Overview

On the morning of December 7, 1941, Aviation Chief Ordnanceman John W. Finn, though wounded, continued to man his machine gun against the waves of Japanese attacks around Pearl Harbor. Just over three years later, as World War II struggled into its final months, a B-29 radioman named Red Erwin died to save his fellow crewman in the skies near Japan. They were the first and last of thirty U.S. Navy, Army, and Marine Corps aviation personnel awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions against the Japanese. They included pilots and crewmen manning fighters and dive-bombers and flying boats and bombers. One was a general. Another was a sergeant. Some shot down large numbers of enemy aircraft in aerial combat. Others sacrificed themselves for their friends. Fly Boy Heroes is the story of the Pacific theater of World War II through the men who received the Medal of Honor in the air war against Japan. They served in U.S Army air squadrons, on U.S. Navy carriers, in U.S. Marine Corps air units. Who were these now largely forgotten men? Where did they come from? What inspired them to rise “above and beyond”? What, if anything, made them different? Virtually all had one thing in common: they always wanted to fly. They came from a generation that revered the aces of World War I, like Eddie Rickenbacker, the civilian flyer Charles Lindbergh, and the lost aviator Amelia Earhart—and then they blazed their own trail during World War II.

Full Product Details

9780811771313

Table of Contents

Reviews

"NetGalley review: 5 stars Last updated on 29 Jan 2022 ""This is a well researched and written book on the title subject. Each chapter is devoted to a each Medal of Honor winner and what they did to deserve the medal. These men, many who gave their lives to save others, need to be remembered and this book accomplishes that task. I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in World War II, veterans and/or Medal of Honor recipients. I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon, Facebook and my nonfiction book review blog."" --Casey Wheeler, reviewer at caseywheeler.wordpress.com NetGalley Review: 5 stars Last updated on 07 Jan 2022 ""A truly interesting novel on the pilots who received the Medal of Honor in the Pacific during WW2. The stories are personal looks into the life of each recipient and the stories on why they were nominated for the award. Their heroism should be an inspiration to us all. A great read!"" --Ron Baumer, reviewer at Nawah Energy"

Author Information

James Hallas is a graduate of the Newhouse School at Syracuse University and was in the newspaper business for nearly forty years as reporter, editor, and publisher. He is the author of Saipan, Uncommon Valor on Iwo Jima, Killing Ground on Okinawa, Doughboy War: The American Expeditionary Force in World War I, Squandered Victory: The Battle of St. Mihiel, and The Devil’s Anvil: The Assault on Peleliu. He lives in Portland, Connecticut.

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