WWII

WWII

WWII Warplanes: The Superb Supermarine Spitfire

By Sam McGowan

In the annals of World War II, one of the most famous airplanes is the British-developed Supermarine Spitfire, an agile, elliptical-wing fighter that has become synonymous with the Royal Air Force victory in the Battle of Britain. Read more

WWII

Screaming Eagles of Mercy

By Paul Woodadge and Kevin Hymel

Around noon on June 6, 1944, a German soldier wielding a machine gun burst into a small church six miles from Utah Beach in Normandy, France, ignoring the Red Cross flag hanging from the door. Read more

WWII

Gallant Defense of Guam

By John J. Domagalski

As the ruins of the Navy’s Pacific Fleet were still burning at Pearl Harbor, Japanese planes appeared over the island of Guam some 4,000 miles to the west where, across the International Date Line, it was already December 8, 1941. Read more

The battleship USS South Dakota fires at attacking Japanese aircraft in the Battle of Santa Cruz in a painting by U.S. Navy combat artist Dwight Shepler.

WWII

Unsung Battleships

By Mark Carlson

Some of the 64 battleships built by the U.S. Navy in the 20th century, such as the iconic Maine, Arizona, and Missouri, have earned a place in history while most have long since faded into obscurity for all but their crews. Read more

Fighting raged in the Djebel Hills of Tunisia during the 1943 Tunisian Campaign. In this image British gunners battle Axis forces of the Afrika Korps near the site of the encounter that took place in the Robaa Valley that winter.

WWII

Tiger’s First Defeat

By Ian Mitchell

Early on the morning of January 31, 1943, Lt. Stanley Edwards, a troop commander in the British 72nd Anti-Tank (AT) Regiment, was roused with news that enemy tanks were moving through their isolated valley in northern Tunisia. Read more

WWII

P-51 Pilot Jim Frolking

By Philip Handleman

Antiaircraft tracers screamed past Jim Frolking’s P-51 Mustang as he flew over the coast of occupied Holland, heading back to England after escorting a bombing run. Read more

WWII

‘Bloody Bucket’ at Colmar

By Dr. Walter S. Zapotoczny Jr.

Not long after they landed at Normandy in July 1944, Pennsylvania’s 28th Infantry Division earned a begrudging nickname from their German foes in the hedgerows—the “Bloody Bucket Division,” after their blood-red “Keystone” shoulder patches and vicious fighting tactics. Read more

WWII

USS Squalus rises after fatal tragedy.

By Michael E. Haskew

It was a problem the U.S. Navy thought they had solved after several deadly incidents during the pre-World War II evolution of its submarine service—the frightening situation of a submerged submarine taking on water. Read more