Michael Claringbould & Peter Ingman; softcover; 250 x 176mm; 248 pages; full colour throughout, fully illustrated; 2017 (revised edition reprinted 2022). ISBN: 978-0-9945889-4-4
2022 reprint revised edition now available ... many small errors and omissions in original volume corrected.
This volume chronicles aerial warfare in the South Pacific from December 1941 until March 1942, during which air operations by both sides became a daily occurrence. As Imperial Japanese Navy flying boats and land-based bombers penetrated over vast distances, a few under-strength squadrons of the Royal Australian Air Force put up a spirited fight.
However it was the supreme power of aircraft carriers that had the biggest impact. Four Japanese fleet carriers facilitated the capture of Rabaul over a devastating four-day period in January 1942. The following month, the USS Lexington’s fighter squadron VF-3 scored one of the most one-sided victories of the entire Pacific War.
By March 1942 the Japanese had landed on mainland New Guinea, and the scene was set for a race to control Port Moresby. This is the full story of both sides of an air war that could have been won by either incumbent, but for timing, crucial decisions and luck.
The two authors are uniquely qualified to tell this story. Raised in Port Moresby, Michael Claringbould is a globally-acknowledged expert on the New Guinea air war and Japanese aviation in particular. Peter Ingman is an acclaimed military history author specialising in the early Pacific War period.
Reviews:
“First reaction on flicking through my pre-publication copy was – ‘Wow!!! Extensive research, easily and highly readable, informative and brilliant graphics.’ ...” Book review by John Baxter, Hyland's Bookshop
Read the full review
Review by Mokyme, J-Aircraft website
Review by Bill Stone, Stone & Stone Books, USA
Review by Paul Skrebels, Sabretache March 2018, The Journal of the Military Historical Society of Australia
Sample pages:
South Pacific Air War cover
South Pacific Air War back cover
South Pacific Air War page 5
South Pacific Air War page 6
South Pacific Air War page 7
South Pacific Air War page 9
South Pacific Air War page 110
South Pacific Air War page 141
South Pacific Air War page 149
South Pacific Air War page 186
South Pacific Air War page 191
South Pacific Air War page 210
South Pacific Air War page 218
South Pacific Air War page 234
