A Good Read...

Awhile back, John was asked by a publicist at the Penguin Group in New York if he’d be interested in reviewing a book chronicling the lives of the two highest-scoring American aces in WWII: Richard Bong (the top scorer and US “Ace of Aces” in that conflict, with 40 kills) and Tommy McGuire, who barely missed being #1 (with 38 victories) when he died in the Southwestern Pacific theater near the end of the war.

The Armorer passed the tasking to me as the fixed-wing rep on the blog and I readily accepted, since I frankly knew a lot less about both Bong and McGuire than I cared to admit. In fact, volumes have been written about the flyers in the European Theater and Hollywood has pretty much milked the Battle of Britain legend for about as much as that industry can, so brushing up on Bong and McGuire was something I looked forward to.

I don’t think I’d be far off the mark to say that only a handful of Americans have ever heard of these two guys—both Medal of Honor winners, by the way. Yet they dominated the skies over the Pacific theater in an airplane few would recognize, a two-engine fighter designed by the man who would later guide American engineers to develop the high-flying U-2, the hypersonic SR-71 and the other-worldly F-117 stealth fighter.

Aces High: The Heroic Saga of the Two Top-Scoring Aces of World War II is an enjoyable read. Hats off to Bill Yenne for adding to what is, to me, not enough recorded history about two of the most skilled air combat pilots the country has ever produced. The book gave me a better appreciation for what the USAAF accomplished, given the second-class status of the war in the Pacific, over the skies of New Guinea, the Philippines and the Southwestern Pacific in general. Ironically, our top-scoring pilot racked up his kills in a place few Americans had ever heard of, much less relate to. Moreover, the Allied effort in this sector was a long, hard slog that has receded in our collective memory and Yenne’s recounting of the conflict, however brief, revived my appreciation for what our Army and Navy accomplished in the Pacific in a little over three years.

There were some fascinating tidbits in the book that I had either been unaware of or forgotten. Charles Lindbergh's appearance in the book and his contribution to the war effort was fascinating...and reminded me of the man's uncanny talents as both an aviator and problem solver. Yenne effectively illustrates how the American icon acquitted himself quite well after his pre-war dalliance with the isolationist America First movement.  

That said, I would have enjoyed a little more insight into these two men from the perspective of their peers—other fighter pilots who flew with and fought with them. I’m not sure how much effort went into searching out and interviewing their surviving squadron mates but I think it would have painted a richer picture of who these men were. McGuire moved up rapidly as a leader both in combat and as an officer and it would have been interesting to hear from those who knew him what kind of leader he was.

As for their mount, the P-38 Lightning was ahead of its time…two engines, counter-rotating props, guns easily harmonized thanks to their position on the airframe, tricycle gear, etc., yet little is said about the airplane, other than it was fast, superior to the by-then nearly obsolete P-40s, and it was handy to have another motor when its partner failed or was damaged in an engagement. The Lightning, as previously mentioned, was one of Kelly Johnson’s first projects…methinks it may have contributed to both Bong’s and McGuire’s success in ways that made all the difference in who became the top combat pilots in any theater.

Sadly, neither of these men survived to see the final end of the War. Alas, what the enemy couldn’t do, aerodynamics (McGuire’s low-altitude stall/spin) and power plants (Bong’s engine failure) did. But Yenne’s contribution to their legacy and memory is a welcome and worthwhile read.