Rabaul 1943-44 - Reducing Japan's great island fortress

In 1942, the massive Japanese naval base and airfield at Rabaul was a fortress standing in the Allies'' path to Tokyo. It was impossible to seize Rabaul, or starve the 100,000-strong garrison out. Instead the US began an innovative, hard-fought two-year air campaign to draw its teeth, and allow them to bypass the island completely. The struggle decided more than the fate of Rabaul. If successful, the Allies would demonstrate a new form of warfare, where air power, with a judicious use of naval and land forces, would eliminate the need to occupy a ground objective in order to control it. As it turned out, the Siege of Rabaul proved to be more just than a successful demonstration of air power - it provided the roadmap for the rest of World War II in the Pacific.>

About the author

Mark Lardas has always been fascinated by things related to the sea and sky. From building models of ships and aircraft as a teen, he then studied Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, but his interest in aviation led him to take a job on the then-new Space Shuttle program, where he worked for the next 30 years as a navigation engineer. Currently he develops commercial aircraft systems as a quality assurance manager. He has written numerous books on military, naval or maritime history.Mark Postlethwaite was born in Leicestershire in 1964 and has developed a lifelong passion for aviation history. He first worked as a photographer before turning his attention solely to artwork, and is now highly regarded in his field for the quality and accuracy of his work. He became the youngest elected member of the Guild of Aviation Artists in 1991. Mark is a valued Osprey artist and has contributed to more than 100 of its books.

Product details

• Authors: Mark Lardas, Lardas Mark
• Assisted by: Mark Postlethwaite (Illustration), Mark (Cover Illustrator) Postlethwaite (Illustration), Postlethwaite Mark (Illustration), Adam Tooby (Illustration)
• Publisher: Osprey Publishers
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 28.02.2018
• EAN: 9781472822444
• ISBN: 978-1-4728-2244-4
• No. of pages: 96
• Dimensions: 180 mm x 244 mm x 8 mm
• Series: Air Campaign; Air Campaign
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > 20th century (up to 1945); Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous; Social sciences, law, business > Political science > Political science and political administration; Japan, History, HISTORY / Military / World War II, military history, TRANSPORTATION / Aviation / History, 20th century, c 1900 to c 1999, Warfare & defence, Second World War, United States of America, USA, Asian History, Warfare and defence, Modern warfare, c 1940 to c 1949, Naval forces and warfare, History and Archaeology, Aircraft and aviation