This is the story of the Arado 234, an aircraft that on one day in 1944,
in the skies above Normandy, heralded the beginning of a new era in
aviation: the jet era...
For more than a century, the aviation industry has experienced continual
change and upheaval. Many individuals have contributed to this field of
developmental aviation over the course of time. One of these key players
is Heinrich Lübbe, a man who marked the evolution of aerial
transportation through his cultivation of technological excellence. From
flying lessons given to him by his friend Roland Garros, to the creation
of the Arado business, Lübbe made a significant impact and left a
lasting legacy.
His machines, the first jets in the world, were flown by exceptional
pilots such as Horst Götz and Erich Sommer, known as "des moustachus"
(the moustachioed). In Hitler's Germany, the Arado jets were put to work
in a variety of contexts. Perhaps most significantly, they were employed
in the task of photo-reconnaissance during the Battle for Normandy,
following the iconic landings of June 1944. In this role, they brought
back extraordinary images from the invasion beaches, revealing with
astounding detail the positions and plans of the allied forces.
These images, previously unseen by the public, shed new light on the
battle, whilst at the same time proving the Germans' indisputable
superiority in the field of jet aviation. The fact that American troops
hastened to transfer the Arado AR234 and Messerschmitt 262 to the USA to
uncover all their secrets postwar says a lot about how they were viewed
in the eyes of the enemy.
In addition to many top-secret aerial images, this book is enriched with
around twenty photographs from the personal archives of Erich Sommer,
the Arado pilot, which have never before been published. The book is
packed with both color and black and white images and represents an
impressive pictorial history of the world's first jet.
