LAST DAYS OF THE LUFTWAFFE

LAST DAYS OF THE LUFTWAFFE 
By Manfred Griehl.

Over thirty years of research and collecting documents from both Allied and German sources has brought together this most comprehensive account of the Luftwaffe's final months.

As the Allies and Russian armies continued to advance towards and into Germany, the Luftwaffe and their aircraft designers and manufacturers were also fighting a battle against a shortage of time, materials, fuel and pilots. With airbases and factories constanty being overrun by enemy troops, the Germans moved to underground mines and tunnels mostly using slave labour.

Despite these desperate times, they continued to lead the technology in jet powered engines and aircraft, their ideas for new and better designs never seemingly stopped.
Opposite to this were those Luftwaffe units flying against larger numbers of Allied aircraft on two fronts. For many pilots, a final show of their fanaticism was volunteering for suicide squadrons. Made of a mixture of serviceable aircraft, they would attempt to ram the Allied bomber once their ammunition was exhausted. 

Had the Luftwaffe had more time to further develop these new ideas and especially if the iconic Me 262's development had not been so delayed, then bringing an end to the war in Europe could easily have taken far longer.

I have read several books on this subject and this is definitely the most detailed. It includes so many photographs that I've not seen elsewhere. Each chapter covers different topics and although published back in 2009, I would certainly recommend this to all.

This hardback edition is available now and published by Frontline Books an imprint of Pen and Sword.
I thank P&S for this review copy. 

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