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  • Open Daily: 10am - 10pm
    Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm

    3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
    612-822-4611

Open Daily: 10am - 10pm | Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm
3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
612-822-4611
The 452nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion: Destroyers of the Luftwaffe and Jim Crow

The 452nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion: Destroyers of the Luftwaffe and Jim Crow

de Korte, Samuel

Hardcover

Armed ForcesWeaponry & VehiclesWorld War II

Currently unavailable to order

ISBN10: 1399032100
ISBN13: 9781399032100
Publisher: Pen & Sword Military
Published: May 30 2025
Pages: 224
Weight: 1.01
Height: 1.20 Width: 6.20 Depth: 9.30
Language: English
By the end of the book, you'll have a great feel for AAA battalion action in WWII. - Historical Miniatures Gaming Society

During the Second World War, the airplane became a true menace. Flying faster, higher, and capable of carrying a heavier payload, air forces of the warring nations formed a formidable threat to the forces on the ground.

To counter this, special anti-aircraft artillery battalions were created by the US Army. Several of these battalions, including the 452nd Antiaircraft Artillery (AAA) Battalion, were staffed by Black American soldiers. The 452nd AAA deployed in England in November 1943 and went ashore in Normandy, France, in June 1944. Assigned to XII Corps, part of General Patton's Third Army, the 452nd AAA was a valuable asset of the US Army. Armed with the deadly 40mm Bofor's gun and the .50 cal M45 Quadmount, these Black soldiers protected bridges, field artillery battalions and other vital installations during the Second World War. Some of the white soldiers from the field artillery battalions the 452nd AAA was protecting, doubted their abilities, but quickly came to appreciate the accuracy and coolness under fire of the Black soldiers.

Credited with shooting down almost 68 hostile aircraft (one of the highest among AAA units in Europe), the 452nd AAA has rightfully earned its place in the history of the US Armed Forces during the Second World War. Although the battalion's motto was 'We Guard the Skyways', it would perhaps be more appropriate to call them 'Airplane Destroyers'.

Almost 80 years after the war, this outstanding unit's history is finally made public.

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