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Wildcat Aces of World War Two. - Cranston Military Prints

Wildcat Aces of World War Two.


Wildcat Aces of World War Two.

Arguably the most important piston-engined single-seat fighter design ever to see service with the US Navy and Marine Corps, the aesthetically inelegant F4F Wildcat achieved much acclaim during its bloody frontline career. Thrown into combat at Coral Sea, Midway and Guadalcanal, the handful of Wildcat units of the Navy and Marine Corps took on large numbers of fighters and bombers and came out victorious. On the European front, the Royal Navys Fleet Air Arm also put the fighter to effective use from escort carriers, protecting Atlantic convoys from Luftwaffe attacks.
Item Code : OSAA0003Wildcat Aces of World War Two. - Editions Available
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Osprey Aircraft of the Aces Series Book. 100 pagesnone£12.99

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 Pearl Harbor - Monday December 8th, 1941.  On Sunday December 7th, 1941, the free world had been stunned into disbelief by the treacherous Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.  Giving no formal declaration of war, the devastating Japanese assault on the headquarters of the US Pacific Fleet had left over two thousand American servicemen dead, most of her battleships destroyed or damaged, and the remains of nearly 200 American aircraft lay in tatters.  America reeled from the shock and sheer incredulity.  But for Admiral Yamamoto, Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Japanese Navy, and architect of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the success of victory left a bitter taste.  The main targets of his carefully orchestrated plan had been the US carriers but, as fate would have it, they were all at sea.  Yamamoto knew in his heart that he would have to face those carriers one day, and when he did they would be the platform upon which America would unleash the brunt of her power against him.  At 12.30 the following day President Roosevelt began his address to Congress, calling for the declaration of war on Japan.  By 4.10pm America was formally at war, and five thousand miles away the first of the carriers, USS Enterprise, was returning to Pearl Harbor.  Richard Taylor's painting depicts the Enterprise as she approaches Ford Island and the smoldering ruins that had been the Pacific Fleet.  As ships still burn and the thick smoke hangs in the air, ever alert F4F-3A Wildcats of VF-6 fly an overhead patrol.  Throughout the night the carrier will refuel and re-arm, and at dawn she will return to sea with a steel resolve and a new mission, to avenge Pearl Harbor.  The Japanese failure to destroy the US carriers was a fateful mistake and, six months later, the Enterprise finally got her chance at the Battle of Midway, as the US carriers delivered one of the most decisive victories in the history of naval warfare, paving the way for victory in the Pacific.
The Sleeping Giant Awakes by Richard Taylor.
 On 7 August 1942, just eight months after the dramatic events at Pearl Harbor, the United States First Marine Division stormed ashore on the island of Guadalcanal. It was the opening gambit of the land war in the Pacific.  The painting depicts Captain Joe Foss as he leads the F4F Wildcats of VMF-121 back to Henderson Field after a day of desperate fighting against the Japanese in the skies over the steaming jungles of Guadalcanal in November 1942 - it would be another three months before the island was finally secured during which time Joe Foss would achieve an astonishing 26 victories to become the first American pilot to equal WW1 Ace Eddie Rickenbackers score.

Holding the Tide by Richard Taylor.
 On 20th October 1943, Wildcat and Avenger aircraft from the Carrier US Core, on patrol north of the Azores, surprised U378, a type VIIC U-boat which had been active in that area. The element of surprise was so complete that the submarines guns remained unmanned throughout the action.

The Element of Surprise by Robert Barbour.
 Served with VMF-112 flying Wildcats in Guadalcanal from September 1942 before upgrading to the Corsair.  He scored 9 victories with the squadron, including 5 in one day.  He later served with VMF-451 from USS Bunker Hill, scoring a further 5 victories before it was struck by kamikaze aircraft and withdrawn from action. He ended the war credited with 14 victories in more than 4000 flying hours.  He died in 2007.

Clipped Signature - Archie G Donahue.
Aircraft Related to This Print
Wildcat

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