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Air Power and the Arab World, 1909–1955 Volume 10 continues the story of the men and machines of the first half-century of military aviation in the Arab world. It tells the story of the first two weeks of the first of the Arab-Israeli Wars – also known as the Palestine War – in May 1948. Whilst part of an ongoing series, this volume stands alone as a history of the period covered.

By that time, in Egypt, Iraq, Transjordan, newly-independent Syria, Lebanon, and, to a lesser extent, Saudi Arabia, significant efforts had already been made to strengthen these countries’ armed forces. Where Egypt, Iraq and Syria were concerned, these efforts included a determination to improve or, in the case of Syria, to establish their air forces. All three air forces were thrown into the First Phase of the Palestine War and, in the view of most subsequent commentators or historians, they had failed to perform as well as their government and populations had expected. However, closer investigation and the removal of layers of propaganda which have obscured the realities of this first Arab-Israeli War show that the Arab air forces performed better than is generally realised. Arguably, they had their limitations and weaknesses, and these had also become apparent as the fighting intensified and losses began to mount. All this was always clearly pointed out in Arabic sources, both official and unofficial, unpublished, or published only with limited circulation.

Volume 10 of Air Power and the Arab World focuses on day-to-day events on the ground, in the air and at sea during this hard-fought phase. It does so in remarkable detail because the authors have accessed previously unpublished Arab official military documents supplemented by translations from Arabic books and articles containing official and personal accounts by those involved. Perhaps the most remarkable such source is the Operational Diary of the Royal Egyptian Air Force’s Tactical Air Force based at al-Arish in north-eastern Sinai.

Air Power and the Arab World, 1909–1955 Volume 10 is illustrated by abundant photographs from previously unused, or very rarely used, private and official sources, and includes specially commissioned colour artworks.

Volume 9 of the Air Power and the Arab World, 1909-1955 mini-series continues the story of the men and machines of the first half century of military aviation in the Arab World. For those Arab nations which had some degree of independence, the political, cultural and economic strains seen during the Second World War continued to have a major impact, not least upon their military forces. In Egypt, newly independent Syria and Lebanon, and to a lesser extent in Iraq, great effort was put into modernising these forces. Sometimes this achieved success but such efforts nevertheless failed to produce the degree of improvement which had been hoped. In both Egypt and Iraq mistrust of Great Britain may even have deepened while in Palestine the worsening crisis resulted in a full-blown civil war between the Zionist settler community and the indigenous Arab population. The British remained in theoretical control of Palestine, yet it was becoming obvious that a large part of the British government, British military establishment and broader public were desperate to escape from the Palestine Problem. It was also clear that the major Powers which dominated the newly established United Nations Organisation had no intention of becoming militarily involved. Then came the official termination of the British mandate over Palestine, the declaration of the State of Israel and the start of official military intervention by the military forces of several Arab states. Volume 9 covers its subject in greater detail than has been done before because the authors had access to previously unpublished offi cial Arab military documents, supplemented by translations of Arabic books and journal articles containing offi cial and personal accounts by those involved. As usual for this mini-series, Volume 9 is abundantly illustrated with photographs from previously unused, or very rarely used, private and official sources.

This illustrated study investigates the Indo-Islamic fighting men of South Asia from the 7th century AD to the Mughal conquest of the 16th century.

From 1206, much of what is now India as well as parts of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal were ruled by a succession of Islamic dynasties that had their origins in the Ghurid forces that conquered parts of northern India in the 12th century. Although it was never complete, the Islamic domination of this huge region also had a profound impact upon Islamic civilization as a whole, not least in military terms, being felt as far west as Africa. Within South Asia, the war-torn medieval centuries laid the foundations for the subsequent even more brilliant Mughal Empire.

Featuring eight plates of superb artwork alongside carefully chosen photographs and illustrations, this study complements the same author's Medieval Indian Armies (1): Hindu, Buddhist and Jain. It describes and illustrates the Indo-Islamic forces operating in South Asia, from the Umayyad Caliphate's frontier in north-western India and Afghanistan in the late 7th century through to the Delhi Sultanate, the Sultanate of Bengal and the Bahmani Sultanate in the 15th and 16th centuries.

David Nicolle explains how, with respect to arms, armour, fortification and transport both on land and at sea, the widely successful Muslim armies learned a great deal from their more numerous Hindu, Jain and Buddhist opponents. This was especially evident in developments such as the use of war-elephants and the adoption of lighter, often textile-based forms of protection such as 'soft armour' made of cotton. On the other side, there would be widespread adoption of more potent weapons such as the composite bow, and considerably more sophisticated systems of cavalry warfare, among the non-Islamic forces of the Indian sub-continent. Fully illustrated, this absorbing account casts light on many centuries of warfare in South Asia.

Volume 8 of the Air Power and the Arab World, 1909-1955 mini-series continues the story of the men and machines involved in the first half century of military aviation in the Arab World. These years opened with the Arab countries and their military forces still caught up in the final years of the Second World War. This was followed by a brief period of soaring hopes and often unrealistic ambitions. Meanwhile, the crisis in Palestine was deepening. During the immediate post-war years Arab popular opinion grew increasingly angry, fearing that the Zionist settler community was determined to establish a specifically Jewish state in Palestine at the expense of the indigenous Arab population. Furthermore, it was also becoming clear that the so-called Great Powers which dominated the newly established United Nations Organisation were unlikely to stand in the way. Following the Second World War, French influence in the Middle East had collapsed, though this was not as yet the case in North Africa. American influence was growing in the region, though the USA was emerging as pro-Zionist in its policy. The Soviet Union, though nominally also pro-Zionist, still remained a distant and largely insignificant player in Middle Eastern affairs; its only interest being to cause problems for its "Western Power" rivals. This left the British almost literally holding the ring as the dominant imperial power in the Arab Middle East, both in military and political terms. At the same time the British government, the British military establishment and indeed the British public, were showing themselves to be desperately eager to get rid of what was perceived as the burden of the Palestine Problem.

Volume 7 of the Air Power and the Arab World, 1909-1955 mini-series continues the story of the men and machines of the first half century of military aviation in the Arab world. These years saw the Arab countries and their military forces already caught up in the events of the Second World War. For those Arab nations which had some degree of independence, the resulting political, cultural and economic strains had a profound impact upon their military forces. In Egypt the Army generally remained quiet, continuing with its mostly unglamorous and little appreciated duties. Within the Royal Egyptian Air Force (REAF), however, there were a significant number of men who wanted to take action in expectation of what they, and many around the world, expected to be the defeat of the British Empire. The result was division, widespread mistrust, humiliation, and for a while the grounding of the entire REAF. In Iraq the strains of the early war years led to a political coup, military conflict with the British Empire, and the virtual destruction of the Royal Iraqi Air Force (RirqAF). Volume 7 of Air Power and the Arab World then looks at the first efforts to revive both the REAF and the RIrqAF, along with events in the air and on the ground elsewhere in the Arab world until the end of 1942.

Volume 6 of the ‘Air Power and the Arab World, 1909-1955’ mini-series continues the story of the men and machines of the first half century of military aviation in the Arab World. These years saw the Arab countries and their military forces already caught up in the events of the Second World War. For those Arab nations which had some degree of independence, the resulting political, cultural and economic strains had a profound impact upon their military forces. In Egypt the Army generally remained quiet, continuing with its generally unglamorous and little appreciated duties. Within the Royal Egyptian Air Force (REAF), however, there were a significant number of men who wanted to take action in expectation of what they, and many around the world, expected to be the defeat of the British Empire. The result was division, widespread mistrust, humiliation, and for a while the grounding of the entire REAF. In Iraq the strains of the early war years led to a political coup, military conflict with the British Empire, and the virtual destruction of the Royal Iraqi Air Force (RirqAF). Volume 6 of 'Air Power and the Arab World' then looks at the first efforts to revive both the REAF and the RIrqAF, along with events in the air and on the ground elsewhere in the Arab World until the end of 1942.

This fully illustrated study explores the armies of the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain states within what are now India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal during the period AD 500-1500, as well as Afghanistan until the early 13th century AD.

Following the emergence of a distinct ‘medieval Indian' civilization in the Late Classical and Early Medieval periods, there was a prolonged struggle between this civilization and that of the eastern Islamic world, concluding with the rise of the Mughal Empire at the start of the 16th century. In this fully illustrated study, David Nicolle investigates the traditions and enduring conservatism of non-Islamic medieval Indian warfare, notably evident in recruitment patterns and the significance of archery and cavalry. The role and impact of war-elephants, both positive and negative, are also considered, as well as the influence of climate and weather (notably the seasonal monsoon) on warfare in this region. As well as assessing arms and armour - contrasting the advanced technology and high status of Indian weapons (especially swords) with the remarkable lack of metallic armour in the region during this period - the author also explores siege warfare and riverine and naval warfare in South Asia. This book assesses the contributing factors identified by those who have sought to explain why the huge wealth and substantial populations of the traditional non-Islamic Indian states did not prevent their persistent failure in the face of Islamic invasion and conquest.

Hundreds of fighter-bombers of Soviet design and manufacture served in the air forces of multiple frontline Arab states during the first half of the 1960s. Not only older Mikoyan i Gurevich MiG-15s and MiG-17s, but also newer types such as the MiG-19 and MiG-21 were acquired in continuously increasing numbers, concurrently with Ilyushin Il-28- and Tupolev Tu-16 bombers, transport types such as the Antonov An-12 and Ilyushin Il-14, and trainers designed by Yakovlev. Nowhere else did they – and their pilots – play as important a role for the future of the local air forces – or entire nations – as in Egypt and Syria from 1963 until 1967. Whilst the period in question is still frequently described as a ‘peaceful decade’ in Israel and the West, they saw almost uninterrupted action: in Egypt, in Syria, as well as in Yemen, and especially in continuous incidents with Israel.

Based on official documentation and extensive interviews with dozens of veterans, and richly illustrated with exclusive photography and colour profiles, MiGs in the Middle East Volume 2 is a uniquely compact yet comprehensive guide to the build-up and operational history of Soviet-made aircraft in Egypt and Syria during this period. Prepared by authors that have established themselves as top authorities on the Arab air forces, and supported by custom-drawn colour profiles and detailed maps, it provides an exclusive, in-depth study and a single point of reference for the operational history of the Egyptian and Syrian air forces, their organisation and markings of the mid-1960s.

When Egypt and Czechoslovakia signed the so-called ‘Czechoslovak Arms Deal’ in the mid-1950s, thy initiated a unique era of close cooperation between major Arab military powers, the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics and its allies. Within few years, the air forces of Egypt, followed by those of (in chronological order) Syria and Iraq, were all equipped with dozens and then hundreds of Soviet-made fi ghters designed by the Mikoyan i Gurevich Design Bureau – the same swept-wing jets that had taken the Western powers by surprise during the Korean War.

While the first generation of MiG jet fighters – the MiG-15 – saw only a relatively brief service in Egypt, its more efficient and uprated successor, the MiG-17F, entered service in bigger numbers, and then formed the backbone of all three air forces. In similar fashion, Egypt, followed by Syria and Iraq, purchased large numbers of Ilyushin Il-28 light bombers, while the MIG-17PF became their first radar-equipped combat aircraft, and the MiG-19 became their first supersonic fighter. Unsurprisingly, MiG-15s, MiG-17s and MiG-19s thus served with many different units and wore a wide range of very different, and often very colourful unit insignia and other markings. These aircraft saw extensive combat service in the wars with Israel, internal coups and many crises, often flown by pilots who would go on to play crucial roles in the future of their nations.

Based on original documentation and extensive interviews with veterans, and richly illustrated, MiGs in the Middle East, Volume 1 is a unique source of reference on the operational history of Il-28, MiG-15, MiG-17, and MiG-19 jet aircraft in Egypt, Iraq, and Syria from 1955 until 1963.

The years immediately prior to the outbreak of the Second World War saw the earliest and the more recently established Arab Air Forces attempting to play a role on the regional if not yet on the world stage for the first time. It was a period when those Arab states which had real or merely theoretical independence were more or less allied with European countries that were gearing up to face the growing Fascist and Nazi threats. Unfortunately, these anti-Fascist and anti-Nazi countries were themselves the imperial powers, France and the United Kingdom, which were still seeking to maintain their domination of the greater part of the Arab World. To say that this complicated the situation, and strained the loyalties of the men of the newly emergent Arab air forces would be an understatement.

Volume 5 of the Air Power and the Arab World series therefore seeks to shed light on a difficult and widely misunderstood time. It draws upon decades of research, including previously unpublished interviews with men now dead, archive sources than have never before been translated into a European language, and material which, though available in obscure Arabic publications, has been almost entirely neglected by aviation historians. Dr. David Nicolle especially wishes to acknowledge the contribution of his late colleague, Air Vice Marshal Dr. Gabr Ali Gabr, without whose scholarly research and publications this series would never have got off the ground, let alone been published.

This volume is richly illustrated with specially commissioned colour artworks illustrating the aircraft flown by the air forces in the Arab world during this dynamic period of time.

Volume 4 of Air Power and the Arab World, 1918-1936, continues the story of the men and machines of the first half century of military aviation in the Arab world. The earliest of the Arab air forces to be established trace their histories back to the 1920s and 1930s when the overwhelming majority of Arab countries, and an even larger majority of the Arabic-speaking people, were ruled or dominated by four European powers. This volume continues with the story of the period from 1918 to 1936.

The role, organisational structure and activities of the first Arab air forces are described based on decades of consistent research, newly available sources in Arabic and various European languages, and is richly illustrated with a wide range of authentic photography. These air forces ranged from dreams which never got off the ground, to small forces which existed for a limited time then virtually disappeared, to forces which started very small then grew into something more significant. Even so, the successful air forces of Iraq and Egypt would only have a localised impact within the frontiers of their own states. Volume 4 of Air Power and the Arab World 1909-1955 includes over 130 photos and 21 colour profiles.

Much of the Arab World remains ravaged by war or threatened by war. Meanwhile the decades old Arab-Israeli conflict remains fundamentally unresolved. Consequently, even the Arab air forces and other Arab armed forces remain either at war or on a virtual war footing, or at least in a state of continuous vigilance. The earliest of the Arab air forces to be established trace their histories back to the 1920s and ‘30s when the overwhelming majority of Arab countries, and an even larger majority of the Arabic-speaking people, were ruled or dominated by four European powers.

Based on decades of consistent research and newly available sources in both Arabic and various European languages, richly illustrated with a wide range of authentic photography, Volume 3 of the Air Power and the Arab World, 1909-1955 mini-series continues the story of the men and machines of the first half century of military aviation in the Arab World. It describes the role, organizational structure and activities of the air forces of Britain, France, Italy, and Spain which were sent to the Arab countries. It also looks at the early years of two neighbouring air forces, those of the Persian (Iranian) and Ethiopian Empires whose early emergence was viewed jealousy in some Arab capitals.

Volume 3 continues this story by describing operations of the British, French, Italian and Spanish air forces in the Arab world after the First World War, but also the emergence of the first Arab air forces in the shadow of the substantial European air force units stationed in that area.

At a time when multiple wars are raging across much of the Middle East, it is almost forgotten that it was Abu al-Qasim Abbas ibn Firnas ibn Wirdas at-Takurni – an Andalusian inventor, physician and engineer – who was the first person to undertake experiments in flying with any degree of success. That was back in the 9th Century A.D. Nigh on a thousand years later the Arab World's critical strategic location made it almost inevitable that these regions would be drawn into the imperial rivalries of the leading European powers, while the Ottoman Empire struggled to maintain its existing position in the area. This in turn meant that the first bombs to be dropped by military aircraft fell on Arab soil. Not surprisingly, as the Arab countries slowly achieved their independence, they too wanted to have air forces. In 1948 the first such Arab air forces were thrown into battle in an ill-fated attempt to keep Palestine as a primarily Arab country.

Based on decades of consistent research, but also newly available sources in both Arabic and various European languages, and richly illustrated with a wide range of authentic photography, Volume 2 of the ‘Air Power and the Arab World, 1909-1955’ mini-series continues the story of the men and machines of the first half century of military aviation in the Arab World.

At a time when multiple wars are raging across much of the Middle East, it is almost forgotten that it was Abu al-Qasim Abbas ibn Firnas ibn Wirdas at-Takurni – an Andalusian inventor, physician and engineer – who was the first person to undertake experiments in flying with any degree of success. That was back in the 9th Century A.D. Nigh on a thousand years later the Arab World's critical strategic location made it almost inevitable that these regions would be drawn into the imperial rivalries of the leading European powers, while the Ottoman Empire struggled to maintain its existing position in the area. This in turn meant that the first bombs to be dropped by military aircraft fell on Arab soil. Not surprisingly, as the Arab countries slowly achieved their independence, they too wanted to have air forces. In 1948 the first such Arab air forces were thrown into battle in an ill-fated attempt to keep Palestine as a primarily Arab country. Based on decades of consistent research, but also newly available sources in both Arabic and various European languages, and richly illustrated with a wide range of authentic photography, Volume 1 of the ‘Air Power and the Arab World, 1909-1955’ mini-series is telling the story of the men and machines of the first half century of military aviation in the Arab World.

Sixty years since the tripartite aggression of France, Great Britain and Israel against Egypt, this is the first account about Egyptian military operations during the Suez War of 1956 (or ‘Suez Crisis’, as it is known in the West). Based on research with the help of official Egyptian documentation and recollections of crucial participants, this book provides an unique and exclusive insight into the ‘other side’ of a war that many consider has marked ‘the end of the British Empire’. From the Western point of view, the situation is usually explained in quite simple terms: in retaliation for President Gamal Abdel Nasser’s nationalisation of the Universal Suez Canal Company - and thus the strategically important waterway of the Suez Canal - France and Great Britan (operating in concert with Israel) launched the operation codenamed 'Musketeer'. Divided into three phases, each shaded into the other; this aimed at obliterating the Egyptian Air Force, occupying the whole of the Suez Canal and toppling Nasser’s government. From the Egyptian point of view, backgrounds were much more complex than this. Striving to modernize the country, a new and inexperienced government in Cairo launched a number of major projects, including one for the construction of a gigantic Asswan Dam on the Nile. The only Western power ready to help finance this project, the USA conditioned its support with basing rights for its military. With the last British soldiers still about to leave the country - and thus end Egypt’s occupation by foreign powers for the first time in 2,000 years - Nasser found this unacceptable. Around the same time, Egypt found itself under pressure from Israeli raids against border posts on the Sinai. Left without a solution, Cairo decided to nationalize the Suez Canal in order to finance the Aswan Dam project, but also to start purchasing arms from the Soviet Union. In an attempt to bolster Egyptian defenses without antagonizing Western powers, Nasser concluded the so-called ‘Czech Arms deal’ with Moscow - resulting in the acquisition of Soviet arms via Czechoslovakia. Little known in Cairo at the time, such moves tripped several ‘red lines’ in Israel and in the West - in turn prompting aggression that culminated in a war. Wings over Sinai is, first and foremost, an account of the battle for survival of the Egyptian Air Force (EAF). Caught in the middle of conversion to Soviet-types, this proved more than a match for Israel, but were hopelessly ill-prepared to face the military might of Great Britain and France too. Sustained, days-long air strikes on Egyptian air bases caused heavy damage, but were nowhere near as crippling as the losses usually claimed and assessed by the British, French and Israelis. The EAF not only survived that conflict in quite a good order, but also quickly recovered. This story is told against the backdrop of the fighting on the ground and the air and naval invasion by British and French forces. Richly illustrated with plenty of new and previously unpublished photographs, maps (and 15 color profiles), this action-packed volume is illustrates all aspects of camouflage, markings and various equipment of British and Soviet origin in Egyptian military service as of 1956.

New archaeological material and research underpins this extensive, detailed and beautifully illustrated account of the famous Mamluk Askars who are credited with finally defeating and expelling the Crusaders, halting the Mongol invasion of the Islamic Middle East, and facing down Tamerlane. Probably the ultimate professional soldiers of the medieval period they were supposedly recruited as adolescent slaves, though recent research has begun to undermine this oversimplified interpretation of what has been called the "Mamluk phenomenon".

Charlemagne's conquest of the Saxons was the hardest fought and most protracted of his wars; it involved 18 campaigns spread across 33 years, a great deal of lower-level fighting and the harshest final peace settlement that Charlemagne ever imposed upon a defeated foe. Rapidly taking on the character of a religious conquest from its outset, it also became the most important of all Charlemagne's wars for the future direction and character of European history and began the long process of uniting the German-speaking peoples. With extensive photographs, full colour artworks, maps and bird's-eye-views, this volume unravels the initial stages of a convoluted sequence of events that led to the conquest of the Saxons and ultimately Charlemagne's consolidation of Saxony into the greater Carolingian Empire.

The Hanseatic League was a commercial and defensive federation of merchant guilds based in harbour towns along the North Sea and Baltic coasts of what are now Germany and her neighbours, which eventually dominated maritime trade in Northern Europe and spread its influence much further afield. The League was formed to protect the economic and political interests of member cities throughout a vast and complex trading network. The League continued to operate well into the 17th century, but its golden age was between c.1200 and c.1500; thereafter it failed to take full advantage of the wave of maritime exploration to the west, south and east of Europe. During its 300 years of dominance the League's large ships - called ‘cogs' - were at the forefront of maritime technology, were early users of cannon, and were manned by strong fighting crews to defend them from pirates in both open-sea and river warfare. The home cities raised their own armies for mutual defence, and their riches both allowed them, and required them, to invest in fortifications and gunpowder weapons, since as very attractive targets they were subjected to sieges at various times.

On 26 August 1071 a large Byzantine army under Emperor Romanus IV met the Saljuq Turk forces of Sultan Alp Arslan near the town of Manzikert. The battle ended in a decisive defeat for the Byzantine forces, with the Byzantine emperor captured and much of his fabled Varangian guard killed. This battle is seen as the primary trigger of the Crusades, and as the moment when the power of the East Roman or Byzantine Empire was irreparably broken. The Saljuq victory opened up Anatolia to Turkish-Islamic conquest, which was eventually followed by the establishment of the Ottoman state. Nevertheless the battle itself was the culmination of a Christian Byzantine offensive, intended to strengthen the eastern frontiers of the empire and re-establish Byzantine domination over Armenia and northern Mesopotamia. Turkish Saljuq victory was in no sense inevitable and might, in fact, have come as something of a surprise to those who achieved it. It was not only the battle of Manzikert that had such profound and far-reaching consequences, many of these stemmed from the debilitating Byzantine civil war which followed and was a direct consequence of the defeat.

The Bulgars were a Turkic people who established a state north of the Black Sea. In the late 500s and early 600s AD their state fragmented under pressure from the Khazars; one group moved south into what became Bulgaria, but the rest moved north during the 7th and 8th centuries to the basin of the Volga river. There they remained under Khazar domination until the Khazar Khanate was defeated by Kievan Russia in 965. In the 1220s they managed to maul Genghis Khan's Mongols, who returned to devastate their towns in revenge. By the 1350s they had recovered much of their wealth, but they were caught in the middle between the Tatar Golden Horde and the Christian Russian principalities. They were ravaged by these two armies in turn on several occasions between 1360 and 1431. A new city then rose from the ashes - Kazan, originally called New Bulgar - and the successor Islamic Khanate of Kazan resisted the Russians until falling to Ivan the Terrible in 1552. The costumes, armament, armour and fighting methods of the Volga Bulgars during this momentous period are explored in this fully illustrated study.