Air Battles over the Baltic 1941. The Four-Volume Bundle

Save 40% on all four revised and expanded volumes of Mikhail Timin’s Air Battles over the Baltic 1941.

Drawing on Soviet and German archival sources, the collection traces the journey from pre-war preparations to the struggle for air superiority over the Baltic on 22 June 1941. It examines the aircraft, personnel, planning and command decisions that shaped the fighting, revealing both the vulnerabilities of Soviet aviation and the operational advantages of the Luftwaffe.

Volume 1: Soviet Military Aviation on the Eve of the Great Patriotic War establishes the background to the conflict, exploring the organisation, training and combat readiness of Soviet air units in the Baltic Special Military District. It examines rapid expansion, the deployment of forces across Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, and the pressures created by limited infrastructure, logistical difficulties and organisational reform. The lessons of the Winter War and biographical material on key personnel add further context.

Volume 2: The Pathway to War follows the Soviet Air Force’s troubled preparations in the months before the invasion. New regiments, inexperienced pilots and the introduction of aircraft such as the MiG-1, MiG-3, Ar-2 and Il-2 placed considerable demands on an already stretched organisation. Timin examines training, airfield construction, technical failures and shortages of skilled personnel to explain why Soviet aviation entered the war in such a fragile condition.

Volume 3: The Luftwaffe – Opening Gambits shifts the focus to German preparations, from force deployments and strategic planning to the clandestine reconnaissance missions of the Rowehl units. An hour-by-hour account of the opening attacks shows how intelligence, combat experience and coordinated operations helped the Luftwaffe strike Soviet airfields and seize the initiative.

Volume 4: The Day of Reckoning, Afternoon Battles and Aftermath follows the continuing attacks, Soviet combat operations and withdrawal to second-line airfields. It explores conflicting orders, attempted counterstrikes and costly missions against German ground forces, before comparing the claims and losses of both sides. The analysis challenges the familiar impression that Soviet aviation was destroyed in a single blow, showing how losses mounted throughout a prolonged day of fighting.

Illustrated throughout with archival photographs, colour aircraft profiles, maps and tables, these volumes combine operational history with technical detail and the experiences of the people involved. Together, they offer a substantial reference collection for aviation enthusiasts, military historians, aircraft modellers and readers of Eastern Front history.

Discover the preparations, opening battles and aftermath of the Baltic air war—and save 40% with the four-volume bundle.