The Lafayette Escadrille: A Photo History of the First American Fighter Squadron

This is the finest book on the subject of World War one aviation history I've read. It covers every facet of this notable unit's service. The selection of photos provided is outstanding, and I particularly enjoyed the modern photos, unmistakably showing the scenes of these century old events a s they look todayThe book provides an excellent narrative of the squadron's service. This strikes me as the way aviation history ought to be presented. Highly recommended.

Of all the books I have looked at trying to find photos and information about the Lafayette Escadrille, this is by far the most focused and complete. Mr. Ruffin has done a wonderful service to the memory of the squadron by his in-depth research. It is a thorough photo history to which he added his own photos of locations in the present day (2014) to capture the sense of time and place that would otherwise be overlooked in an other format.France has gone to great lengths to preserve the memory and tragedy of the Great War as anyone who has visited the battlefields and cemeteries there can attest. The respect and honor in preserving the places and men and women who lived, fought, and died then, is still alive there as a reminder of the sacrifice millions from many countries made to defend their country from Germany's invasion. This book more than does justice to the one squadron immortalized by James Norman Hall and Charles B.Nordhoff that has captured the imagination of generations because of the qualities of courage, dedication, and our own personal desires to be part of a great heroic action All those immortalizing qualities and more which were exemplified by all those who fought and died in this war. Of course, I have a personal interest in that Douglas MacMonagle (pic incl.) was one of my father's cousins, and a personal hero growing up between the two wars to when he also volunteered to learn to fly and fight in the second struggle of Western Europe to remain free from the domination of another country. Mr. Ruffin has done all of us a great service in writing and compiling this book. Not only that, it is a beautiful publication.

If you are interested in the subject, you won't be disappointed. The author gives a history of the formation and a in depth review of events, flights, locations, air battles, pilots, support, kills, enemy details. At the end a review of each pilot history, birth, location, date of killed or rotated to the US in either civilian or the new US air wing. Amazing detail of personal reflections that make you feel during the read that you are there! If you are a WW1 history buff with the Aircraft and the men who fly them, then this is a read for you.

This book is a solid historical recollection of the Lafayette Escadrille and the men who belonged to it. It is well researched and the accompanying pictures, taken over 100 years ago, are amazingly clear and poignant. It is a worthwhile reading experience.

This is an excellent biography. The photographs make the story come alive. It was truly an educational experience reading this book and I would like to thank the author for his work.

Possibly the best book on this subject! I bought several.

Worth the price and worth the read.

Great WWI reference

This is an exhaustive study of the subject, and makes for essential reading on WW1 aviation. And if you are interested in the subject you must see the film "Flyboy", unjustly underrated.

Eine der besten und am sorgfältigsten recherchierten Staffelgeschichten aus dem 1. Weltkrieg. Natürlich tut sich die Forschung mit der N124 leichter als mit vielen anderen Escadrilles, da die Quellen- und Forschungssituation eine andere ist. Dennoch wurde hier außerordentlich viel Sorgfalt und Mühe aufgewandt, was etwa an den damals/heute Aufnahmen, bei denen der Autor die Schauplätze zahlreicher Fotos 100 Jahre später nochmals aufgesucht und fotografiert hat, deutlich wird. Ein Text, der durch gute Lesbarkeit und Sachkenntnis besticht wird von zahlreichen, interessanten, aber natürlich nicht immer unbekannten Aufnahmen ergänzt. Hinzu treten einige Farbprofile von Einsatzmaschinen (hier hätte man sich womöglich noch die eine oder andere Zeile zur nicht immer 100 prozentig feststehenden Farbgebung gewünscht). Fazit: Ein wahrlich schönes, herausstechendes Buch!