B-29 Hunters of the JAAF (Osprey Aviation Elite 5)

'B-29!' No other term struck such terror in the hearts of the Japanese public during World War 2 than this single, most-hated name. It was then only natural that the pilots who attempted to shoot these high-flying Boeing bombers out of the skies over Tokyo, Nagasaki, Hiroshima and Kobe should become known as the elite of the Japanese Army Air Force. This book details the exploits of the ‘Dragon Slayers’ who, flying the very latest single- and twin-engined fighters, exacted a heavy toll on the AAF Boeing bombers using a range of tactics including ramming. 'B-29!' No other term struck such terror in the hearts of the Japanese public during World War 2, for it was the Boeing bomber that finally brought the war home to the residents of Tokyo, Nagoya, Kobe and numerous other cities in the home islands from mid 1944 through to VJ-Day. Flying at high altitude, and devastating targets with both high explosives and incendiaries, the Superfortresses conducted very long range missions from recently-captured island bases in the western Pacific. Although ill-equipped to defend the home islands, the Japanese Army Air Force (JAAF) threw itself into the task wholeheartedly. Fighter sentai initially attempted to repel the B-29s through conventional means, but pilots soon realised that the bomber was virtually impossible to shoot down. As a final resort, units formed specialist ramming flights, and these proved highly successful up until the arrival of USAAF escort fighters in April 1945. Detailing some of the most remarkable aerial engagements of World War 2, this volume reveals the huge sacrifices made by the JAAF in the final year of the war as it fought in vain to defend Japan.