Lionel Persyn

Usual mediocre review of performance of this relatively obscure and under-performing fighter in various war theatres (France in May-June 1940; West and North Africa for Vichy France 1940-42; Kenya-Ethiopia for the SAAF 1941; Finland during the continuation war 1941-44; Pearl Harbor December 1941; N E India and Burma 1942-43).

While the P-36 was very maneuverable, it was too slow and under-armed to be a proper match for the Bf109 or Japanese Zero fighters. The Hawk 75 is unique in that it fought on both many sides during the war. The French did not do badly during May-June 1940 and many of the remaining squadrons transferred to Vichy France after the Armistice, operating from bases in Senegal, Morocco and Algeria (where they took up arms with the British and Americans until operation Torch in 1942). The British received a load of P-36 type 4s originally ordered by France and transferred them as Mohawks to the Asian war theatre, where they were thought to make a better stand. The P-36 Hawks impounded by the Germans in France were transferred to Finland for the continuation war on the Karelian isthmus, where they were pretty successful against obsolete Soviet fighters, until the arrival of faster and more agile Soviet fighters like the La-7 from 1943 onwards. Nevertheless, as usual, the Finnish war record lead to an impressive list of fighter aces. The performance of the Mohawk in Burma was disappointing, perhaps because of the scarcity of Japanese opponents in the Arakan (it seems the Japanese were very judicious in allocating their fighter planes, concentrating their availability in specific campaigns).

Completely ignored in this booklet are the 20 Hawk 75A-7s that were deployed by the Dutch in the East Indies (no aces emerged from their exploits), and the similar Curtiss fighter, called Curtiss-Wright CW-21 Interceptor, of which 24 operated in the Dutch East Indies. The performance of the CW-21 was better than that of the Hawk 75A.

While the text in general is readable with details on squadrons, key dog fights and personal witness testimonies by pilots, at no stage does one get a complete picture of the actions on the battlefield, flight behaviour of the plane, specifics of the opponents or strategic decision making behind the planes’ deployment. Also the men who flew the planes do not come to life: what was their background; how were they trained; what was their assessment of the plane’s performance or their sense of battle? No maps are presented to provide an overview of the different campaigns and squadron airfields in which the Hawk was involved. I regard this as a missed opportunity, a sacrifice to a publishing formula which stipulates a maximum of 96 pages and 30 colour plates to each edition. And since when is it forbidden to create suspense in military writing?… (plus d'informations)

The Curtiss H-75 was among the most effective fighters of the Armée de l'Air during WW 2, highly manoeuvrable & able to take on and beat the Me 109 in combat as the events of 6 November 1939 proved - five Doras of JGr 102 shot down for no losses. It equipped the "crack units" of the French Air Force throughout the Phoney War and the May-June 1940 campaign, achieving a considerable tally of air victories. This book relates the career of the American fighter in France, from the negociations to buy it until its retirement post-war. Features detailed day-by-day coverage of the activities of the various Groupes de Chasse equipped with the Hawk and rare combat accounts, loss & victory lists, & approx 500 photos with detailed English-language captions supplemented from the French text (translated by Neil Page)… (plus d'informations)