Tempest squadrons of the RAF
Chris Thomas (Author), Tony Holmes (Editor)
"The Tempest was Hawker Aircraft's final piston-engined fighter to see action in World War 2. Entering service in early 1944, the aircraft was available in time to provide the RAF with its most effective counter to the German V1 flying bomb, shooting down around 800 - more than any other aircraft type. On joining the 2nd Tactical Air Force in the autumn of 1944, the Tempest proved to be the RAF's best medium- and low-level fighter. Indeed, it was more than capable of taking on the latest piston-engined fighter - Focke-Wulf's Fw 190D-9 and Ta 152 - fielded by the Luftwaffe. Despite being allocated to priority ground targets, Tempest squadrons recorded 240 confirmed claims in aerial combat, including at least ten German jets destroyed, and achieved a claim/loss ratio in excess of seven-to-one against enemy fighters. Eight squadrons were equipped with the Tempest during World War 2, and post-war the type gave five more years of service with an additional 16 units in the UK, India, the Middle East and Malaya. All 24 frontline squadrons that flew the Mks II, V and VI are illustrated in this ... volume, revealing the rich variety of colour schemes worn by the Tempest in RAF service."--Back cover
Print Book, English, 2016
Osprey Publishing, Oxford, 2016