Alien Vs. Predator

The Gulf War bore witness to a number of deadly encounters between these two great adversaries. Heavily armored, highly mobile and capable of killing at over 2500m the M1 Abrams is, to this day, a ver

Fully illustrated with stunning artwork, Chinese Ironclad Battleship vs Japanese Protected Cruiser is the engrossing story of the Yalu River campaign, where Chinese and Japanese warships fought for co

British jet fighters initiated jet vs. jet warfare when they fought Hitler's Nazi German V-1 attacks on London in World War II.The V1 attack on London began on the night of 13/14 June 1944 from bases

The SBD Dauntless and Zero-sen are two of the most recognizable and iconic aircraft of World War 2 and this illustrated study describes the fighting capabilities of both aircraft when engaged in aerial combat. The SBD Dauntless dive-bomber was a key cog in the US Navy's aerial arsenal throughout the Pacific War. Although a product of aviation design in the mid to late 1930s, the type soldiered on even as more advanced aircraft were appearing from American factories as the war progressed. Despite its classification as a dive-bomber and rather dated appearance, the SBD Dauntless could more than handle its own against the feared A6M Zero-sen -- a regular opponent, especially during the first 18 months of the campaign in the Pacific. The SBD was credited with 138 victories in aerial combat (principally in 1942), 107 of which were fighters and the rest bombers. Seven SBD units claimed five or more aerial victories, with future ace Lt(jg) John Leppla of VS-2 being credited with four victorie

After facing a plot to destroy her school and its menagerie of alien patients, could things get worse? Yes, they could: her absent father has been kidnapped. Desperate to find him, Zenn stows away abo

When out-of-shape IT technician Roen woke up and started hearing voices in his head, he naturally assumed he was losing it.He wasn’t.He now has a passenger in his brain – an ancient alien life-form ca

Strap in alongside the Sabre pilots as they experienced the first large-scale jet-vs-jet combat. Brought to life with tactical artwork and first-hand accounts from the pilots themselves.The F-86A Sabre had entered USAF service in 1949, and in December 1950 three squadrons were sent to South Korea. Despite primitive basing conditions and overwhelming Chinese opposition, the Sabre pilots stopped communist air forces from attacking UN ground troops and allowed Allied fighter-bombers to operate without threat of interception. The ensuing air battles between Sabres and MiG-15s were the first since World War II, and the last in recent times to involve large numbers of jet fighters in direct confrontation. In all of them the victorious F-86 pilots demonstrated the superiority of their training and tactics and the outstanding qualities of their Sabres. Relive these dramatic encounters in the skies over Korea through the words of the pilots themselves and exciting ribbon diagrams which expertly

During the final battles on World War II's Western Front, the legendary German Tiger I heavy tank clashed with the brand-new M26 Pershing fielded by the United States. The Tiger I had earned a formida

British and Italian biplanes clashed over the Mediterranean at Crete and Malta, and in East and North Africa early in World War II. Both the Gloster Gladiator and the Fiat CR.42 Falco represented the

By the time of American Civil War things had changed from the Age of Fighting Sail - steam power and explosive shells were transforming naval warfare. Iron was beginning to supplant wood. Britain had

Osprey's examination of the confrontation between the US Army and German forces in Lorraine during World War II (1939-1945). In the wake of the defeat in Normandy in the summer of 1944, Hitler planned

Fully illustrated, this study casts light on the utility and role of the German and British cavalry in the early stages of World War I on the Western Front.In the early months of World War I, before the fighting degenerated into static trench warfare, there was a brief period of mobile warfare, as the German Army advanced through Belgium and northern France, forcing the French and British forces facing them to retreat. The British cavalry had the difficult task of covering the withdrawal of the British Expeditionary Force and the German cavalry, the equally demanding task, after weeks of combat and forced marches, of maintaining contact with a rapidly retiring enemy.In this study a comparative assessment is made of each side’s doctrine, organization, equipment and training, followed by a detailed analysis of their actual performance in three key encounter actions: Casteau/Soignies (August 22), Cérizy/Moy (August 28) and Néry (September 1). Finally, a brief conclusion highlights that bo

A detailed exploration of one of the most famous warships of the Ancient world―the trireme―and its tactical employment by the opposing sides in the 5th-century BC Graeco-Persian Wars.The trireme was a sleek, wooden oar-powered warship armed with a bronze-sheathed waterline ram. It was very long and narrow for its length and beam, which made the vessel as fragile as it was fast. Triremes fought in several crucial clashes of the Graeco-Persian Wars, including Artemisium and Salamis. Alongside developments that took place in the design of these vessels, naval tactics in this period also flourished, the diekplous being the best known (a manoeuvre designed to row between opposing ships and to turn about so as to ram an enemy vessel in the stern quarter). Such advances were to make the Athenian trireme an object of dread by mid-5th century BC.This fascinating volume vividly brings to life these popular fighting ships. Superb colour artworks reveal construction and design differences between

This study investigates the British tribal warriors and Roman auxiliaries who fought in three epic battles for control of Britain in the 1st century AD.Following the Roman invasion of Britain in AD 43, the tribes of the west and north resisted the establishment of a ‘Roman peace’, led in particular by the chieftain Caratacus. Even in the south-east, resentment of Roman occupation remained, exploding into the revolt of Boudicca’s Iceni in AD 60. Roman auxiliaries from two particular peoples are known to have taken part in the invasion of Britain: the Tungrians, from what is now Belgium, and the Batavians, from the delta of the River Rhine in the modern Netherlands. From the late 80s AD, units of both the Batavians and the Tungrians were garrisoned at a fort at Vindolanda in northern Britain. The so called ‘Vindolanda tablets’ provide an unparalleled body of material with which to reconstruct the lives of these auxiliary soldiers in Britain.This book examines how both the British warrior

A detailed look at the deadly battle between US Navy F9F Panther jet fighter-bombers and communist anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) defenses that proliferated throughout the Korean War.The F9F Panther was one of the many fighters converted for ground-attack duties, following an established US tradition. Originally designed as a jet fighter, in April 1951 it became the first jet to launch from a carrier with bombs loaded, using them to destroy a crucial railway bridge at Songjin. The Panther’s four 20 mm guns were considered to be very effective for flak suppression and these aircraft were used as escorts for propeller-driven AD Skyraider and F4U Corsair attack aircraft. However, later in 1951, flak damage to Panthers increased as the Chinese established better AAA weapons to defend key transport routes. The communist AAA crews had heavy guns of 37 mm caliber and above. Gunners could use optical height finders, predictors and in many cases radar control. They learned to conceal their weapo

This fully illustrated study assesses the origins, development, and combat record of the legendary Tiger and Churchill Tanks during World War II. The Tiger and the Churchill are two of the most iconic heavily armored tanks to grace the battlefields of World War II. The first epic clash between them took place on April 21, 1943 in Tunisia, during which a Tiger was captured by the Western Allies for the first time. They also fought each other in Italy, on the Eastern Front (as part of Lend-Lease), and in North-West Europe 1944-45. The Tiger and Churchill were both were designed quickly (and suffered reliability problems), but they were technically very different and their repeated clashes had widely differing results. This fascinating and detailed work explores novel aspects of the design and operation of these well-known tanks. The roles that both vehicles played in combat, as part of a German Schwere Panzer-Abteilung and a British infantry tank battalion, and how the design features of

Throughout the first year of the war in the Pacific during World War II the USAAF was relatively ineffective against ships. Indeed, warships in particular proved to be too elusive for conventional medium-level bombing. High-level attacks wasted bombs, and torpedo attacks required extensive training. But as 1942 closed, the Fifth Air Force developed new weapons and new tactics that were not just effective, they were deadly. A maintenance officer assigned to a B-25 unit found a way to fill the bombardier's position with four 0.50-cal machine guns and strap an additional four 0.50s to the sides of the bomber, firing forward. Additionally, skip-bombing was developed. This called for mast-top height approaches flying the length of the target ship. If the bombs missed the target, they exploded in the water close enough to crush the sides. The technique worked perfectly when paired with "strafe" B-25s. Over the first two months of 1943, squadrons perfected these tactics. Then, in early March,

An illustrated study of WWII duels between the Messerschmitt 262 and North American P-51 Mustang, the two planes that represented the state-of-the-art in terms of design and technology.Arguably two of

An acknowledged expert investigates the clashes between Soviet partisans and their German and local opponents on the Eastern Front during World War II.The savage partisan war on the Eastern Front duri

A detailed look at German heavy flak guns, the defensive organization that oversaw their operation and the radar that made them some effective.Since the end of World War 2, the strategic bombing of Ge

A fully illustrated study into the fighting between the Tempest V and Fw 190D-9, two aircraft that represented the cutting edge and pinnacle of British and German piston-engined aircraft in the late y

Featuring specially commissioned artwork and full-color maps, this absorbing study investigates the origins, fighting techniques, and battlefield performance of the combatants fighting on both sides d

Written by a noted authority, this fully illustrated book pits the StuG III assault gun in Finnish hands against the Soviet T-34-85 tank in the bitter armored clashes in Finland at the height of World

A comparative evaluation of the tactics and technology involved in the battles between the USAF's Republic F-105 Thunderchief fighter-bombers and their VPAF MiG-17 opponents during the Vietnam War.Ful

Featuring first-hand accounts and full-color artwork, this Combat-series title casts new light on the desperate fighting between British glider troops and their Waffen-SS opponents during the battle o

This fully illustrated study assesses the fighting techniques, armament, and combat record of the Union and Confederate sharpshooters who clashed in battles and sieges throughout the American Civil Wa

During the later stages of the Vietnam War, the US-made M41 Walker Bulldog light tank fought the Soviet-designed T-54 main battle tank in a series of battles in Laos and Vietnam. Fully illustrated, th

Alexander's phalangites clash with Persian foot-soldiers in three key battles of the Ancient World.In this highly illustrated study, a noted authority assesses the origins, combat role and battlefield

The little-known yet fascinating story of when two of the most iconic aircraft of World War II dueled in the skies above Australia.Fully illustrated with detailed full-color artwork, this is the gripp

This fully illustrated study tells the story the fighting men of the Russo-Japanese War and how these two empires clashed, heralding a new phase in modern warfare as World War I loomed on the horizon.

From Sidi Bou Zid to El Guettar, this fully illustrated study pits the US Army against the best that the Axis forces in Africa had to offer.Operation Torch, launched on November 8, 1942, landed Anglo-

Leading up to the Pacific War, Japanese naval strategists believed that a decisive fleet engagement would be fought against the United States Navy. Outnumbered by the USN, the Imperial Japanese Navy p

By the early months of 1944 in the Pacific, the US Navy's burgeoning force of carrier-based F6F-3/5 Hellcats had pretty much wiped the skies clear of Japanese fighters during a series of one-sided aer