Air power in World War II was crucial for ultimate victory. It held up armies in the field, sapped war-making capacity at home and reduced naval forces to near impotence. Gaining air superiority was the task of the fighter and it was the fighters who determined the eventual outcome of the war. Many thousands of fighter pilots of many nations v British, American, Australian, Canadian, Polish and many more v flew, fought and died in Allied aircraft. A few became famous. About five percent of fighter pilots accounted for some forty percent of all air victories and these were the aces. Mike Spick, author of the excellent Luftwaffe Fighter Aces, examines in detail every major theatre of the air war, compares the aircraft and operational conditions, and highlights individual tactics and methods of the best of the aces. Twenty-five diagrams graphically illustrate some of the most successful combat tactics. With first-hand accounts putting the reader in the thick of the action, Allied Fighter Aces is an exciting, fast-paced read as well as a major source of reliable information for the air combat enthusiast.

Originally published: 1997.

List of Illustrations -- Preface -- Prologue - The fighter Ace - Flying and Marksmanship - Prewar Allied Air Power: The Royal Air Force - Fighting Area Attacks - Manoeuvre Combat - Fleet Air Arm - United St6ates Army Air Corps - United States Navy and Marine Corps -- 1. France, September 1929-June 1940 - Sitzkrieg-Against the Luftwaffe-The Fighters-The Opposition-Into Action - Blitzkrieg-Dunkirk-Aces of the French Campaign -- 2. The Battle of Britain, July-November 1940 - Detection and Control-Organization-Aims and Attitudes-Aircraft of the Battle-'What-if's'-The Hour Approaches-Phase of the Battle - RAF Tactics-Against the Bombers-Against the Fighters-Fighter Command Tactics-The Aces -- 3. Leaning Forward, January 1941-May 1944 - Wing Leaders-Basic Tactics-Policy for 1941- Changing Times, 1942-May 1944-The Fighters-The Aces -- 4. Maltese Falcon, June 1940-November 1942 --The Fighters-The Aces -- 5. North Africa, June 1940-August 1943 - The Fighters-The Aces -- 6. Night Fighters over Europe - 'Catseye' Fighters -Radar Fighters-Intruders-Bomber Support-The Fighters-The Aces -- 7. Against the Rising Sun, December 1041-February 1943 - The Fighters-The Aces -- 8. Seven League Boots, 1943-45 - Escort Tactics-The Fighter-The Aces--9. Victory in the Pacific, 1943-45- The Fighters-The Aces -- Normandy to Berlin- The Fighters-The Aces -- Epilogue - Overclaiming-Relative Scores - Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall... --Appendices - 1.Leading Aces of the British and Commonwealth Air Forces 2. Leading Aces of the American Air Forces -- Bibliography -- Index