Review
All of Mr. Spick's books are wonderful. I have enjoyed some of them several times. This work adds color and depth to the histories of the Luftwaffe that he has already written. For the serious student of the Luftwaffe, Mr. Spick is "the man". If he writes it - I buy it. --Carl D. Todd
In Flight USA, October 2006“Author Spick’s work explores one of the interesting questions of World War II: Why did the Jagdwaffe, the most efficient, best-trained, and most technically advanced air force in the world in 1939 endure a bewildering defeat within three short years. Author Spick explores this question and comes up with some interesting theories having to do with the influence of the cult of Manfred Von Richtofen (the Red Baron).”
"When a noted military aviation writer like Mike Spick and publisher Greenhill Books produce a book on the evergreen topic of the Third Reich's war machine, one is guaranteed to be able to buy a winner. And so it is with this praiseworthy book. The book is especially interesting in that rather than being a biographical dictionary, it is more an account of the evolving fighter tactics, the expert practitioners of such and the fortunes of war. In fact, hundreds of experten, or aces, are mentioned, especially the higher scorers, innovators, and winners of the Knight's Cross in its varying grades ... The virtues and vices of the Reich's most famous fighter planes (the Me 109, the FW 190, the Me 262 and the Me 163) are extensively and expertly discussed. Amongst the diagrams and the tabulated information are innovative charts that compare the performance of German and Allied fighters and their armaments. The diagrams also provide pictorial insights into fighter formations and tactics. As for the experten themselves, a black and white photographic picture gallery allows one to study in detail the famous personalities, the uniforms and the decorations ... In short, if you enjoy reading of heroes of World War II, you should appreciate this offering."
– Sid Wagzell
"In reading this fascinating book, you'll gain tremendous insight into some of the best fighter-pilots the world has ever known, as well as the Luftwffe's rise and fall." – The Military Book Club
--Carl D. Todd
This is a tremendous book for the Jagdwaffe fans! It is choked with details about the aces, their training, the fighters they flew and how they performed compared to those of the RAF, Red Air Force and USAAF, many diagrams and statistics and much much more! It probably demands from the reader to have a good background on World War II and Luftwaffe and it will seem somehow heavy in numbers and details to the casual readers, but it is an absolutely marvellous source for the dedicated students of aerial warfare who would like to compare calibers of weapons on fighters, the velocities and weights of various ammunition used (the 30 mm ammo of Me 262's Mk 108 was a class in itself!), the turn and climbing rates of Spitfires and Bf 109s, the command changes in the Jagdwaffe, and the fascinating stories of hundreds of its best pilots. I also appreciated that Mr Spick didn't hesitate to correct mistakes that he made in his earlier books, like the information that Herbert Rollwage was not Luftwaffe's top scorer against four-engined bombers with 44 victories but he amassed only 14. A highly recommended book --Dimitrios
All of Mr. Spick's books are wonderful. I have enjoyed some of them several times. This work adds color and depth to the histories of the Luftwaffe that he has already written. For the serious student of the Luftwaffe, Mr. Spick is "the man". If he writes it - I buy it. --Carl D. Todd
This is a tremendous book for the Jagdwaffe fans! It is choked with details about the aces, their training, the fighters they flew and how they performed compared to those of the RAF, Red Air Force and USAAF, many diagrams and statistics and much much more! It probably demands from the reader to have a good background on World War II and Luftwaffe and it will seem somehow heavy in numbers and details to the casual readers, but it is an absolutely marvellous source for the dedicated students of aerial warfare who would like to compare calibers of weapons on fighters, the velocities and weights of various ammunition used (the 30 mm ammo of Me 262's Mk 108 was a class in itself!), the turn and climbing rates of Spitfires and Bf 109s, the command changes in the Jagdwaffe, and the fascinating stories of hundreds of its best pilots. I also appreciated that Mr Spick didn't hesitate to correct mistakes that he made in his earlier books, like the information that Herbert Rollwage was not Luftwaffe's top scorer against four-engined bombers with 44 victories but he amassed only 14. A highly recommended book! --By Dimitrios
About the Author
Mike Spick has written more than thirty books on military aviation, including Luftwaffe Bomber Aces, Luftwaffe Fighter Aces and Allied Fighter Aces. His books have been translated into more than ten languages, including Chinese, Czech, Hungarian, Spanish and Polish.
