The Great Rat Race For Europe

Stories of the 357th Fighter Group Sortie Number One
Joey Maddox

From author Joey Maddox who brought you Bleeding Sky: The Story of Captain Fletcher E. Adams and the 357th Fighter Group comes another fascinating historical read. The Great Rat Race For Europe: Stories of the 357th Fighter Group Sortie Number One tells the true stories of the Yoxford Boys of the 357th Fighter Group; arguably the best Army Air Force fighter group in the European Theater during World War Two.

Aces Kit Carson, Bud Anderson, Johnny England, Pete Peterson, Chuck Yeager and others from this elite group of “tigers” eventually became famous after the war, while other Yoxford Boys just melted back into the scenery that was the American post war years. Those were the lucky ones as scores of these brave, young American lads flying their P-51 Mustangs into combat against the Luftwaffe never saw home again as the result of this epic air war over Europe.

Fly into weather so thick that the ducks are walking with Pete Peterson, one of the leading aces of the Group, as he walks you through a hair-raising landing on Leiston Field with zero visibility and three inexperienced pilots on his wing. Then 357th fighter pilot Joe Shea recaptures the common boredom ridden hours and terror stricken moments faced by replacement pilots of the Group during their first combat missions, including Shea’s account of his last encounter, eyeball to eyeball, with a German pilot in an Me-262 jet fighter as it slid over his wing and lined up perfectly in his gun sight.

Discover other stories as you follow The Great Rat Race For Europe: Stories of the 357th Fighter Group Sortie Number One!