China's Air War with Japan: Sino-Japanese Air Battles, 1937-1945, Volume 1 examines the conflict between the Republic of China Air Force (ROCAF) and the Japanese Air Service (Japanese Army Air Force and Japanese Naval Air Force) in the Chinese theater during the Second World War. Relative to their opponent, the ROCAF was backwardly equipped, poorly trained, and passive at the beginning of the war; by 1940, when Japanese Zero fighters were put into service, the ROCAF was basically expelled from the air. With the assistance of the Allies, especially the United States, the ROCAF gradually regained its strength from 1943 onwards. By the war's end, the Chinese-American Composite Wing (CACW) and ROCAF had gained control of the airspace on the Chinese battlefield. This book describes the Sino-Japanese war in the air during the Second World War, primarily from the Chinese side, though with examination of sources from both sides. AUTHORS: Benjamin Lai was originally from Hong Kong, but educated in the UK. He was one of the few Chinese to serve in the British Army as a commissioned officer in the 1980s in both Hong Kong and the UK. Fully bilingual, Benjamin Lai has been interested in World War II and postwar matters for many years but in recent times has developed specialization in Asian military issues with an emphasis on China. Among his previous works are The Chinese People's Liberation Army Since 1949: Ground Forces, and Hong Kong 1941-1945. Gu Jian is a China-based writer who has published over ten books in China covering military history, finance, art, travel, and I.T., Hi focus within military history is upon the Second World War, ancient Chinese wars, the military history of Ancient Greece and Rome, and the Korean War. Aside from writing, Gu is a senior manager in banking and he holds an MBA. 100 b/w photos, 10 colour photos, 8pp colour plates, 10 b/w maps, 1 colour map, 12 tables
