Recommend me a book about the WWI war in the air!

[SprueMan]

I realised how little the great war figures in my home library, and how little I actually know about it.

Sure, I have various aircraft profiles, read about the red baron and whatnot, just as wikipedia and other websites are good in that respect, but nothing beats having a good reference.

 

I am looking for something that covers both the usage (ie. on tactical/strategic level), the technology (planes) involved, and most importantly, is a good read.

- Too many books have been written that are downright rubbish as reading material or otherwise low quality and I have no time for low quality.

 

If it is a nice modelling inspiration, then so much the better.

(hence me asking on this forum)

 

PS: Preferably a book that does not forget that there was more than one single front in the Great war.

[James S.]

First Blitz Books - 

 

Londonfluge 1917: Der Kampf des ersten Englandgeschwaders ; Aus d. Fliegertagebuch by Walter Aschoff

Churchill’s War Against the Zeppelin 1914-18: Men, Machines and Tactics by Leon Bennett

The First Blitz: Bombing London in the First World War by Ian Castle

London 1914-1917: The Zeppelin Menace by Ian Castle

London 1917-18: The Bomber Blitz by Ian Castle

Zeppelin Onslaught: The Forgotten Blitz 1914-1915 by Ian Castle

Zeppelin Inferno: The Forgotten Blitz 1916 by Ian Castle

War Over England by Lionel Charlton

The Air Defense of Britain 1914-1918 by Christopher Cole & E.F. Cheesman

The Baby Killers: The German Air Raids on Britain in the First World War by Thomas Fegen

The Sky on Fire: The First Battle of Britain, 1917-1918 by Raymond Fredette

First Blitz by Neil Hanson

First Blitz 1917-1918: The German Air Campaign Against Britain by Andrew Hyde

German Air Raids on Great Britain 1914-1918 by Joseph Morris

Zeppelin Over Suffolk: The Final Raid of L48 by Mark Mower

Zeppelin Raids and Anti-Airship Operations 1916-18 by Mark Mower

Records of the Raids by Henry Luke Paget

Gott Strafe England: The German Air Assault against Great Britain 1914–1918. Volume 1 by Nigel J. Parker

Gott Strafe England: The German Air Assault against Great Britain 1914–1918. Volume 2 by Nigel J. Parker

Gott Strafe England: The German Air Assault against Great Britain 1914–1918. Volume 3 by Nigel J. Parker

The Defeat of the Zeppelins: Zeppelin Raids and Anti-Airship Operations 1916-18 by Mick Powis

Zeppelins Over the Midlands: The Air Raids of 31st January 1916 by Mick Powis

The Defence of London by Alfred Rawlinson

Air War Over Great Britain 1914-1918 by Ray Rimell

Last Flight of the L31 by Ray Rimell

Last Flight of the L32 by Ray Rimell

Last Flight of the L48 by Ray Rimell

The Zeppelin in Combat by Douglas Robinson

Air Raids on South West Essex in the Great War: Looking for Zeppelins at Leyton by Alan Simpson

Zeppelin Blitz: The German Air Raids on Great Britain During the First World War by Neil Storey

Battle of Britain 1917: The First Heavy Bomber Raids on England by Jonathan Sutherland

The Gotha Summer by C.M. White

Een eeuw luchtvaart boven Gent (A Century of Aviation Above Gent)

[James S.]

Aeronaut Books has some fantastic books on Aircraft, Jasta Unit Histories, Jasta Colors.

 

http://www.aeronautbooks.com

 

James

Edited April 2, 2023 by James S.
Wasn't finished

[modelldoc]

Recommend this:

 

"Aircraft of World War I" by Jack Herris and Bob Pearson, 

amber books 2018

ISBN 978-1-78274-687-4

 

A comprehensive guide to the military aircraft units in the Great War of 1914 - 18. Features organizational tables, orders of battle, production figures and list of campaign aces. Plus, more than 250 detailed colour illustrations with full specification of every major aircraft type flown on every front.

192 pages, soft cover

 

modelldoc

[SprueMan]

3 hours ago, James S. said:

...

A book, James. A book, not a whole library department.

[Dave Swindell]

17 hours ago, SprueMan said:

and most importantly, is a good read.

Maybe not the reference you're after, but definitely a good read:-

Sagittarius Rising by Cecil Lewis

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sagittarius-Rising-Cecil-Lewis/dp/1848325193

[Putty Animal]

To be honest, I'd kind of start with Biggles of 266

That's how I got started, and look at me now! 🤪

Edited April 9, 2023 by Putty Animal

[Graham Boak]

You are not going to get everything you are asking for in a single book.

[RichieW]

Winged Victory by V M Yeates is well worth a read. Not a reference book but a very good good account of life as an RFC pilot. Although a novel it draws heavily on his experiences as a Camel pilot and there is much discussion of the relative merits of different aircraft. 

 

Richie

[Macsporran]

I was about to suggest Winged Victory and Sagittarius Rising, but I see they've already been recommended. Good choices.

 

However many of the autobiographies will give you a real pilot's seat feel for the kit, tactics, strategy and thinking.

Try those by McCudden, Collishaw, Willie Fry, MvR, Buckler, etc. Also a great little anthology of personal memories called 'Tumult in the Clouds'. 

All these are eminently readable, gripping even - and will put you in the middle of things much more than all the technical photo/plan books.

Sandy

[Viking]

I really enjoyed these. Superb books.

 

 

HTH.

 

John

[Brandy]

I would recommend 2 that have already been mentioned: Sagittarius Rising, and Winged Victory, (or Open Cockpit).

Add to those two "An Aviator's Field Book" by Oswald Boelcke. Basically his diary,  a very interesting read, and "Days on the Wing" by Willie Coppens, an autobiography and very enlightening.

For more overall information and technical details as well as personnel etc, I'd recommend Above Flanders' Fields by Walter Pieters. It goes into great detail about the personalities, equipment, squadrons etc of the Belgian Air Corps, another very interesting read in my opinion.

 

Ian

 

[Sabrejet]

+1 for Churchill’s War Against the Zeppelin 1914-18. It's a bit specialist, but has great insight on the Zeppelin war. I'd also recommend Barker VC by Wayne Ralph and Dancing in the Sky: The Royal Flying Corps in Canada by CW Hunt. Shooting the Front: Allied Aerial Reconnaissance in the First World War by Terrence J Finnegan is also a good reference.

 

You won't get a book of substance which covers it all, so I'd recommend all of the above as authoritative reads on specific subjects across a fair range. 

[zeppelfahrt]

Cuneo, John R., Winged Mars (2 volumes)

 

This seems to be a good price for volume one 1870-1914}:

https://www.biblio.com/book/winged-mars-vol-1-john-r/d/54423463

 

Volume two deals with the air war up to 1916 -very comprehensive.

 

The author died before completing volume three.

 

 

[James S.]

Winged Sabres: One of the RFC’s Most Decorated Squadrons by Robert A. Sellwood. 20 Squadron RFC. I highly recommend this book.

 

James

[dnl42]

I can recommend No Empty Chairs, by Ian Mackersey.

[mhaselden]

Norman Franks' "Dog-Fight: Aerial Tactics of the Aces of World War I" is a useful overview of how air combat evolved during WW1. 

 

Rather than looking for a single volume covering every aspect of the air war in WW1, it might be better to focus on a particular area of interest.  The Great War went from unarmed reconnaissance aircraft that were ponderous and slow to a stage where all aspects of modern air warfare doctrine were being demonstrated on the battlefield.  That's an incredibly fast evolution in both technologies and operational art.  I don't know of a single-volume work that even tried to cover it all.  Certainly not one that could adequately cover all belligerents.  

Edited April 8, 2023 by mhaselden

[Putty Animal]

Aces Falling by Peter Hart is a particularly good one. The author uses a huge amount of first hand accounts and stitches them all together. I listened to the audio version which is about 16 hours long. Then immediately bought the paper version so I could fill it with bookmarks. Really good value!

 

[Paul J]

I once read a  very good book from my library about Mick Mannock but do not recall the title afraid.

 

[G.R.Morrison]

The Fighters by Thomas R. Funderburk.  It's certainly not new, but a very-interesting variety of first-person narratives.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fighters-Men-Machines-First-Air/dp/B0014B9T1A/ref=sr_1_1?crid=25DWUAMTFQL06&keywords=The+Fighters+Funderburk&qid=1683313848&s=books&sprefix=the+fighters+funderburk%2Cstripbooks%2C146&sr=1-1

 

[davidl]

For the USAS types

Horses don"t fly - Frederick Libby

 

[noelh]

Surprised no one mentioned this. Their journal is an absolute mine of information on the Great War in the Air. Plus plenty of books. 

 

The website has plenty of articles. 

 

https://www.crossandcockade.com/

Edited May 16, 2023 by noelh

[europapete]

+1 for the above, Cross and cockade is THE goto reference

[hsr]

On 5/5/2023 at 3:13 PM, G.R.Morrison said:

The Fighters by Thomas R. Funderburk.  It's certainly not new, but a very-interesting variety of first-person narratives.

+1

[Darwinism]

As Macsporran says, I can also recommend ‘Five Years in the Royal Flying Corps’ by James McCudden VC.  
 

Eddie Rickenbacker’s ‘Fighting the Flying Circus’ is an interesting read about the US’s aerial war.

 

’Fighter Pilot’ by ‘McScotch’ aka William MacLanachan a fellow pilot of McCudden is another good read.

 

And of course, there’s ‘Winged Victory’ by VM Yeates - a semi-autobiography widely regarded as the most authentic description of WW1 air combat.

 

All the above are available for Kindle.

 

Andy