Eighth Air Force Bomber Stories - Eyewitness accounts from US airmen and British civilians in WW2

Authors: Ian McLachlan & Russell J.Zorn, Hardbound, 224 Pages, H5228, ISBN: 9780857332288, Reissue, 2012

First published in 1991 and reissued in 2012 - to meet popular demand, this gripping collection of stories about the American Eighth Air Force, based in East Anglia, is accompanied by rare photographs rescued from destruction at the end of the Second World War.

Told in the airmen's own words, this collection includes graphic combat accounts, stories of those who survived bombing raids and mid-air collisions, tales of human error and equipment failure, and struggles against the elements.

Survivors and eyewitnesses tell of heartrending tragedies, not least when fully laden bombers crashed on English houses and innocent children became victims of war. There are also stories of heroism, humour and the comradeship of those unforgettable years.

Battle was uppermost, however, in everyone's recollections.

Airmen remember the fear of German fighters, and the dread of flying through flak that lacerated airframe and human flesh alike.

A moment's misjudgement could violently erase lives — there is the sickening spectacle of a broken fuselage spilling men into space, those without parachutes clutching the air with desperate futility Crews who did make it home faced the loss of comrades, the guilt of survival, and the horror of facing it all again the next day.-

This book results from collaboration between Ian McLachlan, author of seven books, including USAAF Fighter Stories, also reissued by Haynes in 2012, and the late Russ Zom, an American photographer based in England during the war.

This collection will enthral all aviation enthusiasts and anyone interested in the human stories behind the Second World War.