Brewster F2A Buffalo Aces of World War 2

Description

Although designed and built for the US Navy, the F2A fought in only one major US engagement, the battle of Midway, in which F2A pilots managed to shoot down a number of Japanese fighters. Soon replaced by the navy, the F2A was exported to Britain, where it was nicknamed the 'Buffalo' thanks to its stubby appearance. The British sent most of these fighters to the Far East where they were used in the defence of Singapore and Malaya. It was in the Winter War, however, that the F2A truly found a home. Calling the plane simply the Brewster, the Finnish flew it against the invading Russians. Overall 37 Finns achieved ace status flying the Brewster, and it was the Finnish fighter of choice until succeeded by the Bf 109 in 1943.

Kari Stenman is undoubtedly the most knowledgeable authority on the Finnish Air Force in World War 2, having written over a dozen books on the subject since the late 1960s. The co-author of the successful Aircraft of the Aces volume on Finnish fighter pilots, he runs his own publishing company in Finland. Andrew Thomas is one of Britain's most pre-eminent RAF researchers, having published numerous squadron histories. He is presently a serving officer in the RAF. Based in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, Chris Davey has illustrated more than 20 titles for Osprey's Aircraft of the Aces, Combat Aircraft and Aviation Elite Units series since 1994. He is one of the last traditional airbrush artists in the business and has become Osprey's artist of choice for both USAAF fighters and RAF subject matter, proving his undoubted skill when dealing with large aircraft subjects such as the Halifax and Sunderland.

"This book is a must-have for the aviation historian and military analyst to understand how this much-overlooked aircraft impacted aerial combat during World War 2. Modelers will also enjoy the history, photography and color profiles to replicate the mounts of these aces. This title is recommended!" --Michael Benolkin, Cyber Modeler, cybermodeler.com (February 2010) "This book covers it all, starting with its use by Finland during WW2, then moving on to Malaya, Burma and its final US use at Midway. Included in this are super period photos of the men and planes as well as the expected center section of full color profiles by Chris Davey and a couple of color photographs. There is also the usual table of pilots of various nations that achieved ace or near ace status flying the aircraft. In all, it makes for a great read and a super reference book. It is one that I have no trouble highly recommending to you." --Scott Van Aken, Modeling Madness, modelingmadness.com (February 2010) "Kari Stenman and Andrew Thomas' BREWSTER F2A BUFFALO ACES OF WORLD WAR 2 joins others in Osprey's 'Aircraft of the Aces' series I offering a comprehensive survey of the pilots and missions of the F2A aircraft ... Military libraries strong in equipment history will find this a welcome addition." --The Midwest Book Review (April 2010) "I found this book to be very interesting, and very comprehensive. As an example, in the Far East chapters, the authors were able to correlate Allied kills with Japanese pilots shot down. In addition, the pilot recounts of their actions were highly regarded, as we are close to having lost most those people to age related demise, so to work those into the 'story' of the Brewster was greatly appreciated." --Kevin Iutzeler, IPMS (March 2010)