Bøker av Jon Guttman

When Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin's rigid airship LZ 1 flew over Lake Constance in 1900, it was the most advanced and impressive flying machine in the world: a colossal, lighter-than-air craft capable of controlled flight. In World War I, Zeppelins were first used in a reconnaissance role, but on January 19, 1915 Kaiser Wilhelm II authorized their use in bombing strategic targets in England. From then on, "Zeppelin" became synonymous with terror to the British, and indeed the airship's effectiveness was more psychological than material. Still, their raids compelled the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service to embark on a program of modernizing their aerial defenses, accelerating a process that would ultimately make the airplane, rather than the airship, the paramount flying machine of the war. Using specially commissioned artwork, contemporary photographs, and first-hand accounts, this book tells the fascinating story of Britain's first Blitz, from the airships who terrorized the public to the men who sought to defend the skies.

A remarkable number of British, French and German two-seater teams managed to attain or exceed the five victories needed to achieve the acedom popularly associated with their single-seat nemeses. This book comes with rich illustrations and first-hand accounts of the veterans themselves.

The appearance in July 1915 of the Fokker E I heralded a reign of terror over the Western Front that the Allies called the 'Fokker Scourge'. The French Nieuport 11 was one type desperately thrown into action to counter the Fokkers. This book looks at the developmental history of these fighters.

Looks at the many flying naval heroes who served alongside or against those of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). While the RNAS operated its own formidable arsenal of Nieuport and Sopwith scouts over the Flanders coast, the German Navy countered with its own Land Feld Jagdstaffeln and Seefront Staffeln.

Covering all the naval fighter pilots to achieve ace status during World War I, this book examines the elite members of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). It covers the members of the RNAS who 'made ace'. It also cover the naval Aces from the other participants in the war.

When originally conceived, the French SPAD VII and German Albatros D II represented steps away from an emphasis on manoeuvre in aerial combat in favour of speed and durability. At the end of 1916, however, Albatros tried to have the best of both worlds.

Amid the continuous struggle for aerial superiority during World War I, two aircraft types were at the forefront. Both rotary engined fighters, the Sopwith Camel and the Fokker Dr I triplane were relatively slow for their time, but were regarded as the most manoeuvrable machines produced during the conflict, and the classic pair for a tight, evenly matched dogfight at close quarters. In this book Jon Guttman examines the fascinating story of the design and development of these deadly foes. First-hand accounts and innovative cockpit-view artwork give a thrilling insight into the pilots' experiences during the world's first aerial duels and helps explain their successes and failures.

Presents the story of the design and development of two fighters - SE 5a Vs Albatros D V - and concludes with their dramatic fights in the last year of World War I.

This volume details the exploits of the pilots who flew the successful SPAD XIII and the trickier SPAD XII. Built because of the combat inadequacies of the SPAD VII, the XIII first entered service with the French in late 1917. The SPAD XII was the product of improvements to the SPAD VII.

An icon of World War I aerial combat, the Sopwith Camel was a superb dogfighter in the hands of a pilot who could master its vicious idiosyncrasies. The first British fighter to be armed with twin machine guns, the Camel packed a considerable punch. This book deals with this aircraft.

Tethered balloons reached their zenith as a means of providing a stationary observation platform above the battlefield during World War I. It took a special breed of daredevil to take on such odds deep in enemy lines in order to destroy a balloon, with Balloon specialists such as Willy Coppens, Pierre Bourjade and Michel Coiffard rising to the challenge. This book covers the story of these 'balloon busters' from both sides in World War 1 through a mix of first-hand accounts and expert analysis, which compares tactics, theatres of operation, aircraft types and the overall odds for success.