Finnish Aces of World War 2 (Osprey Aircraft of the Aces No 23)

Always outnumbered by their Soviet counterparts, the small band of Finnish fighter pilots who defended their Scandinavian homeland from the 'communist hordes' in three separate wars between 1939 and 1945 amassed scores only bettered by the Luftwaffe's Jagdflieger. Initially equipped with a motley collection of biplane and monoplane fighters garnered from sources across the globe, the Finnish Air Force was thrust into combat in November 1939. Given little chance against the massive Soviet force, the Finnish fighter pilots confounded the sceptics and decimated the attacking fighter and bomber formations, prompting the Russians to call a halt in March 1940. This scenario was repeated in 1941, and by 1943 the Finns had become uneasy allies with the Germans. Complete with first-hand accounts and detailed colour illustrations, this book profiles aces like Juutilainen and Wind, who proved unbeatable in the final months of conflict. In the AIRCRAFT OF THE ACES series, an illustrated aviation history of the Finnish fighter pilots in the Second World War. It includes information on tactics, tables of the units involved and interviews with some of the pilots themselves. In August 1939 Germany and the Soviet Union signed a nonaggression pact, much to the surprise of western nations.