- USAF Academy Department of History
The 147th Aero Squadron in World War I: A Training and Combat History of the "Who Said Rats" Squadron
by Jack S. Ballard
This book is the first complete history of the American Air Service’s 147th Aero Squadron in World War I and provides, at last, an understanding of the role of this least known unit of the 1st Pursuit Group. This detailed account tells how various individuals responded as volunteers, describes the trials of training in Texas and Canada, explains the often ignored problems of transporting across the Atlantic and English Channel, and then reveals the thrilling, frustrating, and heroic combat actions of the 147th over the Western Front up to the Armistice.