The Forgotten Few; The Indian Air Force in World War II

The Forgotten Few; The Indian Air Force in World War II PDF Author: KS Nair
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 9353570689
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Book Description
The Forgotten Few is the first contemporary attempt to produce a historical narrative of the nation's contribution, specifically to the Air Force component, of World War II, which was an important part of our journey to Independence and national identity. Close to three million Indians served in uniform during the War. And yet, the Indian chapter of this globe-straddling story, reverberations of which still echo today, are barely known - a symptom of which was the recent controversy over the absence of Indians in the Christopher Nolan film Dunkirk. This book brings to light some of the lost stories of Indian aviators who built the very foundations of human and physical infrastructure for what is now the world's fourth largest air force. It benefits from several first-person interviews with some of the last Indian survivors of World War II, enabling a level of fidelity that is quite rare among Indian histories.

The Forgotten Few

The Forgotten Few PDF Author: Adam Zamoyski
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 9781848841963
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
By the beginning of 1941 there was a fully fledged Polish Air Force operating alongside the RAF. With 14 Squadrons it was larger than any other of the Air Force from Nazi-occupied Europe that had joined the Allies. Over 17,000 men and women passed through the ranks of the Polish Air Force while it was stationed in the UK. They shot down 745 enemy aircraft, with a further 175 unconfirmed. They dropped thousands of bombs and laid hundreds of mines, flying 102,486 sorties notching up a total of 290,895 operation flying hours. They achieved this at a cost of 1,973 killed and 1,388 wounded. They won 342 British gallantry awards.

They Fought With What They Had: The Story of the Army Air Forces in the Southwest Pacific, 1941-1942

They Fought With What They Had: The Story of the Army Air Forces in the Southwest Pacific, 1941-1942 PDF Author: Walter Dumaux Edmonds
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
ISBN: 1428915419
Category : World War, 1939-1945
Languages : en
Pages : 561

Book Description


The Army Air Forces in World War II: Men and planes

The Army Air Forces in World War II: Men and planes PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic government information
Languages : en
Pages : 920

Book Description


Farthest Field: An Indian Story of the Second World War

Farthest Field: An Indian Story of the Second World War PDF Author: Raghu Karnad
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393248100
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Book Description
“I have not lately read a finer book than this—on any subject at all. . . . A masterpiece.” —Simon Winchester, New Statesman The photographs of three young men had stood in his grandmother’s house for as long as he could remember, beheld but never fully noticed. They had all fought in the Second World War, a fact that surprised him. Indians had never figured in his idea of the war, nor the war in his idea of India. One of them, Bobby, even looked a bit like him, but Raghu Karnad had not noticed until he was the same age as they were in their photo frames. Then he learned about the Parsi boy from the sleepy south Indian coast, so eager to follow his brothers-in-law into the colonial forces and onto the front line. Manek, dashing and confident, was a pilot with India’s fledgling air force; gentle Ganny became an army doctor in the arid North-West Frontier. Bobby’s pursuit would carry him as far as the deserts of Iraq and the green hell of the Burma battlefront. The years 1939–45 might be the most revered, deplored, and replayed in modern history. Yet India’s extraordinary role has been concealed, from itself and from the world. In riveting prose, Karnad retrieves the story of a single family—a story of love, rebellion, loyalty, and uncertainty—and with it, the greater revelation that is India’s Second World War. Farthest Field narrates the lost epic of India’s war, in which the largest volunteer army in history fought for the British Empire, even as its countrymen fought to be free of it. It carries us from Madras to Peshawar, Egypt to Burma—unfolding the saga of a young family amazed by their swiftly changing world and swept up in its violence.

Air Force Roles and Missions

Air Force Roles and Missions PDF Author: Warren A. Trest
Publisher: Department of the Air Force
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 344

Book Description
Traces the usage of- and meaning given to- the terms "roles and missions" relating to the armed forces and particularly to the United States Air Force, from 1907 to the present.

Operation Storm

Operation Storm PDF Author: John J. Geoghegan
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 0307464806
Category : Submarine warfare
Languages : en
Pages : 514

Book Description
Explores the efforts of the Japanese Navy during World War II and their clashes with the United States Navy, focusing on the use of Aichi M6A1 underwater aircraft carriers.

American Airpower Comes Of Age—General Henry H. “Hap” Arnold’s World War II Diaries Vol. II [Illustrated Edition]

American Airpower Comes Of Age—General Henry H. “Hap” Arnold’s World War II Diaries Vol. II [Illustrated Edition] PDF Author: Gen. Henry H. “Hap.” Arnold
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
ISBN: 1786251523
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 570

Book Description
Includes the Aerial Warfare In Europe During World War II illustrations pack with over 180 maps, plans, and photos. Gen Henry H. “Hap.” Arnold, US Army Air Forces (AAF) Chief of Staff during World War II, maintained diaries for his several journeys to various meetings and conferences throughout the conflict. Volume 1 introduces Hap Arnold, the setting for five of his journeys, the diaries he kept, and evaluations of those journeys and their consequences. General Arnold’s travels brought him into strategy meetings and personal conversations with virtually all leaders of Allied forces as well as many AAF troops around the world. He recorded his impressions, feelings, and expectations in his diaries. Maj Gen John W. Huston, USAF, retired, has captured the essence of Henry H. Hap Arnold—the man, the officer, the AAF chief, and his mission. Volume 2 encompasses General Arnold’s final seven journeys and the diaries he kept therein.

Forgotten Ally

Forgotten Ally PDF Author: Rana Mitter
Publisher: HMH
ISBN: 054784056X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 485

Book Description
A history of the Chinese experience in WWII, named a Book of the Year by both the Economist and the Financial Times: “Superb” (The New York Times Book Review). In 1937, two years before Hitler invaded Poland, Chinese troops clashed with Japanese occupiers in the first battle of World War II. Joining with the United States, the Soviet Union, and Great Britain, China became the fourth great ally in a devastating struggle for its very survival. In this book, prize-winning historian Rana Mitter unfurls China’s drama of invasion, resistance, slaughter, and political intrigue as never before. Based on groundbreaking research, this gripping narrative focuses on a handful of unforgettable characters, including Chiang Kai-shek, Mao Zedong, and Chiang’s American chief of staff, “Vinegar Joe” Stilwell—and also recounts the sacrifice and resilience of everyday Chinese people through the horrors of bombings, famines, and the infamous Rape of Nanking. More than any other twentieth-century event, World War II was crucial in shaping China’s worldview, making Forgotten Ally both a definitive work of history and an indispensable guide to today’s China and its relationship with the West.

The Dutch Naval Air Force Against Japan

The Dutch Naval Air Force Against Japan PDF Author: Tom Womack
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476648182
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 401

Book Description
Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Dutch Naval Air Force--or Marine Luchtvaart Dienst (MLD)--played a significant but largely overlooked role in the opening months of the Pacific War. With 175 aircraft, the MLD greatly outnumbered the combined forces of its American and British allies. In three months of intense combat, the MLD lost 50 percent of its personnel and 80 percent of its aircraft, as the Netherlands' colonial empire was stripped away. This book details MLD operations during the Japanese invasion of Dutch East Indies, giving a comprehensive overview of organization, personnel, aircraft, equipment and tactics. For the first time in English, the failed evacuation of Java is examined.