Sharks over China: The 23rd Fighter Group in World War II

by Carl Molesworth

The shark-faced P-40 fighter planes that patrolled the deadly skies over China during World War II hold a special fascination for aviation and military history enthusiasts. Yet even now, more than fifty years later, little is known about the employment of those extraordinary machines, the courageous men who flew them, and the very different kind of war they fought. And much of what people think they know is wrong.
Sharks Over China sets the record straight. It is the first history of the U.S. Army Air Corps unit that incorporated Gen. Claire Chennault's famous Flying Tigers - the 23rd Fighter Group. During the dark days immediately after Pearl Harbor, most news from the Asian front was bad - with the exception of reports about the Flying Tigers and their successor, the 23rd. Day after day, the P-40s of this legendary unit outfought the powerful Japanese air forces despite acute shortages of men and material. No single American fighter group in World War II performed more varied missions, was more successful, or was more central to the war effort in its theater of operations. By the end of the war, the 23rd had tallied nearly six hundred aerial victories and destroyed nearly four hundred more Japanese aircraft on the ground. Based on eyewitness interviews with the group's survivors and containing numerous rare photographs, Sharks Over China belongs in every World War II and aviation library, right next to another classic about the 23rd Fighter Group, God Is My Co-Pilot.

Genres: History, Aviation, Nonfiction, World War II

325 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author provides a meticulously researched and accurate, historical account of the formation of The Flying Tigers. His extensive sleuthing is even more impressive when you consider that his own time in the USAF began in 1968. He obviously earned the respect of his interviewees and incorporates direct statements from several individuals who were still alive at the time of authorship in the 1990's. Several quite memorable and colorful remarks are made by famed Tex Hill. Two features of his writing style made this book a quick and informative page-turner: 1. His ability to recite details of the lives of the Airmen and how each mission was coordinated with the overall War effort, and 2. His commitment to painstaking precision in revealing how each action unfolds. From the details to the big picture, this book provides everything and will be treasured by history buffs and individuals who appreciate military memoirs. For those of us who are attempting to pass down history and awareness of ancestors, it is a treasured gift to connect us with the unanticipated youth of our gone but not forgotten loved ones. Many thanks to the author!

[Patrick Pillow · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-researched, thorough study of the 23rd FG in China during World War Two. The book also details the struggle faced by the Allies in China; supply, early warning networks and weather. The reader will be interesting to note the little known Japanese Ichi-Go offensive in 1944. While Allied armies were advancing across the world, the Japanese came close to knocking China out of the war. What may have happened if all of those Japanese units had been released for defense of the Home Islands? While we can speculate as to possible outcomes, the 23rd played a key role in interdicting Japanese formations and holding the line in western China.

[Ray Pierson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Americans may be Yankee imperialists or warmongers to the Chinese, but the Flying Tigers are still highly respected in China. This book concentrates on the 23rd Fighter Group.