Pacific Profiles Volume 17: Allied Air Power: Netherlands East Indies 1940-1942

“Anyone with an interest in this now largely ignored but hugely impactful World War II campaign will find this book to be of value on a number of fronts.” – Flightline: Newsletter of the American Aviation Historical Society

The Pacific Profiles series presents the most accurate WWII profiles of aircraft which served in the Pacific War. This Volume 17 covers Allied types that fought in the brief but intense Netherlands East Indies (NEI) campaign from December 1941 to March 1942. Because of some additional background on Dutch types, the full scope of this volume is from 1940 to 1942.

The Netherlands East Indies saw a diverse and eclectic gathering of Allied aircraft. Many of them were Dutch, serving with the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (ML-KNIL) and Netherlands Naval Aviation Service (MLD). These included Glenn Martin Model 139 bombers and Hawk 75, CW-21 and Brewster Buffalo fighters, together with Fokker and Dornier seaplanes.

Several squadrons of RAF and RAAF fighters and bombers withdrew from Singapore to continue fighting from Sumatra and then Java. These were augmented by direct reinforcements flown into those locations. These aircraft mainly comprised Hudsons, Blenheims and Hurricanes but there were also more obscure types such as Albacores and Vildebeest.

In addition, American B-17C/D heavy bombers and PBY flying boats retreated from the Philippines to the NEI. These were reinforced by modern B-17E, LB-30 and PBY aircraft from the US ferried via lengthy African and Pacific air routes. Lastly, small numbers of A-24 dive-bombers and P-40E fighters flown from Australia also joined the fight on Java.

The author is world-renowned for his Pacific air war expertise. Never before have so many diverse types been illustrated with such accuracy and detail, alongside brief histories of their usage.