Procure Spitfire VC Vs A6M2/3 Zero-sen: Darwin 1943 (Duel) Curated By Peter Ingman Presented As File

short monograph on a somewhat forgotten episode of WWhistory, Ingram's book provides an informative history of the aerial combat fought in the skies over Darwin inbetween the RAAF/RAF and the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force.
Illustrated with numerous photos and some technical or other artwork, this book provides sufficient material to satisfy the curious reader and probably the more serious student of the subject.


The author makes the most of the rather thin number of actual combat operations in the Darwin skies, supporting and complementing his account with details on the strategic background to the operations of mid, histories of the units involved, technical descriptions of the two aircraft at the heart of the book the Supermarine Spitfire Mk.
Vc and the Mitsubishi AMZeroSen and some limited biographical information of the pilots who flew sorties during the campaign.
Ingram's text is relatively easy and straightforward to read and he does not get bogged downed in the minutiae of wartime operational records.


His conclusions at the end of the book, i, e. the Japanese achieved superior results however they did not successfully defeat the RAAF/RAF opposition is justified by Ingram's text.
Aviation historians and those interested in the operations of particularly the Spitfire and the RAAF may find these conclusions surprising, however they ring true.
A relatively slim volume 'Spitfire Vc vs AM/ZeroSen' was a rewarding read, Absolutely superb book. Great use of sources, and interesting from start to finish, something that IMHO can't be said for all the Duel books.
As an Australian I approached it with some trepidation, but it gives the best explanation/s I have read as to why the Spitfires weren't as successful as they might have been over Darwin.
Definitely recommended. I've read about the first Japanese attack on Darwin, a regular Pearl Harbor, but I didn't realize that air combat continued over Australia's skies well afterwards.
Nor did I know that the RAAF was equipped with airmen from the Battle of Britain and Spitfire VCs, which should have been more than a match for the Zero, as good as it was.


But for a variety of reasons superior aircraft did not automatically translate into air superiority, Despite the Zeros operating near the end of their operational range and often picked up on approach by radar, tactical handling and equipment issues did not blunt the Japanese efforts for many months.
This book lays out what the issues were in unsparing detail,

A fascinating study, this Osprey Spitfire VC vs A6M2/3 Zero sen's text is backed by photos, diagrams, maps, and original photographs.
If you're interested in Spitfire combat then this is probably the book for you! But even a slight interest in aviation history can be satisfied with this book.
Just weeks after Pearl Harbor, Darwin was mauled by a massive Japanese attack, Without a single fighter to defend Australian soil, the Australian government made a special appeal to Britain for Spitfires.


A year later the Spitfire VCequipped NoFighter Wing, RAAF, faced the battlehardenednd Kokutai of the IJNAF, equipped with AMZerosens, over Darwin.
This was a gruelling campaign between evenly matched foes, fought in isolation from the main South Pacific battlegrounds.
Pilots on either side had significant combat experience, including a number of Battle of Britain veterans, The Spitfire had superior flight characteristics but was hampered by short range and material defects in the tropical conditions, while the Japanese employed better tactics and combat doctrine inflicting serious losses on the overconfident Commonwealth forces.


Fully illustrated with detailed fullcolour artwork, this is the gripping story of two iconic aircraft facing off against each other above Australia.
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