Publisher's Weekly Review
British journalist Iredale revisits the history of the British Royal Navy's short but violent operations in the Pacific Theater late in WWII. He uses official records, interviews, diaries, and letters to relate how the British Navy deployed to the Pacific, beginning in spring of 1945, in order to support the American fleet as the U.S. waged the final battles of WWII against Japan. The majority of the book's early chapters describe the state of Fleet Air Arm as well as the training and preparation its pilots received as they prepared for combat. British naval aviation was far behind its American Navy allies, and many of the British pilots trained in the U.S. Additionally, by the end of the war most of the aircraft in use were American types. By the time the British aircraft carriers arrived, the worst of the war in the Pacific was over, but the final months were still very dangerous. In one squadron of 18 pilots, only three were still flying as the war ended; another squadron lost four of 10 aircraft in the last 10 days of the war. Iredale's enjoyable work depicts an important and oft-overlooked moment in the histories of both the Pacific Theater and the British Navy. Illus. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
Relying heavily on survivor recollections, journalist Iredale's work presents a nearly forgotten account of the carrier pilots and deck crewmen who served in the British Pacific Fleet (BPF) during the closing phase of World War II. In March 1945, the BPF joined the U.S. Fifth Fleet. This sizeable task force was led by six major aircraft carriers, including 250 fighter aircraft and thousands of naval personnel. In April, the BPF came under Japanese kamikaze attack southeast of Okinawa, even as American Marines landed on the island. Iredale vividly outlines how the carriers' plotting rooms traced kamikaze contacts on radar and dispatched intercepting fighters, as well as the fast-paced nature of aerial dogfights. Between April and May 1945, every British carrier was damaged by kamikazes, killing 44 men and wounding nearly 100. According to Iredale, a total of 105 British airmen would be lost by wars' end. Following V-J Day in September 1945, the BPF oversaw the surrender of Hong Kong and the transport of former Allied prisoners to Canada, Australia, and the United States. VERDICT A powerful testament to World War II's Anglo-American military alliance. Recommended for military and diplomatic historians, general readers, and all libraries.-John Carver Edwards, -formerly with Univ. of Georgia Libs. © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.