Check Six!: A Thunderbolt Pilot's War Across the Pacific
Jim Curran · Terrence Popravak
Jul 2015 · Casemate
3.8star
4 reviewsreport
Ebook
352
Pages
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About this ebook
“Makes you proud to be an American . . . a wonderful, fast-paced read, and I highly recommend it for any World War II aviation enthusiast” (Military Review).
There were no mission limits for a pilot in the Pacific during World War II; unlike in Europe, you flew until it was time to go home. So it was for James “Jug” Curran, all the way from New Guinea to the Philippines with the 348th Fighter Group, the first P-47 Thunderbolt outfit in the Pacific.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Curran volunteered to try flying in the blue yonder and trained as an Army fighter pilot. He got his wish to fly the P-47 in the Pacific, going into combat in August 1943, in New Guinea, and later helping start the “Black Rams” fighter squadron. The heavy US Thunderbolts were at first curious to encounter the nimble, battle-hardened Japanese in aerial combat, but soon, the American pilots gained skill of their own and their planes proved superior. Bombers on both sides could fall to fighters, but the fighters themselves were eyeball to eyeball, best man win.
Check Six! is an aviation chronicle that brings the reader into flight, then into the fight, throughout the Pacific War and back. This work, from someone who was there, captures the combat experience of our aviators in the Pacific, aided by pertinent excerpts from the official histories of units that “Jug” Curran flew with.
“Jim Curran is not afraid to share his moments of fear and emotions during the air battles with his readers which gives the book an extra dimension.” —AviationBookReviews.com
There were no mission limits for a pilot in the Pacific during World War II; unlike in Europe, you flew until it was time to go home. So it was for James “Jug” Curran, all the way from New Guinea to the Philippines with the 348th Fighter Group, the first P-47 Thunderbolt outfit in the Pacific.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Curran volunteered to try flying in the blue yonder and trained as an Army fighter pilot. He got his wish to fly the P-47 in the Pacific, going into combat in August 1943, in New Guinea, and later helping start the “Black Rams” fighter squadron. The heavy US Thunderbolts were at first curious to encounter the nimble, battle-hardened Japanese in aerial combat, but soon, the American pilots gained skill of their own and their planes proved superior. Bombers on both sides could fall to fighters, but the fighters themselves were eyeball to eyeball, best man win.
Check Six! is an aviation chronicle that brings the reader into flight, then into the fight, throughout the Pacific War and back. This work, from someone who was there, captures the combat experience of our aviators in the Pacific, aided by pertinent excerpts from the official histories of units that “Jug” Curran flew with.
“Jim Curran is not afraid to share his moments of fear and emotions during the air battles with his readers which gives the book an extra dimension.” —AviationBookReviews.com
Ratings and reviews
3.8
4 reviews
Ed Smit
- Flag inappropriate
May 8, 2023
pretty unfinished
About the author
Terrence G. Popravak, Jr. was born in Chicago, Illinois, and served in the US Air Force for nearly 24 years at Stateside bases and overseas, retiring in 2010. He is a volunteer historian with the Oregon Air National Guard’s 142nd Fighter Wing and frequently writes on the unit’s history, in addition to writing several aviation/military history web logs.
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