Stormbird: One of the Luftwaffe's highest scoring Me262 aces

by Hermann Buchner

Bomber pilots who become fighter pilots are rare, but Hermann Buchner was one. The author, a Luftwaffe NCO pilot and Knight’s Cross holder gives a riveting account of his training with the pre-war Austrian air force, instructing with the Luftwaffe then the terrifying ground attack operations on the Eastern Front trying to stop the Russian juggernaut. Despite being shot down twice, Buchner himself targeted Il 2s, Yak 9s and Boston bombers who fell victims to his eagle eye. Later tasked with opposing the Allied daylight bombing raids into the heart of Germany, Buchner laboured to protect his homeland. Serving alongside many well-known aces and sometimes taking off from his home airfield while under Soviet shellfire, he paints a picture of a man surviving against incredible odds, who became one of the elite with JG7 and learnt that the important thing with the Me 262 was to land near a convenient foxhole. Illustrated with many photographs, mostly from the author’s personal collection together with colour profiles of his aircraft and opponents, Stormbird presents a remarkable insight into the life of a Luftwaffe pilot in WWII.

272 pages, Paperback

Published February 1, 2019

Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting book very well written and easy to follow. This books is written by the author and follows his flying career from the Austrian Airforce and into the German Luftwaffe - very interesting to read about the various types of German aircraft he flew from the rugged FW190 to the legendary Me 262.
Obst Buchner most fought on the Russian front and was there almost from the start until the non stop advances of the Red Army.
Well worth a read if this is a subject of interest to you the reader.