Clean Sweep
VIII Fighter Command against the Luftwaffe, 1942-45
Published on 8. May 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
464 pages
978-1-4728-5545-9 (ISBN)
Description
A vivid history, packed with first-hand accounts, of the US Eighth Air Force's VIII Fighter Command from its foundation in 1942 through to its victory in the skies over Nazi Germany.
On August 7, 1942, two major events occurred on opposite sides of the planet. In the South Pacific, the United States went on the offensive with the First Marine Division landing on Guadalcanal. In England, 12 B-17 bombers of Eighth Air Force bombed the Rouen-Sotteville railroad marshalling yards in France. While the mission was small, the aerial struggle that began that day would ultimately cost the United States more men killed and wounded by the end of the war in Europe than the Marines would lose in the Pacific War.
Clean Sweep is the story of the creation, development and operation of the Eighth Air Force Fighter Command and the battle to establish daylight air superiority over the Luftwaffe so that the invasion of Europe could be successful.
Thomas McKelvey Cleaver has had a lifelong interest in the history of the fighter force that defeated the Luftwaffe over Germany. He has collected many first-hand accounts from participants over the past 50 years, getting to know pilots such as the legendary "Hub" Zemke, Don Blakeslee and Chuck Yeager, as well as meeting and interviewing leading Luftwaffe pilots Adolf Galland, Gunther Rall and Walter "Count Punski" Krupinski. This story is told through accounts gathered from both sides.
On August 7, 1942, two major events occurred on opposite sides of the planet. In the South Pacific, the United States went on the offensive with the First Marine Division landing on Guadalcanal. In England, 12 B-17 bombers of Eighth Air Force bombed the Rouen-Sotteville railroad marshalling yards in France. While the mission was small, the aerial struggle that began that day would ultimately cost the United States more men killed and wounded by the end of the war in Europe than the Marines would lose in the Pacific War.
Clean Sweep is the story of the creation, development and operation of the Eighth Air Force Fighter Command and the battle to establish daylight air superiority over the Luftwaffe so that the invasion of Europe could be successful.
Thomas McKelvey Cleaver has had a lifelong interest in the history of the fighter force that defeated the Luftwaffe over Germany. He has collected many first-hand accounts from participants over the past 50 years, getting to know pilots such as the legendary "Hub" Zemke, Don Blakeslee and Chuck Yeager, as well as meeting and interviewing leading Luftwaffe pilots Adolf Galland, Gunther Rall and Walter "Count Punski" Krupinski. This story is told through accounts gathered from both sides.
Reviews / Votes
The European air war from 1942 to 1945 is a daunting subject, but Tom Cleaver's study of VIII Fighter Command contributes to our broader knowledge of 'The Mighty Eighth' with detailed coverage of personalities and events, plus insightful analysis. -- Barrett Tillman, author of 'When the Shooting Stopped: August 1945' Drawing from USAAF and Luftwaffe post-combat reports, technical manuals, and personal accounts, Cleaver's work has a crackling immediacy, giving the reader a genuine sense of what these pilots and ground crews experienced, along with providing historical context to the decisions and actions taken by the combatants throughout the air war. -- Lynn Ritger, author of 'The Messerschmitt BF 109' The brilliance of Tom Cleaver's latest effort - Clean Sweep - rests on the back of his grub-around-in-every-corner-and-under-every-rock research. He brings shiny gems to us - accounts, recollections, facts and perspectives that are fresh, and that complete a story that is too often told with soulless numbers and numbing narratives. Heartily recommended. -- LtCol Jay A. Stout, USMC (Ret.), author of 'Fighter Group: The 352nd "Blue-Nosed Bastards" in World War II' This is a first class history of the campaign that was instrumental to Allied victory during the Second World War. * History of War * A well-focused history of the costly U.S. Air Force campaign over Europe that fatally degraded the Nazi war machine. * Library Journal * [A] fascinating tale with lots of detail. * The Armourer * While there have been many books on the US Army Air Forces' fighter and bomber operations from Britain during the Second World War, few, surely, have been as well written as this... A very worthwhile and highly readable tome. * Aeroplane * [This] is a first-rate single volume study that is highly recommended. * Aviation News * the author has done some excellent detective work in piecing together individual dogfights and operations in a way seldom managed. * Army Rumour Service *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Illustrations
16 pages of black and white illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 152 mm
Width: 234 mm
Thickness: 37 mm
Weight
602 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4728-5545-9 (9781472855459)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Thomas McKelvey Cleaver has been a published writer for the past 40 years, with his work including the best-selling Osprey titles The Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club (2021), Going Downtown (2022), The Cactus Air Force (2022) alongside the late Eric Hammel, and most recently Clean Sweep (2023). Tom served in the US Navy in Vietnam and currently lives in Encino, California.
Content
Foreword by Brigadier General USAF (Ret.) Clarence "Bud" Anderson
Author Preface
Chapter One: The Most Important Day
Chapter Two: War on the Horizon
Chapter Three: Fledgling Fighters
Chapter Four: Yanks in the RAF
Chapter Five: Starting Over
Chapter Six: Opponents
Chapter Seven: VIII Fighter Command Struggles to Survive
Chapter Eight: The Battle Gets Serious
Chapter Nine: Against the Odds
Chapter Ten: Carrying On
Chapter Eleven: Mission 115 - The Day the Luftwaffe Won
Chapter Twelve: Reinforcement
Chapter Thirteen: End of the Beginning
Chapter Fourteen: Jimmy Doolittle Arrives
Chapter Fifteen: Blakeslee Takes Command
Chapter Sixteen: One-Man Air Force
Chapter Seventeen: Big Week
Chapter Eighteen: "I Knew the Jig Was Up"
Chapter Nineteen: The Battle of Germany
Chapter Twenty: Liberating Europe
Chapter Twenty-One: The Battle of Normandy
Chapter Twenty-Two: Oil: The Knockout Punch
Chapter Twenty-Three: The Road To Bodenplatte
Chapter Twenty-Four: Death of the Luftwaffe
Chapter Twenty-Five: A Clean Sweep
Bibliography
Glossary
Index
Author Preface
Chapter One: The Most Important Day
Chapter Two: War on the Horizon
Chapter Three: Fledgling Fighters
Chapter Four: Yanks in the RAF
Chapter Five: Starting Over
Chapter Six: Opponents
Chapter Seven: VIII Fighter Command Struggles to Survive
Chapter Eight: The Battle Gets Serious
Chapter Nine: Against the Odds
Chapter Ten: Carrying On
Chapter Eleven: Mission 115 - The Day the Luftwaffe Won
Chapter Twelve: Reinforcement
Chapter Thirteen: End of the Beginning
Chapter Fourteen: Jimmy Doolittle Arrives
Chapter Fifteen: Blakeslee Takes Command
Chapter Sixteen: One-Man Air Force
Chapter Seventeen: Big Week
Chapter Eighteen: "I Knew the Jig Was Up"
Chapter Nineteen: The Battle of Germany
Chapter Twenty: Liberating Europe
Chapter Twenty-One: The Battle of Normandy
Chapter Twenty-Two: Oil: The Knockout Punch
Chapter Twenty-Three: The Road To Bodenplatte
Chapter Twenty-Four: Death of the Luftwaffe
Chapter Twenty-Five: A Clean Sweep
Bibliography
Glossary
Index