Overview
During the Second World War, the Soviet Union's Petlyakov Pe-2 Peshka dive-bomber was unique in that it was as fast as most fighter aircraft. This was in a period when it was considered by the RAF that it was impossible for monoplane aircraft to conduct vertical bombing with any degree of success. During the war the Pe-2 was the principal dive- and light-bomber of Russia's air power across the vast Eastern Front and it continued in service until the early 1950s with the air forces of the Warsaw Pact countries and Yugoslavia. Conceived by a team of top aircraft designers whom Stalin had incarcerated in a prison camp on trumped-up political charges, the Pe-2 had originally been designed as a high-altitude twin-engine fighter plane, but, due to the outstanding success of the German Stukas in the Blitzkrieg, its role was quickly changed to that of a fast dive-bomber. The Pe-2 arrived in service around the time of the German attack on its hitherto ally. Although only a handful had reached front line units by the start of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, the Pe-2 soon became the main dive-bomber in both the Soviet VVS and Naval service. Mass production, by factories hastily moved back beyond the front, meant that numbers increased rapidly, and more than 11,000 of the type, including many variants, were built up to 1945\. The Peshka became the mainstay of the Soviet counter-offensive that ultimately resulted in the fall of Berlin. Pe-2s also led the way in the brief but annihilating Manchurian campaign against Japan in the closing days of the war in 1945. Using official sources, including the official Pe-2 handbook, and numerous colour and black-and-white photographs made available to the author from both official and private sources and collections, this book is the definitive record of the Pe-2 - the dive-bomber supreme! AUTHOR: Peter C. Smith is well-known to maritime history readers with over 65 previously published books. Amongst these are Skua, Destroyer Leader and Into the Minefields, all published by Pen & Sword. 400 b/w illustrations
Full Product Details
Author: Peter C Smith
Publisher: Pen & Sword Books Ltd
Imprint: Air World
ISBN: 9781399021333
ISBN 10: 1399021338
Pages: 456
Publication Date: 02 May 2024
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
"""...a deep dive into a niche subject.""-- ""Air Power History"" ""This is probably the definitive work dealing with the PE-2, as it provides more specific details of the aircraft's developmental and combat history that any other book I have seen.""-- ""IPMS/USA"" ""...a wonderful book on an impressive Soviet fighter-bomber, one which will keep you engaged throughout with the stories of the designers, engineers, and pilots.""-- ""Internet Modeler"" ""Just about everything you wanted to know about the PE-2 is packed into this book...""-- ""Historical Miniatures Gaming Society"" ""All of the myriad prototypes and special use aircraft are covered and there is a goodly section of its use throughout the war. This section includes a fair number of biographies of luminaries as well as the pilot stories that we have come to enjoy in books such as this.""-- ""ModelingMadness.Com"""
""...a deep dive into a niche subject.""-- ""Air Power History"" ""This is probably the definitive work dealing with the PE-2, as it provides more specific details of the aircraft's developmental and combat history that any other book I have seen.""-- ""IPMS/USA"" ""...a wonderful book on an impressive Soviet fighter-bomber, one which will keep you engaged throughout with the stories of the designers, engineers, and pilots.""-- ""Internet Modeler"" ""Just about everything you wanted to know about the PE-2 is packed into this book...""-- ""Historical Miniatures Gaming Society"" ""All of the myriad prototypes and special use aircraft are covered and there is a goodly section of its use throughout the war. This section includes a fair number of biographies of luminaries as well as the pilot stories that we have come to enjoy in books such as this.""-- ""ModelingMadness.Com""
Author Information
Peter C. Smith is well-known to maritime history readers with over 65 previously published books. Amongst these are Skua, Destroyer Leader and Into the Minefields, all published by Pen & Sword.
