F4F Wildcat: South Pacific 194243

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This book examines the role of the Grumman F4F Wildcat, the US Navys standard carrier fighter at the start of the Pacific War, and its clashes against the Imperial Japanese Naval Air Forces Mitsubishi A6M Zero-sen. The US Navy went to war in December 1941 with the tubby Wildcat, the first of Grummans famed cats, as its principal carrier fighter. Ruggedly built and well armed, the F4Fs performance was inferior to the Japanese Zero-sen, yet in the carrier battles of 1942 between the US Navy and the IJN the Wildcat pilots more than held their own against some of the finest naval aviators in the world. Many of the Wildcat pilots that saw action in the South Pacific comprised what respected naval historian John Lundstrom has called the First Team the small group of highly trained prewar pilots who manned the bulk of the US Navys carrier fighter squadrons. Illustrated with specially commissioned artwork, including armament views and ribbon diagrams, the book examines the carrier battles that took place in August and October in the South Pacific around the first American offensive of the war the amphibious assault on the island of Guadalcanal, and the actions of the Wildcat in combat with IJN carrier aircraft. The key combat actions are described and accompanied with rare and original photographs and diagrams, as are the training and tactics that contributed to the Wildcats success.

Author Bio

Edward M. Young is a retired financial executive with a BA degree in Political Science from Harvard University and an MA from the University of Washington. In 2015 he received an MA in the History of Warfare from Kings College, London and in 2020 completed a PhD in History at Kings College. During his career he had assignments in New York, London, Tokyo, and Hong Kong. He is the author of numerous books and articles on aviation history. He lives with his wife in Seattle, Washington. The illustrators for this title are Gareth Hector (cover and battlescene), Jim Laurier (armament views) and Tim Brown (ribbon diagrams)