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Caldwell, Donald L.

The Luftwaffe over Germany : defense of the Reich / Don Caldwell and Richard Muller. - London : St Paul : Greenhill ; MBI Publishing, 2007. - 336 pages : illustrations, maps, portraits ; 26 cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

The Luftwaffe over Germany tells the story of one of the longest and most intense air battles in history. The daylight air struggles over Germany during World War II involved thousands of aircraft, dozens of units, and hundreds of aerial engagements. Until now, there has been no single book that covers the complete story, from the highest levels of air strategy to the individual tales of Fw 190s, Bf 109s and Me 262s in air combat against the American bomber streams. This work explores the German air defense system until its collapse in 1945. It examines the detrimental effect of Luftwaffe theory and doctrine on the German air arms ability to defend the homeland once the Allied Combined Bomber Offensive began in earnest. The hard-pressed Luftwaffe leadership attempted to cobble together an air-defense network while at the same time tending to the combat fronts in Russia and the Mediterranean. Units developed specialized tactics and weapons for dealing with heavily defended bomber formations, while senior commanders sought to construct an elaborate command and control system integrating radar, observers, anti-aircraft guns, and fighters. By mid-1944, they had lost the battle - but had exacted a terrible price from the Americans in the process. 650 4 Air forces & warfare.

ISBN: 9781853677120 1853677124

Nat. Bib. No.: GBA6A1007 bnb

Nat. Bib. Agency Control No.: 013613611 Uk

Subjects--Corporate Names:
Germany. Luftwaffe --History--20th century.

Subjects--Meeting Names:
World War (1939-1945)

Subjects--Topical Terms:
World War, 1939-1945--Aerial operations, German.
Military operations, Aerial--German.--German.

Index Terms--Genre/Form:
History.

LC Class. No.: D787 / .C36 2007

Dewey Class. No.: 940.544943