{"product_id":"f4f-wildcat-and-f6f-hellcat-aces-of-vf-2","title":"Thomas Mckel Cleaver: F4F Wildcat and F6F Hellcat Aces of VF-2 [2015] paperback","description":"The first VF-2 was a prewar unit that had been dubbed the 'hottest outfit afloat' due to the skill of their non-commissioned pilots. This first unit only saw combat at the Battle of the Coral Sea, although VF-2 pilots flying Grumman F4F Wildcats were able to rack up 17 claims there during the bitter 48-hour period of fighting. The second 'Fighting Two' was armed with the new Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat fighter. Arriving in Hawaii in October 1943, the squadron so impressed Cdr Edward H 'Butch' O'Hare, the Medal of Honor-winning first US Navy ace of World War 2, that he requested the squadron replace VF-6 in his CAG-6 aboard USS Enterprise. No unit US Navy unit created more aces than VF-2, whose pilots went into action over the Carolines, Marianas, Guam, Iwo Jima and the Battle of the Philippine Sea. Using exquisite photographs and first-hand accounts from the elite fliers themselves, this volume tells the story of the ace pilots who comprised the original VF-2 and the second.","brand":"Cleaver, Thomas Mckel \u0026 Laurier, Jim (Illustrator) \u0026 Postlethwaite, Mark (Cover Illustrator)","offers":[{"title":"New","offer_id":44538686210338,"sku":"9781472805584","price":18.2,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0616\/4001\/6057\/products\/cleaver-thomas-mckel-laurier-jim-illustrator-postlethwaite-mark-cover-illustrator-f4f-wildcat-and-f6f-hellcat-aces-of-vf-2-9781472805584-40688152838434.jpg?v=1677445005","url":"https:\/\/keatsandchapman.info\/products\/f4f-wildcat-and-f6f-hellcat-aces-of-vf-2","provider":"Chapters Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}