Originally published in 1980 and still the best one-volume aerial
history of World War II, Richard Overy's classic work remains profound
and highly origi-nal. Far from just an account of the various air
battles, Professor Overy treats the air war as a complex and fascinating
historical web, woven out of grand strategy, economic mobilization, the
recruitment of science, and the nature of leadership and training.
Analyzing the achievements and failures of the aerial component of the
war, he places it in perspective by explaining the role aviation played
in the overall conflict. He points out that while the Axis powers tended
to limit their use of air power to one major role, such as support of
ground forces, the Allies exploited all aspects of aerial doctrine: air
defense, strategic bombardment, air-naval cooperation, and ground
support. He also demonstrates how aircraft ensured that the Second World
War became a people's war and how success in the air war was, in a very
real sense, a test of a nation's modernity. The air war was won and lost
not only in the skies but also in the factories and the research
institutes. Finally, the author dispels many popular myths and in
particular reveals that although air power in the form of strategic
bombing by itself did not deter-mine the war's final outcome, its use
dramatically illustrated the complexities of managing modern war.
Richard Overy's The Air War thus deepens our under-standing not only
of World War II but of military history in general.