The Captive Luftwaffe

Ref: 5223

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{detailed description}The Captive Luftwaffe records the German aircraft which came into British hands throughout the Second World War and immediately after the ending of hostilities. Altogether thousands of aircraft, in various states of repair, came into the possession of the Allies — far more than it would be possible to describe in a single volume. This work deals mainly with those aircraft which were shot down or force-landed in the United Kingdom, landed there in error, or were deliberately flown there; and interesting types — such as the early turbine or rocket-powered aircraft — which were captured in Europe in the closing stages of the war or immediately after the fighting ceased.
The captured aircraft provided valuable information, and enabled tactics to be evolved for dealing with these types in combat. The Captive Luftwaffe describes the handling qualities of the more important types and gives extracts from the British pilots' reports made after flying such aircraft as the Messerschmitt Bf 109, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, Heinkel He111 and Junkers Ju 88.
More than 60 basic types of aircraft are described, and details are given of how they came into Allied possession. Information is provided on many individual aircraft and, where they are still known to survive, their present location is given.
Some of the captured types were unusual, and handsomely repaid study, while others were put to practical use — for example the Ju 52/3ms which were overhauled and modified to serve some of the domestic routes of British European Airways.
Apart from describing the aircraft, The Captive Luftwaffe tells something of the work of the Royal Aircraft Establishment and also of No. 1426 (Enemy Aircraft Flight) and the men who flew these 'captives'. There are also log-book reports which serve to show how widely these aircraft were flown in the United Kingdom.
Many of the photographs in this volume have not been published previously.
{Author / Publisher / Date}by Kenneth S. West
1978 1st edition. 147pp
{condition}near fine in price clipped d/j
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