István Toperczer

MiG-21 Aces of the Vietnam War (eBook, ePUB)

Illustrator: Laurier, Jim

• Format: ePub

Produktbeschreibung

Having learned their trade on the subsonic MiG-17, pilots of the Vietnamese People's Air Force (VPAF) received their first examples of the legendary MiG-21 supersonic fighter in 1966. Soon thrown into combat over North Vietnam, the guided-missile equipped MiG-21 proved a deadly opponent for the US Air Force, US Navy and US Marine Corps crews striking at targets deep in communist territory.

Although the communist pilots initially struggled to come to terms with the fighter's air-search radar and weapons systems, the ceaseless cycle of combat operations quickly honed their skills. Indeed, by the time the last US aircraft (a B-52) was claimed by the VPAF on 28 December 1972, no fewer than 13 pilots had become aces flying the MiG-21. Fully illustrated with wartime photographs and detailed colour artwork plates, and including enthralling combat reports, this book examines the many variants of the MiG-21 that fought in the conflict, the schemes they wore and the pilots that flew them.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Bloomsbury UK
• Seitenzahl: 96
• Erscheinungstermin: 21. September 2017
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9781472823571
• Artikelnr.: 48804621

Autorenporträt

István Toperczer is a flight surgeon with the Hungarian Air Force. In his spare time, he has become one of the few individuals from outside Vietnam to be given open access to the files of the VPAF. He has made numerous visits to Hanoi, and other Vietnamese cities, in the past 25 years, and has interviewed many of the leading MiG-21 pilots from the war years. He has previously written four series volumes on VPAF MiGs for Osprey.

Inhaltsangabe

Introduction
Learning the 'Balalaika'
Early Battles
The Crowded Sky
Facing New Threats
Linebacker
Gathering Momentum
Appendices
Colour Plates Commentary
Bibliography
Index