[1] Hayward analyzes the role of Adolf Hitler's use and control of the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Stalingrad between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union during World War II.

Charles Messenger, ed., Readers Guide to Military History (Chicago, Il: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2001) describes the book as "a magnificently researched study … [which] provides the best available account of the disastrous Stalingrad airlift."

... His tri-dimensional [i.e., joint service] treatments of the Crimean campaign, the siege and capture of Sevastopol, and the air-ground actions during the Battle of Stalingrad are perhaps the best available anywhere.

... His examination of the Stalingrad airlift is also first rate, and provides an unparalleled view of the operation from the air fleet headquarters' perspective.... Hayward's rendering is an important contribution to the airpower history of World War II."

"The great merit of this excellent account is to remind historians that this was not just a ground struggle, but an air war as well.

... Hayward has used a remarkably wide range of sources, which he handles with exceptional deftness and critical detachment.