ebooks Zero by Masatake Okumiya; Jiro Horikoshi; Martin Caidin in History

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A perspective on war from the losing side...By KparThis is a fascinating account of the Pacific War as told by the other side. Okumiya was a senior staff officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force. He had significant experience in the cockpit starting with what he rather euphemistically calls the Sino-Japanese Incident; and became a staff officer after he was injured.I was interested in what he had to say about the deteriorating situation as the US gained the upper hand in the war. It turns out that he and his fellows were well aware of the likelihood of Japan's ultimate defeat if the war ground on. All had hoped that the Japanese government had a plan to negotiate a peace settlement and end it on terms favorable to the Empire; but there was no such plan.Okumiya clearly distinguishes the advantages and disadvantages faced by the various aircraft types throughout the war- and gives clear and concise reasons why the Japanese failed to improve their planes; while the allies increased their advantages; in men; materials; and machine improvements.I can only imagine what it must have felt like; as his whole world started to collapse and shrink around him. He gives detailed descriptions of the results of Curtis LeMay's incendiary bombing campaign; as well as the devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.He is unstinting in his opinions of both the Allies failures and his own country's. He describes how the after war reports clarified the overly optimistic reports of both sides regarding claims of shootdowns; sinkings; and other disputed items.The one thing that I found inexplicable in this book was that; during the Sino-Japanese Incident; he refers many times to the destruction of the Chinese Air Force; and the great disparity in kill ratios (advantage Zero!); but nowhere does he mention the American Volunteer Group; the famed Flying Tigers; with their P-40 Tomahawks. They were certainly around; especially as the author mentions bombing raids on Kunming; the base of the AVG. The Flying Tigers claimed kill ratios that were the reverse of what this author reports.The kindle version of this book has many typos and editing mistakes; but it was fairly easy to read; nonetheless.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. USA beware !By Mbwa Kali SanaA thrilling and exacting account from inside the JAPANESE air fighters crack side of how they viewed their combat against their Américans and English counterparts .Shows how shortsighted the USA and the English side were at the beginning of World War two..A luminous lesson of what could happen today to the bloated USA/:TRUMP side vs the NORTH KOREANS ;the CHINESE and the IRANIANS if the USA were to engage battle with them .0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. For the WW2 Pacific Theater enthusiast this is a must read.By FROC 2531I picked this book primarily as an admirer of the aviation hardware; and you get a good solid dose of that herein. However; you also get a really well presented overview of the entire Japanese war effort; as the authors prove their point: the Zero was instrumental in establishing; maintaining; and eventually losing control of the battle front. Fascinating and packed with details; tech; anecdotes; and aerial combat aplenty !