Me 262 - Volume Two
Smith, J. Richard - Creek, Eddie J.
In this, the second volume of their unprecedented study of the Messerschmitt Me 262, internationally renowned authors, J.Richard Smith and Eddie J.Creek have drawn on more than thirty years of unrivalied research to continue the story of the worid's first operational military jet aircraft.
This book examines the impact the Me 262 made upon the course of the European air war following its operational debut with Erprobungskommando 262 in the summer of 1944. This extraordinary new aircraft was a vital element to a possible revival of Nazi Germany's flagging war effort for as Hitler told his generals before the Normandy invasion: "Every month that passes makes it more probable that we will get at least one Gruppe of jet aircraft. The most important thing is that the enemy get some bombs on top of them as they try to invade... If we can pin them on the beaches for just six to eight hours, you can see what that will mean to us..." Indeed, as one senior Allied air commander warned in June, 1944: "German jets could wash away our air superiority tomorrow and give the Luftwaffe an immense advantage..."
Using the frank and concise personal reports of Messerschmitt's front-line inspectors, as well as combat reports and other eye-witness accounts, the authors reveal the later tactical successes and failures of the aircraft as it was deployed in both the fighter role with Kommando Nowotny and in the bomber role with Kommando Schenk and KG 51 over the western front in the autumn of 1944.
Also included is an in-depth look at the array of ingenious and formidable weapons systems designed for the aircraft as well as detailed descriptions of the projected rocket-powered interceptor, BMW-engined and heavily armed and armoured variants.
With 370 photographs - many never before published - together with more than thirty high-precision technical scale drawings plus 30 full-colour interpretations and biographies of many of the military personalities associated with the early operations of the aircraft, this study is unquestionably the most comprehensive account of the Me 262 ever written. It will be an essential requirement for both students of early jet aircraft development and all those with an interest in the history of military aviation.
[Volume One of this work covers the design, development and testing of the Me 262. Successive volumes of this work will cover the remaining operational history and further development of the Me 262.]
Hardcover with dust jacket, large format
ca. 120 Seiten / pages
many photos, drawings and illustrations, some in color
very good condition
Burgess Hill, West Sussex, UK - 1998 - Classic Publications
Art.Nr. 24316
