Air Bombardment; The Story of its Development
London: Chatto & Windus, 1961. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Hardcover. xii, 276 pages. Frontis illustration of the author. Illustrations. Appendices A-F. Index. DJ has wear, tears, soiling, chips and is price clipped. Air Marshal Sir Robert Henry Magnus Spencer Saundby, KCB, KBE, MC, DFC, AFC, FRAeS, DL (26 April 1896 – 26 September 1971) was a senior Royal Air Force officer whose career spanned both the First and Second World Wars. He distinguished himself by gaining five victories during the First World War. He is chiefly remembered for his role as Deputy Air Officer Commanding-on-Chief Bomber Command under Sir Arthur Harris during the latter part of the Second World War. Saundby wrote several books Air Bombardment, The Story of its Development, How the Bomber and the Missile Brought the Third Dimension to Warfare and Steam Engines Early British Steam 1825–1925: The First 100 Years. This work is presented in five parts and six appendices (note, there were only five appendices in the U.S. edition which was only xii and 259 pages long--the appendix on British annual budget estimates omitted.) The parts are: The First World War; The Years Between: The World World War: Preparation; The Second World War: Fulfilment; and Air Power: Present and Future. Part Five includes chapters on Missiles and Space Weapons and War in the Nuclear Age. This includes brief references/discussion of Pathfinder force on pages 138-9, 161, 162, 179 and 180. Derived from a Kirkus review: Beginning with Sindbad the Sailor's mythical story of how two giant roc birds sank a ship with stones, man's mind has focussed on the possibility of aerial bombardment. This volume tells the story of that awesome dream, how it came into reality in the early Twentieth Century, and how terribly rapid has been the development of the bombing plane. Although the author was a high-ranking officer in the RAF, he tells the histories of other air forces fairly and well. Some of the most interesting chapters deal with the early trials and failures of the bombing plane, through World War I Then come sections on the geo-political importance of the new weapon---General Mitchell's trial use of it against sea power---and finally the overpowering role the bomber played against Germany, Italy, and Japan in World War II. The author, who writes with , briskness, and precision, ends with considerations of today's bombers pockets. Condition: Good / Fair.
Keywords: Air Power, Bombers, Eighth Air Force, Arthur Harris, Limited Wars, Pathfinder Force, Radar, Royal Air Force, Nuclear Weapons, Trenchard, V Weapons
[Book #83062]
Price: $75.00