Lucky 666 - Bob Drury & Tom Clavin

Lucky 666

By Bob Drury & Tom Clavin

  • Release Date: 2016-10-25
  • Genre: Military History
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 233 Ratings

Description

“A fast-paced, well-researched…irresistible” (USA TODAY) World War II aviation account of friendship, heroism, and sacrifice that reads like Unbroken meets The Dirty Dozen from the authors of the #1 New York Times bestselling The Heart of Everything That Is.

It’s 1942, just after the blow to Pearl Harbor and the Japanese invasion of the Philippines, and the United States is reeling. A group of raw US Army Airmen travels to the embattled American Air Base of Port Moresby at Papua, New Guinea. Their mission: to protect Australia, to disrupt the Japanese supply lines, and to fly perilous reconnaissance runs over the enemy-held strongholds. Among the men are pilot Captain Jay Zeamer and bombardier Sergeant Raymond Joseph “Joe” Sarnoski, a pair of swashbuckling screw-ups whose antics prevent them from being assigned to a regular bombing crew. Instead, they rebuild a broken-down B-17 bomber from spare parts and christen the plane Old 666.

One day in June 1943, a request is circulated: volunteers are needed for a reconnaissance flight into the heart of the Japanese empire. Zeamer and Sarnoski see it as a shot at redemption and cobble together a crew and depart in Old 666 under cover of darkness. Five hours later, dozens of Japanese Zeros riddle the plane with bullets. Bloody and half-conscious, Zeamer and Sarnoski keep the plane in the air, winning what will go down as the longest dogfight in history and maneuvering an emergency landing in the jungle. Only one of them will make it home alive.

With unprecedented access to the Old 666 crew’s family and letters, as well as newly released transcripts from the Imperial Air Force’s official accounts of the battle, Lucky 666 is perhaps the last untold “great war story” (Kirkus Reviews) from the war in the Pacific. It’s an unforgettable tale of friendship, bravery, and sacrifice—and “highly recommended for WWII and aviation history buffs alike” (BookPage).

Reviews

  • Lucky 666

    5
    By Fastrun12
    One of the best WWII books I have read.
  • Wonderful book

    5
    By Glouderback
    I loved this book. What a story. I knew about Jay and Old 666 and this book filled in the blanks. I Learned much more about the war in that part of the the pacific. Well written and a pleasure to read. Hard to put down.
  • Lucky 666

    5
    By crazydrbob
    As an avid reader of history, I’ve read a great number of books about WWII in the Pacific theatre of operations. I found that this book was very thoroughly researched which resulted in very accurate writing. If readers are looking for a really good book that gives insight to one team of great aviators, this is it. R. Hammesfahr, USN-Ret.
  • Incredible read

    5
    By SEC rules!
    Great read, incredible story.