Operation Title — Inside the Daring Mission By Allied Frogman to Sink a German Battleship
“The Royal Navy retrofitted torpedoes with steering wheels and dubbed them Chariots.” By Rachel Lance IN THE winter of 1942, six British commandos and four Norwegian resistance fighters, armed with little more than a fishing…
The ‘Iron Elephant’ — How a 17th Century German Inventor Devised a Primitive Battle Tank
“Leibniz vividly described a mobile fortress, a weapon of unimaginable power and destruction that could single-handedly sow havoc among enemy forces.” By Lloyd Strickland WITH WARFARE in the 17th century dominated by sieges, cannons, artillery…
Darius the Great — How Persia’s ‘King of Kings’ Took the Achaemenid Empire to New Heights
“As a military leader, Darius should be considered in the company of Cyrus, Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar.” By Joseph Stiles UNDER KING DARIUS the Great (r. 522-496 BCE) the ancient Persian Empire reached its…
William Milbourne James — Meet the Largely Unknown Hero Behind Some of Britain’s Greatest Wartime Intelligence Triumphs
“Far removed from the stereotypical image of the crimson-faced military authority figure of the day, he was emollient, cultivated and charming, with a lifelong passion for sailing in small boats — and a penchant for…
‘You’re in the Cockpit’ — Climb Aboard a B-26 for a Real 1943 Skip Bombing Mission
“Today’s target is a convoy of six merchant ships carrying ammunition, trucks, artillery pieces, spare parts, and food. Two of the vessels are tankers filled with diesel and aviation fuel. They are being escorted by…
YE-ZB ‘Hayrake’ — The Top-Secret Radio Navigation System That Helped America’s Carrier Pilots Defeat Japan
“Senior Japanese naval officers wondered how U.S. aircrews could always find their carriers.” By Marc Liebman HISTORIES OF THE Pacific War often focus on carrier-based aircraft flying strikes against enemy-held islands or ships many hundreds…
