Taranto 1940: The Fleet Air Arm's precursor to Pearl Harbor

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title Taranto 1940: The Fleet Air Arm's precursor to Pearl Harbor
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Angus Konstam
Illustrated by Peter Dennis
SeriesCampaign
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:96
Dimensions(mm): Height 248,Width 184
Category/GenreHistory
Second world war
ISBN/Barcode 9781472808967
ClassificationsDewey:940.54215755
Audience
General
Professional & Vocational
Illustrations 60 b/w; 22 col

Publishing Details

Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint Osprey Publishing
Publication Date 20 November 2015
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

The Royal Navy's attack on Taranto in 1940 heralded a new age of warfare. It was the decisive moment in a struggle for dominance of the Mediterranean that had gone on for months, as the British and Italian navies both looked to secure maritime supply routes for their colonies. With the enormous demands of a global war beginning to tell, the British capital ships were simply too thinly spread for a large fleet action against Taranto, where the bulk of the Italian fleet lay menacingly. How was the Royal Navy to eliminate the threat of the Regia Marina? This is the story of one of World War II's most devastating raids, recounting how a handful of obsolete Fairey Swordfish biplanes swooped in and destroyed an Italian battleship and badly damaged two more. With expert analysis, detailed colour illustrations and a gripping narrative, this book explains the origins of the attack, its planning and execution, and what happened in the aftermath.

Author Biography

Angus Konstam hails from the Orkney Islands, and is the author of over 50 books, 30 of which are published by Osprey. This acclaimed and widely published author has written several books on piracy, including The History of Pirates, and Blackbeard: America's Most Notorious Pirate. A former naval officer and museum professional, he worked as the Curator of Weapons at the Tower of London and as the Chief Curator of the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West, Florida. He now works as a full-time author and historian, and lives in Edinburgh, Scotland. Peter Dennis was born in 1950. Inspired by contemporary magazines such as Look and Learn he studied illustration at Liverpool Art College. Peter has since contributed to hundreds of books, predominantly on historical subjects, including many Osprey titles.