emphasis lay. Such types as the Il-4, the Su-2, the aforementioned Tu-2, and the most important bomber of all, the Il-2 Shturmovik attack bomber, will be described in great detail, including not only details on the aircraft themselves, but how they were deployed in combat.
The one truly strategic bomber, the Pe-8, will not be forgotten, and neither will the comparatively tiny U-2 biplane, which was so effective in its use as a night-time "nuisance" raider that the Germans copied the tactic wholesale.

Accurate colour profiles in some number will accompany the text in this comprehensive work on Soviet bombers.

Die Waffen der Roten Armee - Flugzeuge 1939-1945

Mit diesem Band aus der Reihe »Die Waffen der Roten Armee« wendet sich der russische Militärhistoriker Victor Schunkow den sowjetischen Flugzeugen des Zweiten Weltkriegs zu.
Er bietet einen kompletten Überblick über die Entwicklung der sowjetischen Luftstreitkräfte und der Luftfahrtindustrie in den Vorkriegsjahren und während des Krieges.

In bereits bewährter Art wird jedes Muster mit einer kurzen Entstehungsgeschichte und Beschreibung des Entwurfs nebst technischen Angaben vorgestellt.
Ein eigenes Kapitel beschäftigt sich mit der umfangreichen Flugzeugbewaffnung. Farbgrafiken und seltene Fotos runden die Darstellung ab.

Lend-Lease and Soviet Aviation in the Second World War

In Russia, the American Bell P-39 Airacobra fighter along with the Studebaker US6 truck and canned stewed meat became the symbols of Allied help to the USSR during the Second World War. Other aircraft which arrived to the country under the Lend-Lease program are less known but also made a valuable contribution to the victory.
The author of this book for the first time has assembled a huge volume of information related to the delivery of aviation equipment from UK and USA. Based on documents from Russian and foreign archives, museums, and veterans' recollections, the author has made a qualitative and quantitative appraisal of the influence of these deliveries upon the Soviet war effort and airpower during the conflict.

The book details the routes of the aircraft deliveries to Russia, the modifications which were done in order to suit the demands of the Russian climate and specifics of their front-line use, as well as the process of the new aircraft being mastered by the units of the Red Army Air Force.

For the first time an attempt has been made to assess the influence of the deliveries of material and equipment upon the Soviet aviation industry and war effort. The author's impressive text is supported by nearly 700 colour and b/w photographs, 100 colour aircraft profiles, plus maps, charts etc.