Operation tidal wave tells the story of the bloodiest air battle in t. Ent would fly from airfields in benghazi, across the adriatic sea and albanias pindus mountains. Tidalwave targeted nine major refineries that produced some 8,595,000 tons of oil annually, about 90 percent of all rumanian oil production, and the attack temporarily eliminated about. Operation tidal wave cost 54 of the 178 liberators destroyed or interned in turkeyproof that ploesti would not be eliminated in a single stroke see the truth about tidal wave, march 2012. It was a strategic bombing mission and part of the oil campaign to deny petroleumbased fuel to the axis. Bradle earned a ba in modern european history and an mba. On that fateful day 178 consolidated b24d liberators of five heavy bomb groups, carrying more than 500 tons of bombs, took off from bases in libya on one of the most audacious aerial raids in history, codenamed operation tidal wave. Tidal wave book, to accommodate the massive amount of new material ive discovered in my leave no stone unturned research a series of tidal wave aircraft markings decal sets ill start with the book, since thats the most expansive project, and of course the documentary script will be based on the book. Dragged through the mouth of hell at ploesti tidal wave.
Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading tidal wave. Into the fire shimmers with historical parallels and modern resonances. Called operation tidal wave, the attack by five united states army air forces. Tsunami tidal wave disasters navy history and heritage. In 1943, with soviet oil fields getting farther and farther away from hitlers grasp, the third reichs need for fuel became a vulnerable achilles heel. Ploesti already boasted 140 heavy and medium antiaircraft guns, plus hundreds of smallercaliber weapons in case of another tidal wave. Military created a tsunami bomb tsunami wave live science. Operation tidal wave was an air attack by bombers of the united states army air forces. Discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that delivers new. My uncle tim, a b24 waist gunner, 376th bg was lost on operation tidal wave, and robert helped me tremendously as i worked and am. B24ds had flown a historic lowlevel mission against ploesti, suffering spectacular losses.
The resulting operation tidal wave raid on 1 august 1943 was one of the costliest to date, losing 53 aircraft, about a third of the starting force. Operation tidal wave takes aim at ploesti warfare history network. Ive got all the ploesti books, including some pretty obscure ones, but you never know if a crewman has privately published something you havent heard about. Operation tidal wave was one of the boldest and most controversial air. First, it is aiming to offer interesting and useful information about ww2. Into the fire is the first book ive read about the attack on ploesti, but after reading it, i will definitely read others. The raid has gone down in usaaf history as black sunday. The military has a long and honorable history, but part of that history includes some. Based on firstperson accounts, tidal wave is the story of the naval campaigns in the pacific from the victory at leyte gulf to the end of the war, in which the us. Fighter aces are seen as gods and heroes by society and history. Seventyfive years ago, on 1 august 1943, operation tidal wave took place. In the following months, strategic targets were assessed and prioritized. Operation tidal wave reconnaissance photo of the two primary oil refineries in ploesti romania taken in preparation of the low level b24 liberator bomber attack of aug 1 1943.
Codenamed project seal, the topsecret military operation was. The world war ii database is founded and managed by c. Remembering operation tidal wave at 75 years oregonians. It was perhaps the most spectacular american bombing mission of world war ii, the bold lowlevel air assault by over 150 b24 liberator heavy bombers on the romanian oil. Operation tidal wave world war ii, world war, world war two. He has written more than 600 articles about aviation topics and 50 books, the. Five medals of honor and numerous distinguished service crosses were awarded to operation tidal wave crew members. Approximate bomber route for operation tidal wave, the lowlevel bombing raid on the oil fields around ploiesti, romania, aug 1st 1943. Tidal wave book by sara evans official publisher page. Operation tidal wave tells the story of the bloodiest air. Please dont tell me something is written in some book, unless its a crewmans diary or history written by a crewman. Heading onetwoseven by indianapolis author paul hagan is a historical novel set during operation tidal wave, a bombing of oil refineries in romania during world war ii, shown here in this air. Holland during operations by the allied airborne army in september of operation market garden was the largest airborne operation in history. An old recording of perhaps the only serious documentary ever produced on operation tidal wave,the illfated raid on the oil refineries at ploiesti,romania,on 1 august 1943.
Indeed, it is the secondmost costly mission in usaaf history. Air combat operation tidal wave b24 liberators over. The book is the second book in a trilogy written by shaara. Despite the extreme heroism of the airmen and their determination to press the mission home, the results of operation tidal wave were less than expected. Operation tidal wave was an air attack by bombers of the united states army air forces usaaf based in libya on nine oil refineries around ploie. We feature nearly a halfmillion used and bargain books in our 25,000squarefoot retail store, plus thousands of dvds, music cds, audiobooks and. Duane shultz is the author of many books, including crossing the rapido and the. Of the more than 150 bombers that took part in the raid, only 88 b24s returned to libya, 55 of which were damaged. From leyte gulf to tokyo bay kindle edition by cleaver, thomas mckelvey, ret, rear admiral doniphan p. Tidalwave targeted nine major refineries that produced some 8,595,000 tons of oil. Well researched well told historical book on the great newfoundland tsunami of 1929. Pynup decals is proud to announce the upcoming release of our 172 tidal wave b24d scale model decal sets. Many books, programmes, films and interviews about them and rightly so. More medals of honor were awarded for this mission than any other aerial combat enterprise in the history.
I can only hope that subsequent books are as good as this one. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Cutting off nazi oil production war history online. Ploesti, the most fateful mission of world war ii, duane schultz recreates this great battle, combining original research and interviews with survivors in order to capture the tension, drama, and heroics of the warring sides. Investigators recover over 200 firearms in massive. A novel of world war ii is a historical novel written by jeff shaara about operation overlord. Packed full of firstperson accounts of men who flew the mission, this book is a mustread for fans of world war ii aviation. Operation tidal wave photographs world war ii database. The us army air force planned operation tidal wave. At the casablanca conference in january 1943, the allied leaders agreed on goals for a strategic bombing offensive against german industry and its population. One of the running themes of this book is not just about the history of new york but how new. Evans, one of our foremost historians of women in america, draws on an extraordinary range of interviews, archives, and published sources to tell for the first time the incredible story of the past forty years in womens history. Contact the largest bookstore and best bookstore in alaska. Im so saddened to just learn of the loss of such a great man.
292 59 1358 94 739 180 847 278 145 1381 916 800 1461 1404 597 235 1117 1227 1196 569 825 893 394 792 1131 373 1389 125 903 711 1143 663 1315 415 647 391