America's Few

Reviews / Votes

America's Few describes Marine Corps aviation's few: the two dozen 'double digit' aces who gained hard-won air superiority in the first year of the Pacific War, many of whom contributed en route to VJ Day. Bill Yenne not only describes their combat careers but the youthful backgrounds that shaped who they were beyond what they did. * Barrett Tillman, author of 'U.S. Marine Corps Fighter Squadrons of World War II' * Readable and well researched, America's Few chronicles the combat history of the 'double-digit' fighter aces, an elite cohort of Marine Corps aviators who shot down ten or more Japanese warplanes while flying the famed F4F Wildcat and F4U Corsair. An essential addition to the bookshelf of readers interested in the F4U Corsair and the remarkable pilots who flew them. * Steven K. Bailey, author of 'Bold Venture: The American Bombing of Japanese-Occupied Hong Kong, 1942-1945' * Author Bill Yenne captures the true essence of this great generation of young pilots who sacrificed so much. In 1942 the War in the Pacific Theater was not going well for the Allies and, the USMC pilots had an uphill battle to wage. The reader is immediately drawn into each dogfight, as Yenne displays a unique talent for capturing precise details. For the pilots, the obstacles were significant and an enormous psychological weight to bear. Base operations were austere, shoot down the enemy or be shot down, AAA threats, will the aircraft hold up under the stress. Every second in the air were the vivid haunting threats-bailing out over the ocean or crashing in the jungle. Will I be quickly killed or, become a POW of the Japanese? Yenne preserves the legacy of a generation of USMC airmen that deserve lasting respect. * Erik Simonsen, author of 'A Complete History of US Combat Aircraft Fly-Off Competitions' *