{"product_id":"9780873389808","title":"Above the Thunder: Reminiscences of a Field Artillery Pilot in World War II","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe son of a Kentucky tobacco farmer, Raymond Kerns dropped out of high school after the eighth grade to help on the farm. He enlisted in the Army in 1940 and, after training as a radio operator in the artillery, was assigned to Schofield Barracks (Oahu) where he witnessed the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and participated in the ensuing battle.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the months before Pearl Harbor, Kerns had passed the Army’s flight training admission exam with flying colors. But because he lacked a high school diploma, the Army refused to give him flying lessons. Undaunted, Private Kerns took lessons with a civilian flying school and was actually scheduled for his first solo flight on the afternoon of December 7, 1941.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNotwithstanding his lack of diploma, Kerns graduated from Officer Candidate School and then completed flight training in the L-4 Piper Cub in late 1942. He was assigned to the 33rd Infantry Division in New Guinea and saw extensive combat service there and in the Philippines. In a simple but riveting style, Kerns recalls flying multiple patrols over enemy-held territory in his light unarmored plane, calling and coordinating artillery strikes. While his most effective defense was the remarkable maneuverability and nimbleness of the L-4, he was often required to defend himself with pistols and rifles, hand grenades, and even a machine gun that he welded to his landing gear and once used to blow up an ammunition dump.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eProud of his service and convinced of the effectiveness and cost efficiency of the L-4 pilots in the Pacific and Europe, Kerns earned the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Silver Star.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbove the Thunder,\u003c\/b\u003e arguably one of the best memoirs of combat action during World War II, will appeal to military historians as well as general readers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Kent State University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47012437262576,"sku":"9780873389808","price":24.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780873389808_p0.jpg?v=1769912110","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780873389808","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}