- Hardcover: 160 pages
- Publisher: The Crowood Press Ltd; illustrated edition edition (31 May 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1861264976
- ISBN-13: 978-1861264978
- Product Dimensions: 28.7 x 22.9 x 1.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,120,308 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
The turret fighter was predicted by many before World War II to be the only effective way of dealing with the new threat of the heavy bomber. In the event, a two-man fighter with its armament concentrated in a power-operated turret did not turn out to be the answer. The Boulton Paul Defiant and the Blackburn Roc were only two examples of the concept to enter service and only the Defiant was able to claim any success in combat. From the archives of Boulton Paul Aircraft, the company which built every single Defiant and Roc, come a host of photographs and testaments to the Defiant from those who built them and those who flew them.
About the Author
Alec Brew has been writing on aviation history for over thirty years. Now a fulltime author with over twenty-five books to his credit, he is also the Archivist for the Boulton Paul Association which includes a photographic archive containing over 20,000 negatives.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
A little-discussed topic and one that needed a definitive examination, this is a very interesting and well-presented volume. The author has wide and enviable access to Boulton Paul archives, both photo and document, and has made excellent use of them. The main coverage is, of course, of the Defiant, but the Blackburn Roc is briefly described also, as is the American Black Widow (an almost exact replica of an earlier British BP aborted design) and similar aircraft, but most fascinating to this reviewer are the various designs that never came to fruition.
The principal criticism I have is that the author seemingly still accepts much of the wartime propaganda claims of highly inflated "kills" and MOI blurb, long since demonstrated to be largely inaccurate. There is no need for any book published in the 21st-century to repeat such obviously unrealistic claims as, to take just one example, that Defiants shot down 21 Ju87 Stukas in a single day over Dunkirk, when the true (and far, far smaller figures) have been well documentated from official Luftwaffe returns for decades. Also the flat statement that the Blackburn Roc never operated from a carrier deck is also total nonsense as, apart from trials at sea, several were embarked for a brief period during the Norwegian Campaign, and Petty Officer (A) W. J. Heard flew one from the carrier "Ark Royal" on combat patrol off Norway in April/May 1940.
Such points apart, the book is, generally, very well done and is recommended.
The principal criticism I have is that the author seemingly still accepts much of the wartime propaganda claims of highly inflated "kills" and MOI blurb, long since demonstrated to be largely inaccurate. There is no need for any book published in the 21st-century to repeat such obviously unrealistic claims as, to take just one example, that Defiants shot down 21 Ju87 Stukas in a single day over Dunkirk, when the true (and far, far smaller figures) have been well documentated from official Luftwaffe returns for decades. Also the flat statement that the Blackburn Roc never operated from a carrier deck is also total nonsense as, apart from trials at sea, several were embarked for a brief period during the Norwegian Campaign, and Petty Officer (A) W. J. Heard flew one from the carrier "Ark Royal" on combat patrol off Norway in April/May 1940.
Such points apart, the book is, generally, very well done and is recommended.
1 of 3 people found the following review helpful
This is a excellent book it all tells about the history of turrett fighters.
Glenn Davis
Glenn Davis
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3 reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Outstanding overview of all turret fighters
8 May 2003
A very well researched, easy to read book about the fascinating history of the turret equipped fighters. This book covers the design, development and production (where applicable) of fighters equipped with flexible ordnance from pre-WWI tru WWII. This book centers on the Blackburn ROC and Boulton-Paul Defiant but also covers the turret development that led to the ROC and Defiant as well as other aircraft not generally thought of as "turret fighters" such as the Northrop P-61 Black Widow. Overall a very well written and very well researched book for anyone interested in British fighter development and tactics in the inter-war years.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Explodes a couple of myths
12 Aug 2005
My great uncle was an air gunner in 141 Squadron and his picture is in the book, so this was a must have. despite the family connection, there was plenty still to learn and Alec Brew skillfully explodes some myths, one of them being that the German pilots did not know what the Defiant was until after Dunkirk. He also goes into detail on other Turret Fighters and the real reason becomes plain why the design failed.
I'm in love
27 Aug 2010
Amazon Verified Purchase
I love this book! If you have an interest in military history- on the subject of aircraft, this is one great book. Expensive, but worth it.
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