Aluminum Alley

Aluminum Alley: The American Pilots Who Flew Over the Himalayas and Helped Win World War II

Author: Rory Laverty

Description:

Aluminum Alley tells the remarkable story of the American pilots who braved the world’s first strategic airlift during World War II, flying over the treacherous Himalayas to keep China in the fight against Japan. After the attack on Pearl Harbor and the Japanese blockade of China, the United States launched a daring and unprecedented supply mission to sustain Chiang Kai-shek’s forces and tie down more than a million Japanese troops.

From 1942 to 1945, young airmen—known as the “Hump pilots”—flew bare-bones cargo planes from Assam, India, across Burma and the towering peaks of the eastern Himalayas, delivering fuel, ammunition, and vital supplies. Facing brutal ice storms, jungle terrain, the constant threat of Japanese fighters, and sheer granite walls of mountain, one in three pilots never made it home. Their courage and sacrifice formed a vital, yet often overlooked, chapter in the Allied victory over Japan.

Drawing on survivor interviews, letters, flight logs, and wartime journals, Aluminum Alley combines gripping narrative storytelling with meticulous historical research to shine a light on this forgotten theater of World War II.

Key Features

• Uncovers the story of the WWII “Hump pilots” who flew perilous supply missions over the Himalayas
• Explains how this first-ever airlift sustained China’s fight and helped divert Japanese forces
• Based on first-hand accounts, letters, flight logs, and survivor interviews
• Blends narrative nonfiction with military history for an intimate yet far-reaching account
• Hardcover | ISBN: 978-0811772624