Von Richthofen: The Legend Evaluated

by Richard Townshend Bickers

Of all the First World War's fighter aces, the legendary von Richthofen has captured the world's imagination more than any other pilot of that era. Known as ‘The Red Baron‘, due to his painted red airplane, Richthofen is one of the most written about pilots of the First World War. But was his reputation inspired by the Kaiser's propaganda machine? Or was the legend created by Allied pilots who were outfought by Germany's advanced technology, rather than the Baron's pure combat skills in the air? Many other pilots also excelled in the fight. In this book Richard Bickers puts the facts behind the German ace's fighting record into a perspective with other famous fighter pilots of both World Wars. He covers the tactics of the greatest fighter pilots of the age, the dogfights in which they fought and the machines which made their flights possible. He reveals the characters of the men behind the legends, the skill needed to hit fleeting targets; with less than fifteen seconds‘ ammunition and how they changed air fighting forever.

172 pages, Hardcover

First published March 28, 1997

About the author

Richard Leslie Townshend Bickers has written more books about the RAF and its predecessor, the RFC, than any other author past or present - some under a pseudonym. Being multilingual, he does his own research in foreign archives and by interviews and correspondence. His short stories and newspaper articles were first published and broadcast while he was a serving RAF officer. By the time he left the RAF his first four novels had appeared. His biography of his friend "Ginger" Lacey, the top-scoring pilot in the Battle of Britain, was published to acclaim in 1962.Bickers volunteered for the RAF on the outbreak of war and served, with a Permanent Commission, for eighteen years. In England he operated with Fighter and Coastal Commands; in North Africa and Italy with Desert Air Force and Mediterranean Allied Coastal Air Force. After the war he did a tour in Hong Kong and Malaya.

Reviews

[Achilles Morato · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5/5

A very interesting account on the life of the Red Baron, but that could've been cut in half with all the ramblings the author goes on about WWII and english pilots. It is to be expected, as Townshend-Bickers was himself a RAF pilot during WWII. The writing almost has a narrative style that manages to keep you hooked from start to finish, although I'm not 100% sure about the reliability of some of his claims (he is VERY biased towards the RAF, but again, it is to be expected), and I'm quite sure that some of the information here is outdated, given that this is quite an old book.

Still, the way he describes the dogfights using the pilots' reports is amazing, and I am now very excited to read Bickers' fictional works on WWI. If he can make real dogfights this fun to read, just imagine what he can do with fictional ones where he does not need to care about historical reliability!

It was a fun, light and interesting read, the author knows how to keep you hooked and even when he goes on a lengthy tangent, you're still interested in it.

[Ron Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like WWI history, stories of dashing fighter pilots, detailed analysis of dogfights and fighter techniques in the bi-plane and tri-plane era, this book is for you.

I'd heard of the Red Baron, Baron Von Richtofen, but other than a passing reference to him as a WWI hero of the Germans, I knew little about him.

Now, it's almost like Manfred von Richtofen, and his brother Lothar, are old friends. I really do wish that I could have known them for real. So interesting!

[Ted Elliott · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of good information about the man, The Red Baron. Easy reading.