World War II US Fast Carrier Task Force Tactics 1943–45 (Elite)

This book provides a concise, yet comprehensive overview of American fast carrier task force tactics, techniques and procedures. I found it to be an eye-opening look into the significant impact this force had on the Pacific war. By 1944, the USN had created an unstoppable juggernaut that could move and strike at will across the theater.

The most remarkable innovation by the U.S. Navy during the Second World War was perhaps the Fast Carrier Task Force. An integrated formation of fighting ships, aircraft and support vessels, it would inflict war-winning lethality on the Japanese Imperial Navy in the Western Pacific. This exceptionally well-written Osprey Elite Series book by Brian Lane Herder explains how it was done.The disaster at Pearl Harbor forced the U.S. Navy to rely heavily on its aircraft carriers to carry the fight to the Japanese. The integration of surface warfare and air defense elements, submarines, at-sea replenishment, and above all, increasing sophisticated aerial tactics made the Fast Carrier Task Force nearly unstoppable. This book provides a brief but fascinating overview, generously supported with period photographs and detailed tactical diagrams. Best coverage on this topic that this reviewer has seen since reading Clark Reynolds' "The Fast Carriers" a generation ago. Well recommended as a concise introduction to the topic.

Want to know what the Thach weave really was? Want to know how high U.S. torpedo bombers dropped from or how fast they flew? Want to know how U.S. carriers were defended by their escorts? How many more and what types of planes CVs carried than CVLs? You'll get all of that and much more in this book. It's bursting with facts but it's not dry and reads almost like a narrative because it's well-written, accompanied by understandable diagrams, and contains anecdotes that help support and bring the facts to life. My only criticism is that the book would be even better with even more anecdotes and more historical narrative. If you're a WWII navy enthusiast this book will reinforce most of what you thought you knew and probably open your eyes to stuff you never knew. It's a necessary companion to all the good post-1942 WWII naval histories.

Brian Lane Herder and Adam Hook, put together this EXCELLENT book on Carrier Task Force Tactics. Book touches on fast carriers the escorts and auxiliary units that go along with the task force also air groups and equipment in how they are organised. And book goes into basic operations formations communications and radar fighter directions and tactics, anti aircraft guns and tactics against kamikaze 's. Followed up by surface combat strikes fighter tactics scraping and rocket attacks bombing torpedo attacks night attacks. And Air Sea Rescue. This book is a look to inside on how a Carrier task force tactics were employed. If your into naval warfare this book is definitely for you. Well worth it.

This book covers the nuts and bolts of naval air ops in the Pacific from November '43 onward. It is not a rehash of battles but a comprehensive account of how the fast carrier strike force was developed and operated. The book covers the ships, weapons, tactics and operational procedures that made the offensive juggernaut function in great detail. A must read for the WWII war nerd who wants to understand that how it was done.

The is a nicely encapsulated summary of USN carrier operations, primarily of the latter half of the Pacific War. I always knew that the USN had grown to awesome proportions in the latter half of WWII, but I had no idea on just how powerful it was. This book offers good insight into that power, how it was applied against the Imperial Japanese Navy and how it was defended from Japanese forces.

I don't believe you are likely to find a more compact, detailed or informative description of the operations carried out on a WW II carrier deck unless you can find a WW II Deck Flight Officer's Training Manual. Clear diagrams with easy to understand descriptions of how the business of getting aircraft off of and back onto a carrier is done. Excellent photos as well. Not a history of events, but a close look back at how things were done in a Fast Carrier Task Force.

There are many books about aircraft carriers, naval aircraft, and the epic sea/air battles of the Pactic war, but relatively few about how all the elements of the the US Fast Carrier Task Force came together to form such a dominant force. This book does exactly that, in a concise and attractive package. The book covers a wide range of subjects, from night operations to deck procedures to logistics to damage control to radar to fighter direction to anti-aircraft gunnery. Readers will get an excellent overview of how all the elements of equipment, personnel and tactics worked.

For a relatively small book this edition packs in an incredible amount of information and on this occasion the illustrations really do add to a fuller understanding of the issues(as opposed to’padding’ and merely replicating what has already been adequately covered in the text)This is an interesting and entertaining read even if,like me,you may only have a passing curiosity regarding this general subject

This work provides everything anyone relatively new to the subject would need to become very familiar with deployment and tactical employment of USN Fast Carrier Groups in the Pacific Theatre in WWII.There is nothing new here from anyone who has done extensive reading or research but this book puts everything one would need to know in a short format. As usual with these works the pictures and diagrams are well placed so not a lot of page flipping is needed to easily understand a fairly complicated development of systems and practices!This is perfect for anyone reading larger histories of the Pacific War or for anyone wanting a short, concise overview of Fast Carrier Battlegroups.Can't recommend this one highly enough!

Excellent information

Osprey社のEliteシリーズ（一部の軍組織や人物などに絞った解説を目的とするシリーズ）の新作は1943～45年の米空母機動部隊に関するものでした。レジュメや一部内容は試し読みできるようなので省きますが、・機動部隊編成、各艦種配置・飛行甲板上の離着艦時の搭載機配置・搭載機の指揮命令方法・攻撃時の機種別攻撃法・防空、ダメージコントロール等々、個々の艦艇、機種というよりも全体的な運用方法に関してかなり簡略化された形で表現されています。（64ページという限られたボリュームでは仕方ないと思いますが）過去　米空母などを取り上げた書籍において一部触れられることはありましたが、このように運用技術に特化した資料はほとんど無かったため貴重だと思います。写真は小さいながら40枚程度あり既知のものが多いものの、特にカラー画像で鮮明なものが多い印象があります。ただ星4つとしたのは期待していた後方支援に関する情報がほとんどなかったためでどんなに強力な武装、兵器をそろえていても兵站なしには成立しないのですが、限られたスペースの中ではかなり簡単な説明になってしまったのは残念です。いずれこの点に関するより詳しい資料が出てくることに期待します。