Military and aviation history enthusiasts have always been interested in the fighter pilots of Hitler's Luftwaffe. Some of their stories are extraordinary. Fighting from the Arctic Circle to the North African deserts, from the Caucasus in the East to Normandy in the West, the German fighter pilot flew and fought until he was shot down, "flown out," wounded or killed in action. A handful survived from "first to last." This first volume of Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe traces the story of the Luftwaffe's day fighter arm (der Tagjagd) from its inception to 1942. Organized campaign by campaign, this chronological account interweaves brief biographical details, newly translated personal accounts and key moments in the careers of a host of notable and lesser known Luftwaffe aces. Around 500 Luftwaffe fighter pilots were awarded the Knight's Cross, accumulating huge numbers of missions flown. A similar number achieved more than 40 victories - more than the two leading USAF and RAF fighter pilots.

This latest in the Casemate Illustrated series explores American armor during the Pacific Campaign of WWII, from 1942-45. During this period there were over twenty major tank battles and operations where tanks provided heavy support to infantry units. These operations include the battle of Tarawa and the Bougainville Campaign. Relying heavily on first-person accounts, the strategies and tactics of the opposing forces are discussed. This book also looks at the Pacific theater, and how American armor was employed with great success in that theater of war. Detailed information on American and Japanese armored forces, including development, equipment, capabilities, organization, and order of battle, is given.

In the summer of 1943, the German launched Operation Zitadelle (Citadel), aimed at cutting off a large number of Soviet forces in the Kursk salient. This offensive resulted in the battle of Kursk, the largest tank battle of World War II.Kursk quickly became a fierce contest of attrition, as Wehrmacht and elite Waffen-SS Panzer-Divisions with their powerful Tiger and Panther tanks unsuccessfully tried to hammer their way through the intricate lines of strong Soviet defensive positions. What followed was unabated fighting for two weeks as German units were slowly and systematically ground down in a series of brutal armored battles.During this ferocious fighting the Red Army savagely contested every foot of ground, finally ending German invincibility forever. For the first time in its short history, the blitzkrieg concept had failed. The reverberations caused by the defeat at Kursk were immense, and never again did the German war machine go on the offensive in the East. Stiff defensive action was now the stratagem placed upon the dwindling Panzerwaffe right to the gates of Berlin.With comprehensive captions and text, Kursk tells the story of this dramatic battle using rare and unpublished photographs, maps, and highly detailed artist profiles. The book reveals the events leading up to the battle in the first half of 1943, and the build up of forces by both sides before their climatic showdown at Kursk.

Fighter aircraft were developed by during World War I at an unprecedented rate, as nascent air forces sought to achieve and maintain air supremacy. German manufacturers innovated at top speed, while constantly scrutinizing the development of new enemy aircraft. The Germans also utilized the concept of systematic production or modular engineering during the war—Fokker capitalized on this aspect with all his aircraft built in a similar fashion—wooden wings with welded steel fuselages. This meant that they could be disassembled or reassembled quickly in the field—unlike many Allied aircraft. Pfalz and Albatros were the first to realize the importance of a streamlined fuselage—the precursor to all that would follow. Both of these companies built semi-monocoque fuselages using plywood to develop semi-stressed skin—the Allies had nothing like this. The Germans also perfect powerful inline engines, as exemplified by the Albatros fighters. These engines did not have the gyroscopic effect of the rotary engines and as such were easier and more stable to fly. Fokker was slow to give up his rotary engines but once he did, the result was the iconic Fokker D VII—years ahead of its time and the only aircraft specifically mentioned in the Treaty of Versailles that Germany could not build after the war. German Fighter Aircraft in World War I explores how German fighter aircraft were developed during the war, the innovations and trials that made the Fokker D VII possible, and the different makes and types of aircraft. Using unpublished images including photographs of surviving aircraft, archive images, and models and replicas, it shows details of aircraft that were kept top secret during the war. Extensively illustrated with 140 photos and ten color profiles, this is will be essential reading for all WWI aviation enthusiasts and modellers.

Adolf Hitler considered the Mediterranean an unimportant theater of the war, leaving it to the troops of Benito Mussolini who wanted to dominate the “Mare Nostro.” Nevertheless, when the Italian army was defeated on the Libyan-Egyptian border at the beginning of 1941, the Führer was forced to help his ally by sending an air detachment first to Sicily, then Africa. This latest in the Casemate Illustrated series examines that tiny expeditionary force, solely devoted to protecting Italian possessions in North Africa. When General Erwin Rommel launched his Afrika Korps to the east, the Luftwaffe had to go on the offensive to cover that advance. With over 100 images, this book explores how German and British air forces were quickly reinforced and, in the following months, Germany was forced to engage more and more aerial units on what was initially considered a peripheral arena of the war for the German High Command. Losses in bombers and fighters were high on both sides and when, at the end of 1942, the Allies landed in Morocco and Algeria on the back of the Afrika Korps, the Wehrmacht’s fate was sealed. The depleted Luftwaffe did its best but could not change the course of the battle. The last German units capitulated in Tunisia in May 1943.

At the beginning of 1942, the Tirpitz, the heaviest battleship ever built by a European navy was on the cusp of breaking out into the north Atlantic. The prospect of a huge German battleship patrolling the Atlantic posed a grave threat to the convoys that served as the lifeline for an embattled Britain. After attempted bombing raids failed, a new and far more daring plan was created; to ram a battleship loaded with explosives into St. Nazaire, the only dry dock capable of supporting this unstoppable juggernaut. This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series gives a clear overview of the planning and execution of the raid and its aftermath, accompanied by 125 photographs and images, including colour profiles and maps.

One of the greatest paradoxes of the Battle of Normandy is that the German divisions found it much harder to reach the front line than the Allies, who had to cross the sea and then deploy in a cramped bridgehead until the American breakthrough of late July 1944. The Waffen-SS were no better off than the Heer units and German high command never quite got on top of operations, as the divisions were thrown into the melee one by one. During the month of June 1944, the Panzer divisions present succeeded in containing the Allies in a small bridgehead. In July, the arrival of more SS divisions should have finally allowed the Germans to counter-attack decisively. This was not the reality. The Allies had also strengthened in number and kept the blows coming, one after another. Each SS-Panzer division had a different experience of the fighting in July.This Casemate Illustrated looks at the divisions one by one throughout Operations Goodwood and Cobra which saw large tank battles and the collapse of the German front in Normandy. It includes over 100 photographs, alongside biographies of the commanders and color profiles of trucks and tanks which played a key role in operations as the Americans succeeded in breaking through the German line of defense.

The battle of the Falaise Pocket, in August 1944, was the turning point in the Normandy campaign. By early August the German Army was in turmoil: while it was managing to hold back the Allies, the defense involved resources that could not be replaced, and the Allies ruled the skies above. In late July, American troops broke through the American lines and pushed south and east, while British and Canadian troops pushed south. Although unable to counter these offensives, Hitler refused to permit the commander Army Group B, Field Marshal von Kluge, to withdraw. Instead he was ordered to launch a counteroffensive at Mortain, the result being that the Germans ended up further into the Allied envelopment. On 8 August Montgomery ordered that the Allied armies converge on the Falaise area—by 21 August the Allies had linked up and sealed the pocket, trapping around 50,000 Germans inside. While many soldiers did eventually escape the encirclement, the losses were catastrophic and by the end of the month Army Group B had retreated across the Seine, ending the battle of Normandy. This illustrated account examines the battle from the failed offensive at Mortain, looking at both German and Allied perspectives, using maps, diagrams and profiles to complete the story.

German army deficiencies are often cited as the reason for the failure of the German counteroffensive in the Ardennes region of France, Belgium and Luxembourg in December of 1944 to January 1945 which the Germans called Operation Wacht am Rhein, the Allies named the Ardennes Counteroffensive, and was also commonly known as the Battle of the Bulge. It is certainly true that the three German armies regrouped for the offensive were in differing states; only the 5th Panzer Army was in something resembling good condition, with the 6th and the 7th mediocre at best. The divisions were also often not mobile enough because of the lack of automotive equipment and were short on tanks and artillery. But these cannot be considered as the only reasons for the German failure: it was also the speed of the Allied reaction, and especially the conduct of the Americans, who experienced the some of the fiercest combat of the war, and suffered over 100,000 casualties.This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series, with over 100 photographs and 24 color profiles describes in detail the different events that caused the German defeat, from the beginning of the offensive on December 16, 1944 to the retreat behind the Siegfried Line. It looks at several topics in particular: the American resistance at St. Vith; the resistance of the 101st Airborne in Bastogne; German obstinacy in persisting with the siege at Bastogne; the airlift and the intervention of the 9th US Air Force; the rapid regrouping of the 3rd US Army; Patton's counterattack; the British counterattack, and finally how the Allies failed to transform the German withdrawal into rout, missing an opportunity to cross the Siegfried line and the Rhine on the heels of the Germans, leading to an incomplete victory.

Throughout the Second World War, a shift occurred in the composition of the large armored units of armies which lead to an increase in the power of their tanks in particular. The Germans were no exception. Many of its recently formed Panzer divisions, from the 12th SS-Panzerdivision Hitlerjugend to the 2nd SS-Panzerdivision Das Reich, were thrust into the effort to repel the Allies from June to August 1944 in Normandy. Within just ten weeks they would be defeated.This volume of Casemate Illustrated starts by exploring the initial struggle to gain control of Caen after the Allies had landed on the beaches of Normandy which resulted in the ferocious German Tiger tanks destroying the 7th Armored Division, with British losses totaling twenty-seven tanks. The subsequent strategies the commanders devised for the Panzer tanks during Operations Goodwood and Cobra were not so successful, ultimately ending in disaster for the Germans as the Allies broke through the German line by the end of July.With over 100 photos, diagrams showing the composition of German armored divisions, and color profiles of tanks and other armored vehicles, this is a detailed examination of the German armored forces in Normandy in 1944, focusing on the organization of the 10 Panzer divisions that took part, the vehicles they relied on and the battles they fought in and why ultimately their combined strength was not enough.

After the initial successes of Operation Barbarossa, at the end of September 1941 Hitler turned his focus to Moscow, with the unshakeable belief that capturing the capital would knock the Soviets out of the war. On the face of it, it was an unequal struggle; Field Marshall Fedor von Bock had at his command disposal 1 million men, 1,700 tanks, 19,500 artillery guns and 950 combat aircraft – 50% of all the German men in Russia, 75% of all the tanks and 33% of all the planes. To defend Moscow, the Russians had under 500,000 men, fewer than 900 tanks and just over 300 combat planes. But the picture was in fact a great deal more complex; the Germans had suffered very significant losses since the invasion of Russia had begun, and had issues with logistics and air support. The Soviets, under the command of General Zhukov, were beginning to be better supplied with re-enforcements, and were prepared to defend to the death.Nevertheless Moscow was in a perilous situation. This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series concentrates on the main German assault of October 1941. Guderian’s panzer divisions at first made sweeping gains as they had done so many times before and large parts of the Red Army were encircled at Vyazma and Bryansk. These successes in fact allowed the Soviets time to re-group as the encircled armies did not surrender and had to be dealt with. Then three engagements followed at Mtsensk, Maloyaroslavets and the Mojaisk defense line that proved that the war in the East was not entering its final days as German high command believed.Illustrated with over 150 photographs, plus profile drawings of tanks, vehicles and aircraft, it gives a vivid impression of the situation for both protagonists, and a detailed analysis of the critical days as the fate of Moscow and perhaps the whole war hung in the balance.

For many, the Waffen-SS soldier represents the archetype of the combatant, if not the warrior: well-armed, well-trained, possessing intelligence in combat, imbued with political and ideological fanaticism, he is an elite soldier par excellence, even if a lack of scruples casts a long shadow. However, is this picture true? In the case of the Battle of Normandy, opinions diverged, not only among today's historians, but also amongst the German generals at the time. In all, the Waffen-SS fielded six divisions during the Battle of Normandy, as well as two heavy battalions of Tiger tanks. But they were by no means a single homogenous entity, for with the exception of II. SS-Panzerkorps, the divisions arrived at the front one after another and were immediately thrown into battle. This volume in the Casemate Illustrated series examines the Waffen-SS in Normandy during the fierce fighting of June 1944, when they struggled to hold back the Allied advance on Caen, though the picture was by no means one-sided. Extensively illustrated with photographs, tank profiles, maps, and accompanied by biographies of key personnel and explanatory text boxes, this volume gives a clear and accessible account of events, challenging some popular perceptions along the way.

Tanks were the beasts of the Second World War, machines designed to destroy anything and anyone in their path. Throughout the summer of 1944, the Allied forces readily employed tanks and armored vehicles to gain ground in the bloody campaign of Normandy. Heavily armed, they provided a kind of support which no number of infantrymen could offer, battling their way through enemy lines with their guns blazing. From the US 2nd Armored Division named ‘Hell on Wheels’ to the British ‘Achilles’ tank, the encounters they had in battle were explosive. This volume of the Casemate Illustrated series explores the Normandy invasion from the perspective of the Allied Armored divisions, looking at how armored vehicles played a central role in the many battles that took place. It includes over 40 profiles of tanks and armored vehicles, from the American Sherman and Stuart tanks to the bulldozers and amphibious vehicles designed for the beach. With detailed diagrams and many photos illustrating the composition of the Allied armored divisions and tank regiments present at Normandy, this volume explains the crucial part played by tanks in gaining a foothold in Normandy after the D-Day landings, as well as the significance of many other types of armored vehicles.

The path from Moscow to Stalingrad was littered with successes and losses for both the Red Army and the Wehrmacht, with tensions remaining high and culminating in one of the harshest battles of the Second World War. Part of the Casemate Illustrated series, this volume outlines how it was that, less than a year after their defeat at Moscow, the German army had found a way to make the Soviet troops waver in their defence, with their persistence eventually leading to the Battle of Stalingrad. The successful expulsion of the German troops from Moscow in the winter of 1941 came at a cost for the Red Army. Weaknesses in the Soviet camp inspired the Wehrmacht, under Adolf Hitler’s close supervision, to make preparations for offensives along the Eastern Front to push the Russians further and further back into their territory. With a complex set of new tactics and the crucial aid of the Luftwaffe, the German army began to formulate a deadly two-pronged attack on Stalingrad to reduce the city to rubble. Initially only on the periphery of operations, bit by bit German ambitions focused on Stalingrad. In the lead up to this, Timoshenko’s failed attack on Kharkov followed by the Battle of Sebastopol in June 1942 prompted Operation Blue, the German campaign to advance east on their prized objective. This volume includes numerous photographs of the ships, planes, tanks, trucks, and weaponry used by both sides in battle, alongside detailed maps and text outlining the constantly changing strategies of the armies as events unfolded.

101st Airborne Division was activated in August 1942 in Louisiana, and its first combat mission was Operation Overlord. On D-Day—June 6, 1944—101st and 82nd Airborne dropped onto the Cotentin peninsula hours before the landings, tasked with capturing bridges and positions, taking out German strongpoints and batteries, and securing the exits from Utah and Omaha Beaches. Things did not initially go smoothly for 101st Airborne, with cloud and antiaircraft fire disrupting the drops resulting in some units landing scattered over a large area outside their designated drop zones and having to waste time assembling—stymied by lost or damaged radio equipment—or trying to achieve their objectives with severely reduced numbers. Casualties were high in some areas due to heavy pre-registered German fire. Nevertheless, the paratroopers fought on and they did manage to secure the crucial beach exits, even if they only achieved a tenuous hold on some other positions. A few days later, 101st Airborne were tasked with attacking the German-held city of Carentan as part of the consolidation of the US beachheads and establishment of a defensive line against the anticipated German counteroffensive. The 101st forced their way into Carentan on 10 and 11 June. The Germans withdrew the following day, and a counteroffensive was put down by elements of the 2nd Armored Division. This fully illustrated book details the planning of the airborne element of D-Day, and the execution of the plans until the troops were withdrawn to prepare for the next big airborne operation, Market Garden.

The 2nd SS Division, “Das Reich,” was a battlefront mainstay for Nazi Germany throughout WWII—from the invasion of Poland in 1939 to the final surrender in May 1945. In between it was switched back-and-forth between east and west depending on the crisis, and it fought in nearly every major campaign, from Barbarossa to Normandy, and from Kharkov to the Ardennes. Das Reich was the first Waffen SS division created (though the title “1st” was reserved for Hitler’s Leibstandarte). Originally named the Verfügungs Division, its regiments fought through the campaigns in Poland, the Low Countries, and France, earning the respect of Wehrmacht leaders who originally doubted the efficacy of SS units. Renamed “Das Reich” after the French surrender, its elements served as a spearhead in the Balkans campaign, achieving a daring capture of Belgrade. In Operation Barbarossa, Das Reich fought with Guderian’s Second Panzer Group, first in the drive on Moscow, then toward Kiev, then Moscow again. Pulled out of the line after gigantic casualties, it seized Toulon in France, then was sent back to Russia, as part of the SS Panzer Corps, to retrieve the German debacle after Stalingrad. At the titanic tank-battle of Kursk, Das Reich was at the forefront. In June 1944, as a full SS-Panzer Division, Das Reich played an infamous role in its approach march to Normandy, as the French Resistance temporarily reached a high tide. On the Allied invasion front, Das Reich not only escaped from the Falaise Pocket but was sent back into it, to retrieve other German units struggling to get out. Das Reich fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and was then transferred to Hungary, for Hitler’s last counteroffensive of the war. Failing to retake Budapest, elements of the division were able to mount a gallant defense of Prague. When the end came, some formations were forced to surrender to the Russians while others made it to American lines. Its reputation, for better or worse, had already been established. This lavishly illustrated book by renowned French historian Yves Buffetaut lays out the full history of Das Reich in World War II, with rare photos, informative text, and true insights into a unique combat division in modern warfare.