The Last War of the Superfortresses: MiG-15 vs B-29 over Korea

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About The Last War Of The Superfortresses: MiG-15 Vs B-29

This work is an attempt by the authors to give as full and detailed a history as possible of the confrontation between Soviet fighters and the principal strike force of the United States Far East Air Force – the B-29 ‘Superfortress’ bombers during the course of the Korean War between 1950-1953. Military documents, which the authors have studied over many years of work in the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in Podolsk - as well as published Western sources - form the basis of this book. The recollections of pilots who served in the 64th Fighter Air Corps, and who participated personally in the events described, are also widely used. Almost all the battles that took place between Soviet fighters and the ‘Superfortresses’ are analyzed in detail; the authors have, on the basis of a comparison of Soviet archive documents and data from published Western sources, attempted to clarify the actual losses on both sides in these battles. Particular attention has been paid to key events in the history of the confrontation between the MiG-15 and B-29 such as the air battles of April and October 1951, which had a significant impact on the course of the Korean War and influenced the development of military aviation in both the USSR and the USA. Following the encounters on the approaches to the bridges at Andung of 12 April 1951 Strategic Air Command decided against using ‘Superfortresses’ close to the area around the MiG bases. The outcome of a series of air battles from 22 to 27 October 1951 - the most famous of which was the battle between MiGs and B-29s in the area close to the airfield at Namsi on 23 October (‘Black Tuesday’) was a ban by Strategic Air Command on daylight operations by ‘Superfortresses’ in the Soviet fighter’s zone of operation. These battles also influenced the technical policy of the United States Air Force in relation to strategic bombers. Extensive losses in combat with the MiGs served as one of t