The Last Blitz: Operation Steinbock, the Luftwaffe's Last Blitz on Britain - January to May 1944 Hardcover – 16 Nov. 2010

There was less detail than expected but what was included could not be faulted.

Christmas gift cannot comment b

I bought this to research air attacks over Somerset in 1944 (to try and trace the source of some ammunition cartridges found S of Bristol). But it was a fascinating book covering all the major raids in quite a lot of detail. It seems this is the only historical work on these raids.The book is data rich and my only criticisms relate to the presentation of the material: showing a map of each raid would be a nice context, for example.Overall: highly recommended for those interested in WW2 air warfare over Europe.

Beneath its striking cover this book is a fascinating examination of the Luftwaffe's final bombing campaign against London and other British cities in early 1944, Operation Steinbock.In 1940-41 the highly trained Luftwaffe bomber crews had met very little opposition operating over the UK at night. The RAF lacked a suitable night fighter, radar to equip it with, and ground control to direct it. This situation gradually changed until by 1944 the RAF was almost as able to defend the night skies as it was the day. This increase in RAF power was matched by changes in Luftwaffe effectiveness. New aircraft such as the Ju 188, He 177 and Me 410 had been introduced, duppel (window) and new electronic aids were available, but these advances were offset by a decline in average pilot skill. This book describes what happened when these two greatly changed air forces again met in major combat over Britain.The account begins with a 33 page introduction which looks at the history of German bombing of Britain up to 1944. This is followed by 360 pages which describe, day by day and raid by raid, the German offensive from its start in January to its final petering out in the summer. An overview of each raid is given followed by details of Luftwaffe losses giving individual aircraft and the names and fates of their crews. The authors are often able to link RAF night fighter combat reports to specific aircraft shot down.Scattered through this chronological account are sections describing elements of the campaign in more detail. For example the authors note the damage sometimes sustained by Mosquitoes due to debris from their targets, describe the German 'Egon' navigation system and discuss prisoner interrogation. The book is copiously illustrated with photographs. Many of these show the remains of aircraft brought down over land or are portraits of their crewmen.This section shows quite clearly how far the German bomber force had declined. The Luftwaffe's targets were, with the exception of Hull, very close to occupied Europe. Yet the standard of navigation had declined so much that some crews could not even find London. The raids on Bristol where a fiasco - only when German radio 'talked of swathes of devastation visited on the city' did the British realise that it had been the target as the bombing was so widely scattered. The increased lethality of the defences is also clear as Luftwaffe percentages losses were usually in double figures despite the short time spent in British airspace. This heavy attrition whittled down the Steinbock force to such an extent that the operation rapidly fizzled out as fewer and fewer aircraft became available. Five appendixes round off the volume.The book has a few flaws. The lists of aircraft lost include operational losses over Europe and reconnaissance Bf 109s shot down Scapa Flow so covers more than Steinbock losses, but the authors nowhere state what selection criteria they used. A few more maps showing the routes of raids would also have been very useful, as would more on the ground based defences - radar and anti-aircraft guns. More importantly there is no glossary, index, bibliography or (astonishingly) even a table of contents, so using the book as a reference will be very difficult.Thankfully these omissions do not detract much from a readable and thorough examination of Steinbock. The history of the raids is given in enough detail that the reader can easily understand how the various factors which came in to play led to a costly defeat for the Luftwaffe and make their own comparisons with Bomber Command's own night offensive proceeding in parallel.Interested readers might like to try 'Night Fighter' by C.F. Rawnsley who briefly flew Mosquitoes during Steinbock, and 'Building Radar' by Colin Dobinson which has a chapter describing how Britain's early warning radar network fared.

An excellent read, and a true sample of human folly, what a waste of young lives and scarce resources. The author gives an excellent account of both sides of this late war air battle, which is only known to followers of aviation. The level of detail reflects the years of research which went into this historic document, it ranks with "Bodenplatte" by Manrho and Putz.

This was a present for my grandfather who is a history enthusiast. He was delighted to receive this book, signed by the author. First class book which I imagined required lots and lots of research, very impressive final result.

Delivered on time. A most interesting and well produced account of the last days of the Luftwaffe, 'The Last Blitz is an excellent reference book for professional historians and aviation enthusiasts in general.

Excellent research on topic with rare pictures. A detailed survey of the last air offensive against the British Islands provides insight in what happened during spring of 1944. What makes it desireable for modellers are the pictures of German bombers involved which give good ideas of camouflage and mmarkings.

Very good book, good pictures, but very deficient on any real description of the aircraft involved, much less their performance. Also, disappointing in the lack of any over-arching assessment of the effectiveness or damage wrought by the baby blitz. Excellent historial source for the individual aircraft / aircrew losses on the German side. This is more of a research reference for individual aircrew losses than research-in-depth on the effects or lessons learned. Overall: Good book but vaguely disappointing in emphasis on aircrews/aircraft fates than on the Baby Blitz itself. Would not buy again considering the expense and limited scope - but excellenty researched.

After reading this book I wonder what was the accomplishment of this operation. This book is well writen with plenty of pictures in it to tell the reader about the aircraft and mission conduct during this last offensive operation. Great detail is presented on the behalf of the commander in charge of this operation. After reading I was amazed at the attempt of the german air force to pull this off. I do have to give them a hand at trying at such a late time in the war