Those Brave Crews: The Epic Raid to Destroy Hitler's Ploesti Oil Fields Book

Colonel Ray Ward's magnificent Those Brave Crews: The Epic Raid to Destroy Hitler's Oil Fields, follows the fortunes of American aircraft on their suicidal mission against the vital Ploesti (Roumania) oil fields. With him you will follow each different crew, sit in the pilot's seat, and share the unique experience of gunners dueling eye-to-eye with enemy flak crews. The sacrifice and dedication of these men rivals other famous events of history, such as the cavalry charge of the Crimea, Pickett's assault at Gettysburg, or Xenephon's March

This Homeric work describes how 1,700 American volunteers flew into "Hell" , knowing beforehand they might not return, in an attempt to shorten the war and save hundreds of thousands of lives. Ward, himself a WW II veteran, recounts the secret rendezvous of 178 Liberator bombers on the sands of Benghazi, the terrible misfortunes experienced during takeoff, the loss of the lead (navigator) ship en route to the target, and the deadly trap that awaited those brave crews in the skies over Roumania. Almost 40 percent of the men and planes failed to return from their mission. Five Congressional Medals of Honor, and 1,726 Distinguished Flying Crosses were issued.

It is a sweeping epic that you will long remember, strikingly visual in its presentation and many of the images will stay with you long after you've put this one down. The text is winning 5-star ratings. Accepted in universities, twice designated 'feature book' by the USAF Museum, Ohio, one publishing consultant summarized this dramatic story of individual ships desperately fighting to drive home the attack while fending off their own impending death, by stating to Author Ward, "What you have achieved is more than in 1,000 authors. Something truly lasting." The book is written to memorialize men inspired by belief in God, Country, and Freedom. The book is richly illustrated with numerous photographs.