This up-to-date history by leading German aviation specialist Robert Forsyth reveals what it was like to pilot the long-nosed' Dora in combat as Germany desperately battled to remain in the war. Arguably one of the finest piston-engined fighters ever built the Focke-Wulf Fw 190D-9 raised the bar in terms of aircraft design and operational capability during World War II. Designed by Kurt Tank the long-nosed' Fw 190D9 Dora' bettered most of the fighters that the Allied and Soviet air forces could field when it first appeared in the skies over the Western and Eastern Fronts in 1944. Indeed with experienced German pilots at the controls it proved to be an immediate match for even the later-mark Griffon Spitfire and the P-51D/K. Well-armed with two 13mm machine guns and two 20mm cannon the D-9 began to equip Luftwaffe units from August 1944. Later on in the war one of the key missions of the D-9 was to provide top cover for Me 262 jet fighters when they were at their most vulnerable during take-off and landing. Featuring first-hand accounts photographs artwork and innovative and colourful 3D ribbon diagrams this fascinating volume portrays what it was like to fly the superlative Fw 190D-9 in combat providing a realistic insight in to how German pilots used the superb Focke-Wulf aircraft in combat against American British and Russian fighters in the Defence of the Reich in 194445. . Language: English