Nightstalkers

The Wright Project and the 868th Bomb Squadron in World War II

by Richard Phillip Lawless

Imprint: Casemate

432 Pages, 6.7 x 9.5 in

Hardcover
9781636242057
February 2023
In Stock

$44.95

Buy

Digital download
9781636242064
February 2023

$26.95

Buy

Also available digitally:

Amazon

Apple

Barnes & Noble

Google

Kobo

Casemate will earn a small commission if you buy an ebook after clicking a link here.

Description
Contents
Authors
Praise

"This story of the Wright Project comprehensively captures an important but under-appreciated element of airpower history…" — Lieutenant General Bruce “Orville” Wright, USAF (ret)

In August 1943, a highly classified US Army Air Force unit, code-named the “Wright Project,” departed Langley Field for Guadalcanal in the South Pacific to join the fight against the Empire of Japan. Operating independently, under sealed orders drafted at the highest levels of Army Air Force, the Wright Project was unique, both in terms of the war-fighting capabilities provided by classified systems the ten B-24 Liberators of this small group of airmen brought to the war, and in the success these “crash-built” technologies allowed. The Wright airmen would fly only at night, usually as lone hunters of enemy ships. In so doing they would pave the way for the United States to enter and dominate a new dimension of war in the air for generations to come.

This is their story, from humble beginnings at MIT’s Radiation Lab and hunting U-boats off America’s eastern shore, through to the campaigns of the war in the Pacific in their two-year march toward Tokyo. The Wright Project would prove itself to be a combat leader many times over and an outstanding technology innovator, evolving to become the 868th Bomb Squadron. Along the way the unit would be embraced by unique personalities and the dynamic leadership, from Army Air Force General Hap Arnold through combat commanders who flew the missions.

In this account, the reader will meet radar warfare pioneers and squadron leaders who were never satisfied that they had pushed the men, the aircraft, and the technologies to the full limit of their possibilities. Comprehensive and highly personal, this story can now be revealed for the very first time, based on official sources, and interviews with the young men who flew into the night.

"Lawless’ engaging and descriptive approach takes the reader into the Pacific war and offers a front-row seat to the exploits of the Wright Project and their highly innovative technology." ~War History Network

"The story is well written and researched. It provides a unique perspective into the internal aspects of the 868th Squadron as a fledgling unit and provides insight into the effect that airborne radar had during the war." ~Military Review

“Nightstalkers is the well-told tale of American airmen flying into combat in the South Pacific in World War II under a secret and lethal program that mated state-of-the-art technology with the courage and tenacity of the young men taking their airplanes into the night sky. The speed and dedication with which this novel technology was conceived, engineered, tested, mated to the B-24 bomber, and rapidly deployed into combat serves as a marker for the ability today’s U.S. Air Force to develop and field advanced weapons systems. Such capabilities allow American airmen to continue to dominate the air and space battlespace today and promise to be able to do so in the future. But such capabilities must be planned, budgeted, and made real. This story of the Wright Project comprehensively captures an important but under-appreciated element of airpower history, reflecting the personal dedication of the author to research and tell in a compelling way, for the first time, the complete story of these amazing men.” ~Lieutenant General Bruce “Orville” Wright, USAF (ret), President, Air and Space Forces Association and former Commander, U.S. Forces Japan

“History is full of claims this or that technological change provided advantage. In Nightstalkers, Richard Lawless makes it all concrete. This is a limber romp across the world of electronics and into the history of World War II. Going beyond palaver, Lawless traces a critical development program through MIT’s Radiation Laboratory, shows how ultra-short wave radar was adapted for aircraft and a unit organized to prove the concept, then follows the exploits of this device right through the Pacific war. Nightstalkers illuminates U.S. tactics for night intruder operations, some critical battles, and reflects on the potential for these capabilities.” ~John Prados, author of "Islands of Destiny" and "Combined Fleet Decoded"

"This is a limber romp across the world of electronics and into the history of World War II. Going beyond palaver, Lawless traces a critical development program through MIT’s Radiation Laboratory, showing how ultra-short-wave radar was adapted for aircraft and a unit organized to prove the concept, then follows the exploits of these men and their device right through to the Japanese surrender." ~ARGunners.com