Sink the Tirpitz 1942-44: The RAF and Fleet Air Arm duel with Germany's mighty battleship

by Angus Konstam, Jim Laurier (Illustrator)

Overview

The story of the high-stakes air campaign to sink the battleship Tirpitz in her Norwegian lair, when a single bomb could end her threat to the Arctic Convoys and alter the war.

This is the story of an air campaign in which each bomb could dramatically influence the course of the war.

In January 1942, the powerful German battleship Tirpitz sailed into her new base in a Norwegian fjord, within easy reach of the Arctic Convoys. Her destruction suddenly became a top Allied priority. But sinking a modern and formidably armed battleship was no easy task, especially when she lay secure in a remote, mountainous fjord, protected by anti-torpedo nets, radar, flak guns and smoke generators.

This book charts the full, complex story of the air war against Tirpitz, from the Fleet Air Arm's failed torpedo attack at sea, the RAF's early Halifax raids, and the carrier-borne Barracuda airstrikes of Operations Mascot, Tungsten and Goodwood, to the three Tallboy attacks that finally crippled and sank her. With detailed maps and diagrams, it explains the aircraft and ordnance the British had to work with, the evolving strategic situation, and why the task was so difficult.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472831590
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	10/23/2018
Series:	Air Campaign , #7
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	7.10(w) x 9.70(h) x 0.30(d)

About the Author

Angus Konstam is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and has written widely on naval history, with well over a hundred books in print. He is a former Royal Navy officer, maritime archaeologist and museum curator, who has worked in the Royal Armouries, Tower of London, and Mel Fisher Maritime Museum. Now a full-time author and historian, he lives in Orkney.

Jim Laurier is a native of New England and lives in New Hampshire. He attended Paier School of Art in Hamden, Connecticut, from 1974–78, and since graduating with Honours, he has been working professionally in the field of Fine Art and Illustration. He has been commissioned to paint for the US Air Force and has aviation paintings on permanent display at the Pentagon.

Table of Contents

Introduction 4

Chronology 6

Attackers' Capabilities 8

Defenders' Capabilities 17

Campaign Objectives 25

The Campaign 30

Aftermath and Analysis 88

Further Reading 94

Index 95

Editorial Reviews

This Air Campaign installment provides great basis for further study of Tirpitz attacks.” —Cybermodeler Online

From the Publisher