Russell Hughes

Russell Hughes is one of the authors writing for WAR HISTORY ONLINE

Articles by Russell Hughes:

One Of The Toughest, Most Skilled American Snipers In Vietnam

Carlos Hathcock was a genuine Vietnam War hero and an undisputed legend in the U.S. Marine Corps for his exploits in southeast Asia. With a…

WWI: One Man Charged The Enemy Trenches Captured 6 Machine Guns and 100 Infantry

Horace Augustus Curtis wasn’t supposed to be a war hero. He was supposed to be a nobody who lived and died in relative poverty in…

The Mysterious Disappearance Of The French WW2 Submarine Surcouf

The mystery of how the record breaking French submarine Surcouf sunk has been debated since the day it disappeared in the Pacific, near Tahiti. Were…

Hans-Ulrich Rudel – The Flying Tank Buster Who Flew More Than 2,000 Missions And Killed Over 500 Tanks

Hans-Ulrich Rudel was shot down 30 times during his 2,530 missions. He destroyed one battleship, one cruiser, one destroyer, 70 landing craft, 800 vehicles, 150…

A Fatal Failing Of Intelligent Leadership in the Vietnam War – The Battle Of Lima Site 85

There is a remote mountaintop in north-eastern Laos called Phou Phathi, and the locals said it was a place where phi, or spirits, lived. By…

The American Fighter Pilot Who Served in Two Wars and Shot Down 16 Enemy Planes

The American aerial mission over battle-scarred Western Europe may have been short and sweet, but one pilot managed to stand out from the rest of…

Sergeant York – Captured 132 German Soldiers Pretty Much Single Handed In WWI

Sergeant Alvin York was seemingly born to a hardscrabble existence and anonymity in death, but World War One changed that forever. The story of York is…

The Man Who Escaped 200 Times From A Nazi PoW Camp To Visit His Lover

For some people, escaping a German prisoner of war camp once would be enough. The first time Horace Greasley did it, he was just getting…

The Battle of Crete Was The Reason Hitler Abandoned Parachute Assaults For Good

Crete might be an idyllic tourist island now, but during a 12-day period in May 1941 a mixed force of British, Australian, New Zealand and…

Operation Linebacker II – The Massive Bombing Campaign That Brought Peace In Vietnam

Operation Linebacker II was the ultimate oxymoron and a repetition of a favoured American tactic for bringing about peace on an Asian battlefield. Just like…

Roland Freisler – Hitler’s Screaming Nazi Judge

Nazi Germany perverted every democratic institution that was supposed to uphold the rule of law and ensure the people of Europe’s most powerful nation were…

Operation Cobra – The Battle That Opened The Way For An Allied Victory In France

Operation Cobra was as important to the Allied war in France than the D-Day landings themselves. The success of the battle was the moment the…