Discusses major developments in aircraft, doctrine, training, and operations. The author also provides discussions of airlife, in-flight refueling, military budgets, industry, and inter-service squabbling. He deftly sketches the evolution of the air arms of each of the different services and provides clear analyisis of military budgets.

General of the Armies John J. Pershing (1860–1948) had a long and decorated military career but is most famous for leading the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I. He published a memoir, My Experiences in the World War, and has been the subject of numerous biographies, but the literature regarding this towering figure and his enormous role in the First World War deserves to be expanded to include a collection of his wartime correspondence. Carefully edited by John T. Greenwood, volume 3 of John J. Pershing and the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I, 1917–1919 covers the period of January 1 through March 20, 1918, as General Pershing encounters logistical and organizational challenges that originated in the last months of 1917. With the collapse of the Eastern Front and Allied defeats in Italy, British and French commanders were preparing for a renewed German offensive and proposed that American troops be put under their control for training and frontline combat in order to replenish losses. Pershing's diary entries indicate that he rejected these proposals and yet offered four segregated African American regiments to be placed under French control. The conclusion of the AEF autonomy debate allowed Pershing to focus on reorganizing the General Headquarters of the AEF, establishing effective communication lines, and contracting Allied European governments to produce armaments for the AEF with American raw materials. In March 1918, Maj. Gen. Peyton C. March replaced Gen. Tasker H. Bliss as chief of staff. The sources included in this edition show the origin of Pershing and March's personal feud, which persisted well after the war. Pershing's letters during this time period convey a long and arduous struggle to build an American army at the front. Together, these volumes of wartime correspondence provide new insight into the work of a legendary soldier and the historic events in which he participated.

Global air mobility is an American invention. During the twentieth century, other nations developed capabilities to transport supplies and personnel by air to support deployed military forces. But only the United States mustered the resources and will to create a global transport force and aerial refueling aircraft capable of moving air and ground combat forces of all types to anywhere in the world and supporting them in continuous combat operations. Whether contemplating a bomber campaign or halting another surprise attack, American war planners have depended on transport and tanker aircraft.

On May 3, 1943, dozens of airplanes could be seen flying in and out of Royal Air Force Bovingdon Airfield near London, England. Among the aircraft seen that day was a B-24D bomber named Hot Stuff, which carried the Commanding General of US Forces in Europe, Lieutenant General Frank M. Andrews—the officer charged with formulating a plan to invade the European continent. Speculation was that General George C. Marshall had called Andrews back to Washington, DC, leading many to believe that Marshall had another promotion in store for Andrews. Tragically, Andrews would never arrive. While attempting to land in Iceland, the bomber crashed into the side of a mountain, with no survivors other than the tail gunner; Andrews's personal papers were also destroyed. In Marshall's Great Captain: Lieutenant General Frank M. Andrews, author Kathy Wilson details Andrews's extraordinary life and career. The first biography dedicated to the namesake of Joint Base Andrews, this book sheds a light on Andrews's crucial role in orchestrating US involvement in World War II, as well as the professional relationship and rapport that Andrews and Marshall shared. Drawing on extensive research, Wilson raises Andrews's legacy to its legitimate place within the annals of both air power and World War II history and posits that there is a high probability that Andrews, rather than Dwight D. Eisenhower, was Marshall's first choice for the office of Supreme Allied Commander. Marshall recounted that Andrews was the only one he had a chance to prepare for such a command.