Kangaroo Squadron: American Courage in the Darkest Days of World War II

Military historian Gamble (Target Rabaul) delivers an inspiring and impeccably researched tale of the Australia-based 38th Reconnaissance Squadron’s air combat against the Japanese from December 1941 through September 1942. Unlike the later bombing campaigns, these early actions were small and somewhat ad hoc, but they were strategically vital, Gamble writes. The Kangaroo Squadron faced unusually steep challenges; in addition to bad weather, extremely challenging over-ocean navigation, and flight distances that stressed their planes’ fuel endurance, no ground personnel were available for two months, so the crews did all the maintenance and repairs on their B-17E bombers in addition to flying eight- to 12-hour-long missions. Nevertheless, they contributed to some of the major actions of the war: they flew into the middle of the attack on Pearl Harbor; carried out several daring missions to the Philippines, including the rescue of General MacArthur and his family; and played an important role in U.S. victories at the Battle of the Coral Sea and the battle for Guadalcanal. Both the air war expert and the general reader will enjoy and learn something from this well-crafted work. [em](Nov.) [/em]