Aircraft of the Aces: Legends of World War 2

Naval Aviation News, March, 2001 by Peter B. Mersky

Holmes, Tony. Aircraft of the Aces: Legends of World War 2. Osprey Military and Aviation, P.O. Box 130, Sterling Heights, MI 48311-0130. 2000. 144 pp. Ill. $29.95.

Representing one of today's best values in aviation publishing, this good-looking book is more than a distillation of this UK-based publisher's highly successful series on aerial aces. Holmes has included new pilot reports that were not available when the individual books appeared, and biographical and aircraft data tables enhance each chapter's discussion of that particular ace.

Irish artist Iain Wyllie's paintings are consistently among the best today in popular aviation history publishing. Nevertheless, he does seem to have trouble reproducing Army olive drab, because occasionally P-51s and P-47s are brown.

American and British aces are featured, but those of Japan, Germany, the Soviet Union, France and other air forces are also described. The only omission is the lack of Italian aces, which would have made a unique chapter.

The book's large format displays the photos in a way that the smaller earlier series could not. Errors are few. The biography box in the chapter on Marine Corps ace Joe Foss says he never returned to combat after Guadalcanal. Actually, promoted to major, he did command an F4U squadron in the Pacific, although he didn't add to his score in the Solomons.

Three chapters deal with U.S. Navy and Marine Corps aviators: Foss, Walsh and McCampbell. And there is a chapter on Imperial Japanese Navy ace Nishizawa, although he was based ashore along with many of his high-scoring fellow Zero pilots.

A good reference as well as a visual treat, Aircraft of the Aces shows what can be done with great material and presentation.