A volume from the Asia @ War series. The 1st Combat Cargo Squadron, also known as The Great Snafu Fleet, was formed in 1944 as part of the larger Air Commando project to supply British and American forces in Burma from the air using Douglas C-47 Dakota aircraft. Initially deployed there, they moved to China and spent 1945 delivering supplies and personnel to Major General Claire Chennault's 14th Air Force Flying Tigers and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) activities throughout China, often behind enemy lines. World War II was a time of significant advances in aviation, including transportation, with near real-time delivery of everything a modern army needed, even by parachute when ground transportation was unavailable. Equally important, sick, injured, and wounded soldiers could be quickly transported to hospitals for treatment wherever landing was possible. Behind the glamorous and headline-grabbing American Flying Tigers and RAF Spitfires, American fighter and troop transport squadrons flew side by side with RAF transport squadrons, supplying British, Chinese, and American forces pushing the Japanese out of Burma and China, creating a new type of warfare.
Group
Books (first-hand)
Author
White Jr., Gerald A.
Title
The Great Snafu Fleet
Details
English text, paperback, 113 black-and-white and color illustrations, 12 color profiles, maps, large format. 96 pages.
State
new
Subtitle
1st Combat Cargo/344th Airdrome/326th Troop Carrier Squadron in World War II’s CBI Theater
