Luftwaffe

London: Sidgwick & Jackson Ltd. Very Good/Very Good. 1979. First Edition. Hard Cover. 8o 028398516X Dust jacket complete. Black cloth with bright gilt titling on spine. No ownership marks. Plates. 264 pages clean and tight. 'This book is a condensation of twelve volumes written by former key officers of the German Air Force for the United States Air Force Historical Division on why the legendary Luftwaffe disintegrated under wartime pressures in World War II. With one exception, an historian, all the authors are former Luftwaffe generals who held important staff positions before and during the war. 'Based on personal experience and knowledge, the perspective of the authors is neither unbiased nor history in the ordinary sense of the word. Instead, their insight into the rise and Hall of the Luftwaffe-intimate, reflective, and in many ways incomplete-constitutes a vital part of the story of the air war over Europe, fascinating in itself and an essential part of any comprehensive history of World War II. 'As their story unfolds, the reader is constantly reminded that these are Germans recalling, reporting, and analyzing decisions made and actions taken in Nazi Germany, a dictatorship under the complete sway of Adolf Hitler. As military officers, they accepted the political decisions-war or peace-made by Hitler. As Air Force officers, they were aghast at some of the military decisions by their leaders and at the internal politics, personality conflicts, and planning mistakes made at high levels in the years preceding the war and during the war itself .