Description This title explores the formidable Me 262 and P-51 Mustang, two planes which represented the state-of-the-art in terms of design, performance, and combat capability for their respective air forces.
Jim Laurier attended Paier Schoo.
He has written over 20 books for Osprey and lives in Sussex, UK.
His articles have appeared in The Aviation Historian, Aeroplane Monthly, Aviation News and Fly Past and he is a member of the Editorial Board of The Aviation Historian.
Born in Berkshire, England, he is the author of several books on the aircraft and units of the Luftwaffe, an interest he has held since boyhood.
About the Author Robert Forsyth is an author, editor and publisher, specializing in military aviation and military history.
This book examines the two fighters in detail, exploring their history and development and containing accurate descriptions of the combats between the P-51 Mustang and the Me 262 in what were some of the most bitter and large-scale aerial actions fought over Europe in 1944--45.
When the P-51D sortied over Germany from the summer of 1944 onwards, it shredded through the ill-trained and depleted Gruppen of the Luftwaffe\'s defense wings.
Indeed, the Mustang proved to be the Luftwaffe fighter arm\'s nemesis.
If flown to its strengths, the P-51 was more than capable of taking on the feared Me 262 on an equal footing, despite the differences in power and top speed.
However, in the P-51, fitted with the Rolls-Royce (Packard) Merlin engine and drop-tanks, the USAAF finally had a fighter that had the "legs" to escort its heavy bombers deep into Reich airspace and back.
Making its operational debut in the summer of 1944, and powered by the Jumo 004 jet engine, the Me 262 outclassed Allied planes in terms of speed and firepower ratio, offering a formidable punch with four 30 mm MK 108 nose-mounted cannons.
Arguably two of the finest fighters built during the course of World War II, the Me 262 and P-51 Mustang heralded new dawns in aircraft performance.
Description This title explores the formidable Me 262 and P-51 Mustang, two planes which represented the state-of-the-art in terms of design, performance, and combat capability for their respective air forces
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