Inferno: The True Story of a B-17 Gunner's Heroism and the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History

Inferno: The True Story of a B-17 Gunner's Heroism and the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History
Joe Pappalardo
RRP:
NZ$ 57.99
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NZ$ 43.49
Hardback
h233 x 154mm - 352pg
11 Jan 2021 US
International import eta 7-19 days
9781250264237
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There' s no higher accolade in the U. S. military than the Medal of Honor, and 472 people received it for their action during World War II. But only one was demoted right after: Maynard Harrison Smith. Smith is one of the most unlikely heroes of the war, where he served in B-17s during the early days of the bombing of France and Germany from England. From his juvenile delinquent past in Michigan, through the war and during the decades after, Smith' s life seemed to be a series of very public missteps. The other airmen took to calling the 5-foot, 5-inch airman "Snuffy" after an unappealing movie character. This is the man who, on a tragically mishandled mission over France on May 1, 1943, single-handedly saved the crewman in his stricken B-17. His ordeal is part of a forgotten mission that aircrews came to call the May Day Massacre. The skies over Europe in 1943 were a charnel house for U. S. pilots, who were being led by tacticians surprised by the brutal effectiveness of German defenses. By May 1943 the combat losses among bomb crews were a staggering 40 to 50 percent. This book examines Smith' s life in a new light, through the use of exclusive interviews of those who knew him (including fellow MOH recipients and family) as well as public and archival records. This is both a thrilling and horrifying story of the air war over Europe and a fascinating look at one of America' s forgotten heroes.
With both his heroism and his flaws, Medal of Honor recipient ' Snuffy Smith' perfectly represents the dramatic and deadly campaign for control of the skies over Europe in World War II. The ornery, charming, and brave B-17 tail gunner anchors this thrilling tale of how, warts and all, we won that brilliant and bloody air war. --Tom Clavin, New York Times bestselling author of Tombstone and co-author of Lucky 666 "Inferno is written with the energy, resolve, bloody-mindedness of a B-17. This is the Greatest Generation reconsidered as a diminutive Michigan-born anti-hero who is awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his amazing conduct on his first combat mission over Europe, May 1, 1943. Pappalardo' s story takes on more than Maynard' s Smith' s pell-mell and eventually surprisingly sad life. The book reconsiders the still controversial American decision to carry out daylight bomber attacks, 1943-44, that led to well-documented and shocking casualty rates. This is a thrilling and important read. --John Batchelor, nationally syndicated radio host and author
JOE PAPPALARDO is the author of critically acclaimed books The Secret History of Sunflowers (2008) and Spaceport Earth (2017). Pappalardo is a former associate editor and occasional contributor at Smithsonian Air & Space, and has worked at National Defense, and American Way magazines. He is also a former editor in chief of the Dallas Observer. He has appeared on CNN, Fox News, CNBC and C-SPAN. He' s a regular guest on the nationally syndicated radio program, The John Bachelor Show.
Status: Indent title, imported to order
ISBN-13: 9781250264237
Published: 11 Jan 2021
Published In: United States
Imprint: St Martin's Press
Publisher: St Martin's Press
Format: Hardback
Height: 233mm
Width: 154mm
Weight: 300g
Pages: 352

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