Osprey Aircraft of the Aces SC (1994) comic books 2006
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Issue #68-1ST
$12.00
Volume 68 - 1st printing. "Bf 109 Defence of the Reich Aces!" Art by John Weal. This volume tells the story of the daylight air battles over Germany through the eyes of the Bf 109 aces involved. It traces the development of the aerial defence of the Reich from its small beginnings to arguably the most savage and costliest campaign in the history of aerial warfare. The Luftwaffe pilots explain their tactics and relate their experiences – in the early days, waiting for short-ranged Allied fighters to turn back before attacking the bombers, the see-saw battle for aerial supremacy that followed, the advent of the P-51 and its devastating effect, the growing might of the heavy bomber streams and the final desperate measures against overwhelming odds. The story is predominantly that of the Bf 109's struggle to defeat the US Eighth Air Force, although latterly both the 'mediums' of the US Ninth Air Force and the 'heavies' of RAF Bomber Command were also active by day over Germany. Softcover, 96 pages, PC/PB&W. Cover price $22.95.
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Issue #70-1ST
$12.00
$12.00
Volume 70 - 1st printing. "F-86 Sabre Aces of the 51st Fighter Wing!" Written by Warren Thompson. Art by Mark Styling. The 51st Fighter Wing initially flew the F-80C in the Korean War, but in 1951, the 51st brought in high-scoring World War 2 ace Colonel Francis Gabreski to assume command when it converted from the F-80 over to the newly arrived F-86E. His recruits included his elite 4th Wing pilots, and by the end of the war, the 51st had two pilots who achieved the status of "Double Ace" as well as the highest scoring ace of the war, Joe McConnell. This book describes the 51st Wing's tenure with the Sabre that led to their high scoring sprees of 1953. Softcover, 96 pages, PC/PB&W. Cover price $22.95.
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Issue #72-1ST
$12.00
Volume 72 - 1st printing. "F-86 Sabre Aces of the 4th Fighter Wing!" Written by Warren Thompson. Art by Mark Styling. The entry of the United State's premier jet interceptor into the Korean War was triggered by the ever-increasing presence of the Soviet-built MiG-15 south of the Yalu River. The possibility of the USAF losing air supremacy over the Korean Peninsula was unacceptable. The 4th Fighter Wing got the call for combat in Korea. They were made up of a combination of new pilots right out of jet training and the older combat veterans of World War II vintage. This combination of pilot types wrote and re-wrote the text books on jet warfare. Of the 40 jet aces that the war produced, the 4th Wing boasted 24 of them. This book details these incredible pilots and the planes they flew. Softcover, 96 pages, PC/PB&W. Cover price $22.95.
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Issue #74-1ST
$12.00
$12.00
Volume 74 - 1st printing. "Soviet Lend-Lease Fighter Aces of World War 2!" Written by George Mellinger. Art by Jim Laurier. By the end of 1941 the Soviet Union was near collapse and its air force almost annihilated, leaving large numbers of surviving pilots with no aircraft to fly. To help prevent this collapse the UK eventually supplied a total of 4300 Hurricanes and Spitfires to the USSR. After the United States entered the war, the Americans extended Lend-lease to include direct supply to the Soviets as well as the British, and among the aircraft sent were almost 10,000 fighters. Although the aircraft were outdated and often unsuitable to Russian conditions, they served when they were needed, and a number of Russian pilots became Heroes of the Soviet Union flying Lend-lease aircraft. The Soviet government tried to conceal or minimize the importance of Lend-lease fighters well into the 1980s, and the pilots who flew them were discriminated against as 'foreigners'. Only in recent years have these pilots felt free to admit what they flew, and now the fascinating story of these men can emerge. Softcover, 96 pages, PC/PB&W. Cover price $22.95.
