audiobook World War II Airborne Warfare Tactics (Elite) by Gordon L. Rottman in History

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. It's a good introduction to the subjectBy FilipeGordon L. Rottman's book on WWII Airborne Warfare is quite good; but it contemplated so much ground and so many combatants that there is no space left for actual tactics. He covered both parachute and glider troops; the US; British; German; Japanese and Soviet airborne forces. There was too much space dedicated to the background of airborne warfare (although badly needed); there were the study of original concepts; some shallow historical narratives and later doctrine concepts and this arrangement left many questions unanswered.The plates also doesn't help much; as the A shows some unusual weapons issued to airborne troops; B and C two battle scenes; D; E and F three maps with little to add to the content of the book; G showing the special equipments of the US pathfinders and H a parachute reinforcement effort. Another problem is that the Polish paratroopers are virtually ignored; as they are only mentioned once; and I hope to see more on them in the future. This space could be better used with actual fighting scenes showing Soviet and Japanese airborne forces in action; as they were left out of the plates altogether (the plates showing troop movements are "quantité négligeable"). Much was said about the lack of punch in the airborne infantry and artillery and the plates should have been dedicated to say more about it. Another thing that should have been contemplated was the different kinds of parachutes and their lifting capacity; that were mentioned in the text and could have survived the cut into the plates section - especially the odd Soviet models. And yet another question was the Axis understanding of the importance of heavy machine guns in infantry combat that is clearly shown in the tables comparing the five forces studied; plates showing those different dispositions would be welcomed.All in all; the book left too many subjects to be dealt with. As the WWII Glider Tactics has come out and is a success; I believe a book on WWII Parachute Tactics will come soon - or at least it should - and we will see the Soviet airborne tactics only mentioned by Rottman and that seem to very interesting. Another problem is that the Italians did make one combat jump - by the Italian A.D.R.A. (Arditi Distruttori della Regia Aeronautica) and as a successful SOF operation in the British rearguard; between Bardia and Tobruk; aiming at destroying German and Italian aircraft captured intact by the British. I do recommend this book as it is well written and has the typical flavor of other books from Gordon L. Rottman; but I believe it needs an expansion in the lines I already mentioned.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Great bookBy Michelle C.This book is a great reference for different battles with airborne troops throughout the war. It even covers Russian units which are terribly overlooked. The art is amazing with detailed information about all nations contributions to the airborne development.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy RICHARD CLIFFORDVERY INFORATIVE THINGS I DID NOT KNOW MY DAD WENT THROUGH