The Lafayette Escadrille: The First American Flyers to Face the German Air Force, 1914-1917 (MEN AT WAR)

by Herbert Molloy Mason Jr.

This exciting book presents the full, authoritative story of that "brave band of brothers" who were the first Americans to fight in World War I. Patriots, adventurers, even soldiers of fortune, they... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1568520484
• ISBN13: 9781568520483
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: Smithmark
• Length: 340 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.

Customer Reviews

America's Crusaders in the Great War

As Molloy explains in this enjoyable and often touching history, the "Lafayette Escadrille" began as an agglomeration of Americans who had drifted over to the French Army in the early years and enlisted in the Foreign Legion. Unlike the Legion, however, the Escadrille consistently emphasized its American character, and was utilized by Allied propagandists as such. Whenever an Escadrille ace was shot down - and most of them were - their obituaries would speak of their participation in the Great Crusade; as America contemplated whether to join the war, they became part of the national consciousness. Molloy takes has a flair for describing both the aerodymamics of early flight an the brutal nature of air-to-air combat. He takes us inside the barracks, where Escadrille members keep pet lions and nurse serious party habits, and across the various sectors of the Western Front (the Escadrille was relocated several times and saw service above Verdun, the Ardennes and several other hot points).