100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Overnight NZ-wide delivery on in-stock orders 🚀

F4F Wildcat

South Pacific 1942–43
Series: Dogfight
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
F4F Wildcat by Edward M. Young delves into the history and performance of the iconic World War II fighter aircraft, the F4F Wildcat. The book explores its crucial role in the Pacific Theatre, highlighting the courage and tactics of the pilots who flew it. It offers insights into the aircraft's design, development, and combat operations, capturing a vivid picture of aerial warfare during the war.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$4499
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you have a keen interest in military aviation history and detailed accounts of the WW2 naval fighter aircraft. It explores the strategic importance and combat prowess that shaped pivotal battles in the Pacific Theatre, offering rich insights into the pilots' experiences as well as technical aspects of the aircraft.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

This book examines the role of the Grumman F4F Wildcat, the US Navy’s standard carrier fighter at the start of the Pacific War, and its clashes against the Imperial Japanese Naval Air Force’s Mitsubishi A6M Zero-sen.

The US Navy went to war in December 1941 with the tubby Wildcat, the first of Grumman’s famed ‘cats’, as its principal carrier fighter. Ruggedly built and well-armed, the F4F’s performance was inferior to the Japanese Zero-sen. Yet, in the carrier battles of 1942 between the US Navy and the IJN, the Wildcat pilots more than held their own against some of the finest naval aviators in the world.

Many of the Wildcat pilots who saw action in the South Pacific comprised what respected naval historian John Lundstrom has called the ‘First Team’ – the small group of highly trained pre-war pilots who manned the bulk of the US Navy’s carrier fighter squadrons.

Illustrated with specially commissioned artwork, including armament views and ribbon diagrams, F4F Wildcat examines the carrier battles that took place in August and October in the South Pacific around the first American offensive of the war – the amphibious assault on the island of Guadalcanal. It details the actions of the Wildcat in combat with IJN carrier aircraft, describing key combat actions accompanied by rare and original photographs and diagrams. The book also explores the training and tactics that contributed to the Wildcat’s success.

Series: Dogfight

View all
  • F6F Hellcat
    Using maps, contemporary photographs, and new artwork, this book examines the Hellcat and the naval aviators who flew them. Joining combat in the Pacific in late 1943, the Hellcat squadrons soon demonstrated their ascendency over their Japanese opponents, culminating in the great "Marianas Turkey Shoot" during the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944. The fighter proved to be...
    Paperback
    $3699
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Fw 190 Sturmjäger
    An illustrated account of how the USAAF's might was challenged by the Jagdflieger and their heavily armed, and armoured, Fw 190A-8 Sturmjäger. Developed from one of the finest fighters of World War II, the radial-engined Fw 190A-8 was conceived as a heavy assault aircraft and armed accordingly. Its mission was to provide a response to the increasing numbers of USAAF...
    Paperback
    $4499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • F4F Wildcat
    This book examines the role of the Grumman F4F Wildcat, the US Navy’s standard carrier fighter at the start of the Pacific War, and its clashes against the Imperial Japanese Naval Air Force’s Mitsubishi A6M Zero-sen. The US Navy went to war in December 1941 with the tubby Wildcat, the first of Grumman’s famed ‘cats’, as its principal carrier fighter....
    Paperback
    $4499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Spitfire I
    An illustrated study of the legendary Spitfire and the evolving tactics behind its early defence of Britain’s shores. The Spitfire endures as one of the most iconic aircraft of World War II. Nevertheless, its initial skirmishes and battles yielded as many challenges as successes, with German forces soon outpacing pre-war RAF tactics and exploiting the Spitfire’s modest endurance to their...
    Paperback
    Sold Out
  • F-86A Sabre
    Strap in alongside the Sabre pilots as they experienced the world’s first large-scale jet-vs-jet combats. Brought to life with innovative tactical artwork and dramatic first-hand accounts from the pilots themselves. F-86A Sabre had entered USAF service in 1949, and in December 1950 three squadrons were sent to South Korea. Despite primitive basing conditions and overwhelming Chinese opposition, the Sabre pilots...
    Paperback
    Sold Out
  • MiG-21 “FISHBED”
    Using archival photographs sourced directly from Vietnam, specially commissioned diagrams, and combat accounts from veterans, István Toperczer reveals how the MiG-21 “FISHBED” defended Vietnam between 1966 and 1968. One of the most successful communist jet fighters ever built, the MiG-21 "Fishbed" was involved in a series of deadly duels with American fighters over North Vietnam as the USAF and US...
    Paperback
    Sold Out

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781472854865

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 26 October 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Osprey Publishing

Illustration: Colour artwork plates and maps; black & white and colour photographs and illustrations.

Contributors:

  • Illustrated by Gareth Hector

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 8.0mm

Width: 184.0mm

Height: 246.0mm

Weight: 261g

Pages: 80

About the Author

Edward M. Young is a retired financial executive with a BA degree in Political Science from Harvard University and an MA from the University of Washington. In 2015 he received an MA in the History of Warfare from King’s College, London and in 2020 completed a PhD in History at King’s College. During his career he had assignments in New York, London, Tokyo, and Hong Kong. He is the author of numerous books and articles on aviation history. He lives with his wife in Seattle, Washington.

The illustrators for this title are Gareth Hector (cover and battlescene), Jim Laurier (armament views) and Tim Brown (ribbon diagrams)

Also by Edward M. Young

View all
  • F6F Hellcat
    Using maps, contemporary photographs, and new artwork, this book examines the Hellcat and the naval aviators who flew them. Joining combat in the Pacific in late 1943, the Hellcat squadrons soon demonstrated their ascendency over their Japanese opponents, culminating in the great "Marianas Turkey Shoot" during the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944. The fighter proved to be...
    Paperback
    $3699
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • American Aces against the Kamikaze
    This illustrated history describes the clashes between the US and the hastily created Kamikaze units of the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy Air Forces, which were some of the last large-scale aerial engagements of the Pacific War. The Japanese High Command realised that the loss of Okinawa would provide the Americans with a base for the invasion of Japan. In...
    Paperback
    $5499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • F4F Wildcat vs A6M Zero-sen
    The duel between Japan’s superb Mitsubishi A6M Zero and the USA’s rugged Grumman F4F Wildcat in 1942 represented the clash of two contrasting design philosophies and naval fighter doctrines. The Grumman F4F Wildcat and the Mitsubishi A6M Zero-sen were contemporaries, although designed to very different requirements. The Wildcat, ruggedly built to survive the rigours of carrier operations, was the best...
    Paperback
    Sold Out

More from History & Military

View all
  • Saving Elli
    One child. Two years in hiding. Three lives in mortal danger. In Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, near Anne Frank's house, another Jewish girl is hidden. Her name is Elli. Her father has been executed at Mauthausen concentration camp. Her mother is fleeing for her life. Elli is next. To save her, resistance couple Frits and Jo Hakkens must risk everything, concealing her...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Spy and the Traitor
    The Spy and the Traitor by Ben Macintyre is a spellbinding Cold War thriller that unravels the true story of Oleg Gordievsky, a KGB double agent who risked everything to aid the British in the battle against Soviet oppression. In meticulously researched detail, Macintyre paints a vivid portrait of espionage, double-crossing, and unparalleled bravery, giving readers a riveting glimpse into...
    Paperback
    $2100
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    Suicidal Empathy
    The bestselling author of The Parasitic Mind shows why empathy in politics leads to civilizational collapse. What happens when a society elevates victimhood to a virtue and decides that punishment is cruel? You get the disease Dr. Gad Saad calls suicidal empathy. And the West may be terminally infected. In his new book, Suicidal Empathy, Saad unleashes a blistering critique...
    Paperback
    $3099
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Man's Search For Meaning
    Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl is a profound, thought-provoking memoir and psychological exploration that delves into the harrowing experiences of life in Nazi concentration camps, intertwined with the author’s groundbreaking theories on existential psychology. The book is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, offering a beacon of hope and a roadmap for finding purpose...
    Paperback
    $1800
    Elsewhere:
    $2100
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Betrayal
    ‘Tom Bower is the Inspector Morse of investigative biographers, a fluent, phlegmatic storyteller and a master of intricacies.’ Sunday Times The British Crown is in crisis, with constitutional threats at home and abroad. At a landmark moment in royal history, can King Charles overcome the scandals that blight the Royal family? Can the broken bonds between the Houses of Sussex...
    Paperback
    $3499
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Signed
    New Release
    The Chief and the Empire
    The Chief and the Empire uncovers the extraordinary true tale of Te Tai Tokerau rangatira Te Pahi - the first influential Māori leader to cross the Tasman - whose curiosity about the Pākehā world forged alliances, saved lives, and ultimately cost him his own. On a visit to Sydney in 1805, Te Pahi was feted as a celebrity, building close...
    Paperback
    $3200
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Discipline
    Silence is complicity, but how do we confront the cost of speaking up? Sydney, May 2021. Ashraf is an academic whose career and personal life are in freefall. Hannah is a young journalist struggling to honour the voices of her community. When a Year 12 Al-Bayinnah College student is arrested for protesting a university's ties to an Israeli weapons manufacturer,...
    Paperback
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Shattered Lands
    'A sparkling debut by an outstanding young historian' – PETER FRANKOPAN 'This book is a revelation … both original and important' – MISHAL HUSAIN A history of modern South Asia told through five partitions that reshaped it. As recently as 1928, a vast swathe of Asia – India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, Bhutan, Yemen, Oman, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, and...
    Paperback
    $3699
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Goliath’s Curse
    Goliath’s Curse by Luke Kemp offers a radical retelling of human history through the lens of collapse, delving into what this means for our uncertain future. This narrative spans from the dawn of our species to the urgent existential threats of the twenty-first century and beyond. It's grounded in the latest research and a comprehensive database of more than 440...
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    The Good Settler
    ‘Where once I saw a view as I drove around the Taranaki coast along State Highway 45, I now see confiscated land from an invasion road. The creation story I used to subscribe to, the one in which hard-working people came here and settled the land, now jars. Weirdly, even the lawn looks different. The form of things just won’t...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Banjara
    A powerful literary debut from an astonishing new Kiwi voice, focusing on the Indo-Fijian indenture system and how it affected generations across the Pacific.Rajasthan 1888: Avani Rathod, a nomad of the Banjara community, is summoned to teach a blue-eyed colonial officer the trees of her region, but instead is misled into indenture to the sugarcane plantations of Fiji. While on...
    Paperback
    $3099
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • This Way Up
    The debut book from the YouTube sensation and all-round cartographical nerds, The Map Men! In their long-awaited debut, YouTube’s Map Men bring their highly infectious enthusiasm for everything map-related to the printed page for the very first time, in a brilliantly entertaining and eye-catching tome. Packed with humour and fascinating facts, This Way Up takes a deep dive into the...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.