In a remote area of Mongolia the
'Nomonhan Incident' lasted four months. This border skirmish between the
Russians and Japanese ended in 1939, just 15 days after Germany invaded Poland and an
isolated 35 by 20 mile section of land became a battlefield for more than 900
Soviet and 450 Japanese aircraft.
Using the Ki-27 Nate fighter, Japanese pilots clashed with Soviet
I-15 and I-153 biplanes and their I-16 monoplane. The soon to be antiquated
massive TB-3 heavy bombers were also used and the Ki-21 Sally made its combat
debut, eventually continuing service throughout the Pacific War.
This was one of the first large aerial battles of modern times and
the pilots used the conflict to practice and refine new fighting tactics which
moved air power into the future of war. They sharpened up their missions and
learned to place emphasis on reconnaissance, fighter sweeps, bomber escort and
infantry support. Both sides discovered and ignored tactical and design lessons
from the combat to the detriment and advantage of each.
Covering both the Japanese and Russian sides In The Skies of Nomonhan
includes loss lists, colour profiles from both sides, plus over fifty photos
from Japanese and Russian archives all of which provide a new perspective on
this interesting and largely unknown pre World War II encounter.
