The true story of a legendary aviation commander. This biography of an American hero explores the intricacies of nightfighting during World War II and the specialized training involved. After a three-month crash course, Marion Milton Magruder, USMC, went on to lead the top scoring nightfighter squadron in the Pacific Theatre. Drawing upon primary sources, the author accurately captures the combat stories of Black Mac Magruder and his fellow nightfighters in breathtaking detail.

For readers of American Sniper, the stirring account of a life of service by the “father of the US Navy SEALs” One month after the Bay of Pigs fiasco, when President John F. Kennedy pressed Congress about America’s “urgent national needs,” he named expanding US special operations forces along with putting a man on the moon. Captain William Hamilton was the officer tasked with creating the finest unconventional warriors ever seen. Merging his own experience commanding Navy Underwater Demolition Teams with expertise from Army Special Forces and the CIA, and working with his subordinate, Roy Boehm, he cast the mold for sea-, air-, and land-dispatched night fighters capable of successfully completing any mission anywhere in the world. Initially, they were used as a counter to the potential devastation of nuclear war, and later for counterterrorism and hostage rescue. His vision led to the formation of the celebrated SEAL Team 6. In this stirring, action-filled book, Hamilton tells his story for the first time. Night Fighter is a trove of true adventure from the history of the late twentieth century, which Hamilton lived, from fighter pilot in the Korean War to operative for the CIA in Vietnam, Africa, Latin America, and Europe, from the Pentagon to Foggy Bottom, and from the Cuban Missile Crisis to the Reagan White House’s Star Wars. Like American Sniper, here is the record of a life devoted to patriotic service. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

It's 1942 and, as Bomber Command's casualties mount, the British Government turn to the secretive K Department and its new weapon. A clandestine squadron, composed of pilots with an unusual medical condition that allows them to see in the dark.A condition that inspired the myth of vampires.

A definitive list of nearly 7,000 claims submitted by Luftwaffe night fighter pilots for Allied aircraft shot down in WW2. These claims are listed with the following details; Date, Time, Location, Type of aircraft shot down, Claiming Pilot and his Unit. Entries feature claims against Russian, American as well as Bomber Command aircraft.

Once the day fighters had saved Britain from invasion, it fell to the night fighters to save her cities from destruction. At the beginning, interception by night proved virtually impossible, particularly, as the German bombers carried out their raids in cloudy weather. Soon, however, the navigator was presented with a mysterious little black box, which turned out to be the parent of airborne radar and the key to aerial tactics. This made a major contribution to the war in the skies, first protecting the British cities from the incessant raids of 1940 and later enabling the bombers to carry out their vital operations over Germany. 'Jimmy' Rawnsley, crewed with gunner 'Cats-eyes' Cunningham were among the first to use this new technology when it was introduced to the Blenheim they were flying and went on to become one of the RAF's leading night fighter crews, destroying over 20 enemy aircraft.

This is a compendium edition of the much regarded and long out of print Nachtjägervolumes in the acclaimed Classic Coloursseries on the aircraft, camouflage and markings of the Luftwaffe between 1933-1945. The book focuses on the operations and the aircraft of the Nachtjagdfrom its origins in the inter-war years through its desperate and climactic battles against the massed raids of RAF Bomber Command from 1943 onwards. The force evolved from using single-seat Bf 109s to twin-engined Bf 110s and Ju 88s, with advanced radar equipment and weapons systems, supported by a sophisticated ground reporting network. It produced many leading night fighter aces such as Wolfgang Falck, Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer and Helmut Lent. As the war progressed and the strategic situation began to tilt away from Germany's favor so, ironically, the pace of development quickened with the Luftwaffe introducing uprated versions of the Ju 88 as well as new types such as the Do 217 and He 219 alongside the tactical innovation of 'Wilde Sau' night fighting which saw the return of single-seat Bf 109s and Fw 190s. In the last, desperate months of the war, even the Me 262 was introduced as a night fighter in limited numbers. Nachtjägeris an important resource for modellers and students of Luftwaffe history, providing a detailed narrative augmented by many photographs and specially commissioned color profiles.

ONE OF BRITAIN’S MOST DECORATED FIGHTER PILOTS TELLS HIS RIVETING TRUE STORY OF AERIAL COMBAT... Fast-paced, hard-hitting and personal, Wing Commander J. R. D. “Bob” Braham recounts his brilliant career as a World War II fighter pilot. Beginning with his pre-war training, he takes us battle-by-battle through that fateful afternoon in June, 1944, when he was shot down over occupied Denmark and taken prisoner. From the desperate night-time sorties against the Luftwaffe’s air strikes during the Battle of Britain to the daring daylight intruder raids against Hitler’s crumbling Reich, his story reveals the skill, courage and teamwork between pilot and navigator that made him one of the RAF’s most deadly fighter pilots. “HE’S 400 YARDS DEAD AHEAD!” Suddenly there he was as clear as could be—twin engines, twin tail, our opposite number, an Me110 night-fighter. He was turning gently to port. I climbed back to 16,000 feet, heading again towards Ameland. Before we had straightened out Jacko called urgently: “Hard starboard!” I hauled the Beau round in a tight turn when Jacko called, Look out, you’re closing too fast!” “I’ve got him,” I yelled. He was above me, in a tight turn, and at the speed we were travelling we looked as if we were going to ram him. I eased back the stick, put the sights on him and fired at the point-blank range of about fifty yards. There was a blinding flash as the Me exploded in my face.