Jagdflieger: Luftwaffe Fighter Pilot, 1939-45 (Osprey Warrior, No. 122)

New York: Osprey Publishing, 2008. 1st Printing. Soft Cover. Fine. 7x0x9. Kopinski, Karl. First printing. An exceptional copy. 2008 Soft Cover. 64 pp. Osprey's survey of German fighter pilots of World War II (1939-1945). Fighter pilots have always been held in the highest regard and the Luftwaffe Fighter pilots or Experten were undoubtedly the best pilots in the world, often racking up huge scores when compared to Allied fighters. It is for this skill, the sheer number of kills they obtained and their glamour that they are remembered even today. But what of the men themselves' It took a certain type of man to brave the skies in 1939-45, which were often more dangerous than the battlefields below and where a lone fighter pilot was often reliant on an aircraft that was frighteningly basic and fragile. Over the years much has been written about these Luftwaffe aces, but this book seeks to examine the lives of the ordinary men who took to the skies. These men all shared the same "aggressive spirit, joy of action and the passion of a hunter." Rich with fascinating first-hand accounts exploring every step of the fighter pilot's career from his enlistment, intensive training to his exploits in the Battle of Britain and on the Eastern Front, this book is an invaluable insight into the life of a Luftwaffe fighter pilot.