Warbirds of World War II

The roots of the German Luftwaffe that flew in World War II had its genesis in World War I.

To invade England Germany needed mastery of the air and the English Channel.

By October 1941 the Japanese Navy was preparing for war against the United Stated and the primary target at Pearl Harbor was the American aircraft carriers.

After Midway the Japanese Navy tried to regain the initiative by engaging the U.S. naval forces in the southern Solomon Islands supporting the Guadalcanal landings.

The Soviet Air Force fought in the Spanish Civil War as did many Luftwaffe pilots as a prelude to what was to come.

At the outbreak of World War II the main plane in the Royal Navy air arm was the Swordfish biplane.

The commander of the RAF Bomber Command was Arthur Harris who had first been a cavalryman in World War I and then became a pilot.

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor decimated the U.S. Navy surface fleet. On the same day, Japanese air forces also attacked American bases in the Philippines.

The Dakota transport plane was an integral part of the air war against the Germany and the Axis powers in World War II.