Sinking the Rising Sun: Dog Fighting & Dive Bombing in World War Ii: A Navy Fighter Pilot's Story - Hardcover

William E. Davis

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 076032946X ISBN 13: 9780760329467

Publisher: Zenith Pr, 2007

Synopsis

Awarded the Navy Cross, Lieutenant William Davis, III, of the United States Naval Reserve was cited for "extraordinary heroism" while serving as pilot of a carrier based fighter aircraft on 25 October 1944. "Flying through intense anti-aircraft fire," the citation read, "he made an aggressive attack on a Japanese carrier, first strafing and then delivering a well placed bomb from low altitude. After this attack the carrier was left burning and subsequently sank." The burning carrier was the Zuikaku, the last Japanese carrier afloat that had taken part in the Pearl Harbor attack.

In this gripping memoir, Davis gives us a fighter pilots view of World War II. Recreating the life-and-death drama of dog fighting and dive bombing over the Pacific, Davis recounts how his squadron shot down 155 enemy planes while losing only 2 of their own in aerial combat. No torpedo bomber or dive bomber they escorted was ever downed by an enemy aircraft. His is a story of "courage and skill . . . in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval service," as his citation noted. It is also a rare true-life account of what such heroics feel like behind a cockpit, in the face of a deadly enemy.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

Lieutenant William Davis III of the United States Naval Reserve was awarded the Navy Cross for "extraordinary heroism" while serving as pilot of a carrier-based fighter aircraft on October 25, 1944. "Flying through intense anti-aircraft fire," the citation reads, "he made an aggressive attack on a Japanese carrier, first strafing and then delivering a well placed bomb from low altitude. After this attack the carrier was left burning and subsequently sank." The burning carrier was the Zuikaku, the last Japanese carrier afloat that had taken part in the Pearl Harbor attack. Here is a fighter pilot's view of World War II, told in colorful language and gripping detail. His is a story of "courage and skill . . . in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval service," as his citation noted. It is also a rare true-life account of what such heroics feel like behind a cockpit, in the face of a deadly enemy. Sinking the Rising Sun includes a foreword by his friend and fellow World War II veteran, the legendary Jonathan Winters.

About the Author:

Bill Davis was a senior in college when the attack on Pearl Harbor took place. He volunteered for the Naval Air Corps, and ended up being credited as one of those who sank the Zuikaku, the last Japanese carrier afloat that had taken part in the Pearl Harbor attack. He lives in Santa Barbara, California.

 

 

In 1953, Jonathan Winters headed for New York for the “big time” with $56.46 in his pocket. Then came The Jack Paar Show, The Steve Allen Show, and The Tonight Show, where Jonathan was able to demonstrate his comic genius. He became a top name in American comedy. Jonathan and his wife Eileen have two children and five grandchildren. They live in Santa Barbara, where Jonathan paints and writes when he is not performing.

Foreword by the legendary Jonathan Winters, a good friend of the author's with more than five decades in show business. He enlisted in the Marines in 1943, and was an orderly and a gunner on the U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard. "I never got to land or take off," Winters quips, "but I saw a lot of planes."

About this edition

• Publisher: Zenith Pr
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 076032946X
• ISBN 13: 9780760329467
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304
• Editor: Steve Gansen