Название: Guadalcanal 1942-43: Japan's bid to knock out Henderson Field and the Cactus Air Force
Автор: Mark Stille, Jim Laurier
Издательство: Osprey Publishing
Серия: Osprey Air Campaign 13
ISBN: 9781472835512
Год издания: 2019
Язык: English
Cтраниц: 97
Формат: True PDF
Размер: 16 MB
The American air contingent on the island, named the ‘Cactus Air Force', comprised Marine, Navy and Army Air Force units. It had the challenging mission of defending the airfield against constant Japanese attacks, and more importantly, of striking major Japanese attempts to reinforce the island. The mission of neutralizing Henderson Field fell primarily to the Imperial Navy's Air Force flying out of airfields in the Rabaul area. The units charged with this mission were among the most accomplished in the entire Imperial Navy with a high proportion of very experienced pilots and a superb air superiority fighter (the famous ‘Zero'). However, the distance from Rabaul to Guadalcanal handicapped Japanese operations and their primary bomber was terribly vulnerable to interception.