Cassell Military Classics: The Last Flight of the Luftwaffe: The Suicide Attack on the Eighth Air Force, 7 April 1945

With so many reference books on the Luftwaffe it sometimes is hard to bring a new perspective to the subject. But this book does that very well by taking a less known and dangerous aspect of the Luftwaffe's tatics late in the War, the suicide attacks on Allied bombers and the specialized group created for this. By starting with the formation of the plan from one officer and seeing it through to its hopeless conclusion, this book gives a wonderful insight into how the Luftwaffe High Command scrambled to come up with defense and how impossible it was to implement because of material shortages. Nice quick read with a wonderful timeline given from the perspective of both sides.

The only existing book referring to the highily secret suicidal Operation "Werewolf" mounted by the Luftwaffe on 7 April 1945. Almost overlooked by history until now and passed in silence even by the few surviving men who organized it or took part in it, the suicidal ramming operation comes at last to light by Adrian Weir in this fairly researched book. Contains every step of the operation from recruiting the 180 gallant volunteers who decided to give their lives in a last-attempt-strike against the U.S. bombers, to the very moment of the attack and the fate of the survivors. Still the book is somewhat biased, trying to favour the paranoic plan of his controvercial inspirator and decorated Luftwaffe officer, Oberst Hajo Herrmann. The author has done a very good job on the subject but misses several details of the operation that can be confirmed by other books such as the sick ambitions of Oberst Herrmann to preserve his name in history whatever the cost. Although among the 180 inexperienced young pilots fresh from the flying schools who took part in it were some decorated veterans, the author fails to give further valuable information about their previous record and feats, which could be easily obtained from other Luftwaffe sources. Still, as i said, it is the only existing book up to now on a hidden subject that even the survivors wouldn/t reveal its bitter details. A must for every Luftwaffe enthousiast.

Overall it is a well-researched book. But the author bought into some tales that did not originate from reliable sources and were overly dramatized by others, possibly due to the "fog of war". For example, on page 141, he writes that aboard E-Z GOIN' the pilots controlled their altitude by shifting the crew between the nose and the tail. Whenever I am asked to confirm that long-standing tale,I reply, "Certainly it's true! And you should have seen me controlling traffic when another B-17 interrupted our first landing attempt and we had to 'go-around' in order to land safely." There are a few other disconnects but all war stories improve with age. I often say to people, "Give me a few more years and I'll have you believing I was Charles Lindbergh."

This scholarly and well-researched account of the last ditch effort by a band of Luftwaffe pilots to ram American bombers from the skies is fascinating. What strikes this reader most is how the motivation of these pilots dispels so many of the myths that German pilots were motivated by a fanatical allegiance to their Fuhrer. On the contrary, these courageous men flew for the same reasons allied pilots flew -- to save their homeland and families. In fact, they exhibited more courage than some of the American fighter pilots who shot several bailed Schulungslehrgang Elbe pilots as they were helplessly dangling from their parachutes! The sacrifice and courage of these Luftwaffe pilots against all odds is human drama more visceral than any fiction could hope to depict.