<p>Finland's premier fighter squadron during World War 2, Lentolaivue 24 (Flying Squadron 24) first saw action during the bloody Winter War of 1939-40, when the Soviet Red Army launched a surprise attack on the small Scandinavian country - the squadron enjoyed great success against numerically superior opposition. LLv 24 was once again in the thick of the action following the outbreak of the Continuation War in June 1941. Easily the air force's most successful fighter unit, LLv 24 claimed 877 kills, and its pilots won five direct and two indirect Mannerheim Crosses (Finland¹s highest military award) out of a total of 19 presented to all Finnish soldiers. Most top aces also scored the bulk of their kills flying with this unit.</p>

Lentolaivue 24 (Osprey Aviation Elite 4)

History

Stenman, Kari

Keskinnen, Kalevi

Europe

Osprey_Publishing

<p>Always outnumbered by their Soviet counterparts, the small band of Finnish fighter pilots who defended their Scandinavian homeland from the 'communist hordes' in three separate wars between 1939 and 1945 amassed scores only bettered by the Luftwaffe's Jagdflieger. Initially equipped with a motley collection of biplane and monoplane fighters garnered from sources across the globe, the Finnish Air Force was thrust into combat in November 1939. Given little chance against the massive Soviet force, the Finnish fighter pilots confounded the sceptics and decimated the attacking fighter and bomber formations, prompting the Russians to call a halt in March 1940. This scenario was repeated in 1941, and by 1943 the Finns had become uneasy allies with the Germans. Complete with first-hand accounts and detailed colour illustrations, this book profiles aces like Juutilainen and Wind, who proved unbeatable in the final months of conflict.</p>

Finnish Aces of World War 2 (Osprey Aircraft of the Aces No 23) (Aircraft of the Aces, 23)

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Books by Keskinnen, Kalevi

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Keskinnen, Kalevi. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Lentolaivue 24 (Osprey Aviation Elite 4)

Finnish Aces of World War 2 (Osprey Aircraft of the Aces No 23) (Aircraft of the Aces, 23)