The Mighty Eighth: The Air War in Europe as Told by the Men Who Fought It

I bought this book after a rainy day visit to the 8th Air Force museum outside of Savannah, GA in the early spring of 2022. My wife’s stepfather had passed away several years ago, and although I knew he was in “The Mighty Eighth” he never talked about it. In the reception hall after the funeral there was a table with pictures and other mementos of his life, including the Distinguished Flying Cross he received so long ago. I knew about the museum and because of this personal connection I had always wanted to visit it. It was a moving experience to see an actual B-17, and when I left I began looking for a book that might help me to understand what those years were like for him. This book by Gerald Astor is exactly that. It is comprised of extensive personal histories of many of the men who flew in the 8th Air Force during the bombing campaign over Northwestern Europe in WWII. Each man has his own story to tell, and while many shared similar experiences, every one is unique. The combination of emotions that these stories convey as these young men flew through terrible weather, battled swarms of FW-190s and ME-109s, and approached dense clouds of black and red flak bursts with no option but to fly straight though to the target. There’s really only one word that can be used to describe them… heroes. The randomness of fate that decided who survived and who didn’t is clearly illustrated in these stories. With loss rates ranging from the horrendous 29% of the Black Thursday raid on Schweinfurt, to the considerably milder 2.2% loss by the end of Big Week later in the war after the arrival of large numbers of the P-51 Mustang, you can share the feelings of fear and determination on the way to the target, the desperate attempts to keep wounded crew mates alive and wounded planes in the air, the confusion and chaotic attempts to exit a hopelessly damaged plane, or the exhilaration of survival and a safe return to base in England. I’ve read a lot of books about WWII, this is one of the best.

Excellent history of the eighth air force, told in a mix of historical narrative bridging first person accounts by the men who fought. The first person accounts indicate what it was like on bombing and fighter runs, what they did on base and on leave, jumping out of the plane and being a prisoner of war and interrogated, their thoughts on the air craft, ground crew, their leaders, the enemy, why they chose to fight in the air, what their training was like, how they ended up as a navigator, fighter or bomber pilot, bombardier, gunner, etc. and all sorts of other things that brought the story to life. It included a map of Europe showing bomb target locations but no pictures of the aircraft (I wish it had), as it went into the pros and cons of many planes (P-51, P47, B-24, B17, ME-109, etc) in the narrative. It concluded with what the air war cost in terms of men (it was much deadlier than being in the navy or on the ground) and equipment and what the main benefits were (not what was expected), and short biographies of all the men who contributed their stories (some continued to serve in the air force, some went back to their earlier jobs, etc.). Loved it, especially since I have been watching the old TV show “12 O’clock High”.

Fascinating first-person vignettes by various air crews, e,g., pilot, navigator, bombardier, gunner, radioman, during WWII in Europe. Disturbing regarding the upper military echelon's decision for bombers to fly without protective fighters, and thereby, maintain requisite tight formations against enemy aircraft which resulted in numerous unexpected horrific collisions. The bombs dropped often failed to reach its target. Hence, unjustified reliance upon precision bombing and its policy tragically led to wasteful devastation: lives, planes, fuel, supplies. The author deftly portrays the men who bravely fought under despicable conditions.

Insightful look at the lives of the men of the eighth air force in action over Europe during WWII. It was obviously terrifying, but they overcame their fears and got the job done. I was struck by the seemingly random "selection" of those who got to survive and those who didn't. A friend's brother was shot down and killed just 15 days before Germany's surrender. Gave me pause to think of the impact of the losses many suffered for our freedom.

Can one believe that it was a 1 & 3 chance to make all the required flying missions from England during WWII to qualify an air crew to retire from the war!? The book The Mighty 8th, tells the story of so many flight crews that were trying to make the 25 missions. Day light bombing meant SO many air craft of the 8th were prime targets by the German Luftwaffe and ground to air flak and yet the aircrews flew which meant the lessening of Germany's influence in WWII. The book takes the reader to the time with stories from the men who were involved literally with their lives and the aircraft they flew and maintained.

Good

The book was in great shape, not torn or damaged in any way. There was a little sticky residue on the cover where there must have been a price sticker some time in the past. I got it off without too much trouble. Many years ago a person I worked with loaned me this book and when I finished reading it, told me I could keep it. I refused his kind offer. Then, recently I had read a few things in a magazine article about the Eighth Air Force and remembered the book, and wished I accepted the owners kind offer. So, I started looking for a replacement, and was happy I could find a good copy that wasn't all that expensive.

I read mostly of history and am willing to submit to a lot of detail and rabbit trails that might bother some readers. The personal stories of the men who fought to stop Hitler were, to me, very interesting. I knew a WWII B-17 pilot who flew 34 missions into Nazi Germany. It's amazing that his entire crew escaped injury and flew together for all of those terrifying bomber missions! The area from which the Eighth AF operated is an area I lived in during my time in the Air Force. The mens' stories and a bit of dis-jointedness in the overall narrative were what you would expect if you sat down and listened to them relate their experiences in the war.

Not read it as yet but looking thru it and having read many books on this subject it looks very good

If your interested in aviation and Norfolk in WW2 this is a very good book to read and wet your appetite

Great book lots of great stories.

I lost all confidence in this author's dedication to accuracy when he told me that Douglas Bader had lost both his legs "when shot down during the Battle of Britain" (page21). Even a viewing of the old 1950s Bader biopic, 'Reach For the Sky', would have informed him about what really happened. He also seems to believe that the B-17's astrodome, through which the navigator was able to fix his position by taking sightings on the stars with a sextant, was some sort of radar installation! If Astor is as sloppy and ignorant as this, how can I rely on the accuracy of anything else in his books?

If you are going to write a history of the Eighth airforce and the men who served in it for god sake do them the justice of getting the facts right. Thirty pages in and I came across two glaring mistakes that tainted the who book for me. One was the description of planes used by the british the other was the Author stated that Douglas Bader lost his legs in the battle of Britian??.If you can not get the basic facts right then don't bother these guys deserve the truth.