Zemke's Wolf Pack
The Story of Hub Zemke and the 56th Fighter
Group in the Skies over Europe
Freeman, Roger A.
Under the tenacious and inspired leadership of Colonel Hub Zemke, the U.S. Eighth Air Force's elite 56th Fighter Group emerged as the most successful American fighter unit in Europe. Flying red-nosed P-47 Thunderbolts, the group scored more aerial victories than any other in this theater, its aggressive leader himself downing nineteen German aircraft.
After a brief stint in Russia teaching the Soviets to fly the new Curtiss P-40, Zemke arrived in England in September 1942 to take over the 56th Fighter Group known as the "Wolf Pack." His squadron was assigned to escort the bombers of the Eighth Air Force going up against heavy concentrations of German fighters in their raids into the heart of Germany. Never a man to court favor, Zemke was frequentfy at odds with bis superiors over the best method of doing his job. But the flight disciplines and tactics he evolved, whether flying bomber escort duties or strafing ground targets after D-Day, made him an outstanding leader whose high personal standards also caused him to require equally stringent standards of the men who flew with him. A respected and trusted (if not always liked) leader, these traits were again evident when he became Senior Allied Officer in Stalag Luft l after his aircraft disintegrated in a storm and he was captured.
An extraordinary man both in the air and on the ground, Hub Zemke's classic story is one that will fascinate both military history buffs and general readers alike.
ROGER A. FREEMAN is the author of eighteen books on World War II aviation, and specializes in American Air Force history and aircraft. Currently a governor of the American Library at Norwich, he is also a director of fhe Eighth Air Force Memorial Museum Foundation. He, his wife, and their three children live in Dedham, Essex, England.
Hardcover with dust jacket
243 Seiten / pages
many photos
good condition, dust jacked with some tears, one label torne of from an empty front page
New York - 1989 - Crown Publishers
Art.Nr. 23458
