THE FIRST TEAM – Pacific Naval Air Combat from Pearl Harbor to Midway

Ace fighter pilots like Jimmy Thach and Butch O’Hare are justly renowned for their daring exploits in the perilous early months of the Pacific War when the U.S. Navy carrier fighting (VF) squadrons amassed a remarkable combat record in the face of desperate odds. Yet, exactly how these skilled aviators and their squadron mates-called the ‘first team’, in keeping with athletic jargon popular at the time-overcame the odds to help turn the tide of war has, until now, remained little known. With this comprehensive operational history of carrier-based air war – examined. Fare, their heroic feats can at last be closely examined. 

Drawing from nearly a decade of research, John Lundstrom presents a thoroughly detailed and scrupulously accurate narrative account of the Navy’s fighting squadron missions, from the earliest operations in the Pacific through the decisive Battle of Midway. A resolute historian, he has tapped new American and Japanese sources to fully reconstruct every significant action in which these fighters were involved, placing them within the context of carrier operations. 

Lundstrom writes from the viewpoint of the pilots themselves. He interviewed some fifty surviving airmen from both the American and Japanese sides, to give the reader intimate details of some of the most exciting aerial engagements of the war. At the same time, he assesses the role the fighter squadrons played in key actions such as Midway, and shows how innovations in U.S. naval fighter tactics and gunnery techniques were a primary reason for the extraordinary reversal of American fortunes. 

The First Team’s comprehensive appendices will prove invaluable to historians, combat aviation enthusiasts, and modellers. Here they will find detailed information on flight training, aerial gunnery, aircraft markings, flight formations, the ‘Thach Weave’ tactic, and Japanese combat doctrine.

About the author:

John B. Lundstrom is an assistant curator of history at the Milwaukee Public Museum. He joined the museum staff in 1967 as a student aid while pursuing an undergraduate degree in history and anthropology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. After earning his B.A. in 1970, he went on to receive a master’s degree in diplomatic and military history in 1974. He is an avid researcher of World War II decorations and medals. 

Lundstrom’s first book, The First South Pacific Campaign: Pacific Fleet Strategy December 1941-June 1942, was published by the Naval Institute Press in 1976. He is currently working on a sequel to The First Team, which will cover Pacific naval air combat from Midway to Guadalcanal.

Source: Publisher's summary printed on cover