Two years after the Apple TV+ miniseries Masters of the Air reignited interest in the WWII “Bloody Hundredth,” the book that inspired it is getting a deluxe collector’s upgrade. On March 3, 2026, The Folio Society will release a premium illustrated edition of Donald L. Miller’s Masters of the Air: How the Bomber Boys Broke Down the Nazi War Machine.
The new edition includes an exclusive introduction by Tom Hanks, an introduction by series co-producer Kirk Saduski, and over 60 archival photographs — several never previously published — alongside newly commissioned aviation artwork and a full-color B-17 Flying Fortress cutaway. Published in a high-end slipcased hardback format, the edition will retail for £ 100/$145 and be available exclusively through The Folio Society beginning March 3, 2026.
The edition follows the nine-part Apple TV+ miniseries, created by John Shiban and John Orloff, which ran from January to March 2024 and helped push the Eighth Air Force story back into the cultural conversation.
For Miller, the Folio release is designed to be more than a refreshed package — it’s a restoration of the book as a physical object at a moment when the screen adaptation has already done the heavy lifting in public awareness.
Deluxe Edition Features Exclusive Introduction by Tom Hanks
Miller described the Folio edition as a significant upgrade from previous printings, emphasizing both its visual and tactile elements. He told Military.com:
The Folio edition of Masters of the Air is distinctive in its handsome enhancements and additions: its eye-catching new cover and sleeve; its high-grade paper and print, easy on the eye and satisfying to the touch; its arresting new photographs of aerial combat and base life, many of them never published before; its magnified color reproduction, in a specially designed pocket, of the inner workings of a B-17 pulled from a rarely seen full-color manual made for the plane’s combat pilots; a striking reproduction of Robert Rosenthal speaking to his crew before a mission, painted by aviation artist Gil Cohen; stirring introductions by Tom Hanks and co-producer Kirk Saduski; and graphic combat maps.
Donald L. Miller/Military.com
He added that the edition fills a gap for collectors. He continued:
This is a treasure for devotees of the air war, as a hardback edition of the book is no longer available. The quality of the book is unsurpassed; it’s one of a kind, and I am as proud of it as I am of the television series and documentary film we made from it.
Donald L. Miller/Military.com
How the Apple TV+ Series Revived Interest in the 100th Bomb Group
The Folio Society’s deluxe edition arrives in the wake of Apple TV+’s ambitious nine-part limited series Masters of the Air, which premiered on January 26, 2024, and ran through March 15. Produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks — the team behind Band of Brothers and The Pacific — the series shifted the focus from ground combat to the perilous air war over Nazi-occupied Europe.
Based on Miller’s meticulously researched book, the series follows the Eighth Air Force’s 100th Bombardment Group, known as the “Bloody Hundredth” for its staggering casualty rate. Over 22 months of combat, the unit lost 732 airmen killed and 923 taken prisoner, with 177 aircraft shot down. At one point, the group lost 86% of its original 30 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers.
Set in early 1943, the series depicts a grim period in the Allied air campaign, when American B-17 crews flew deep into Germany without long-range fighter escort. Facing heavy anti-aircraft fire and seasoned Luftwaffe pilots, bomber crews — whose average age was just 25 — were expected to complete 25 missions at 25,000 feet, with survival odds hovering around 25%.
With a production budget reportedly more than double that of Band of Brothers, the series delivered large-scale aerial combat sequences alongside a portrayal of the psychological toll borne by bomber crews. Starring Austin Butler as Maj. Gale “Buck” Cleven and Barry Keoghan among its ensemble cast, the show introduced a new generation to the harrowing air war while renewing interest in Miller’s original account.
Unlike many collector’s editions that precede a screen adaptation, The Folio Society’s release follows the cultural wave created by the series — offering readers a richly illustrated, archival-heavy return to the historical record that inspired it.
Why This Edition Targets Serious WWII Collectors
Miller is the John Henry MacCracken Professor of History Emeritus at Lafayette College and the author of ten books, including Vicksburg. Beyond publishing, he has worked as a host, co-producer, or historical consultant on more than thirty television documentaries and has written for outlets including The New York Times and The Washington Post.
The Folio Society, based in London, has built its identity around producing illustrated collector editions sold directly to consumers through its website. The company has published premium editions spanning major contemporary and classic titles, and it now operates as an Employee Ownership Trust — a structure it adopted in 2021 under CEO Joanna Reynolds.
How to Buy the Folio ‘Masters of the Air’ Edition
The Folio Society edition of Masters of the Air: How the Bomber Boys Broke Down the Nazi War Machine will be available for £100 / US $145 beginning at 4 pm UK time (11 am EST, 8 am PT) on March 3, 2026, exclusively through The Folio Society’s website.
The premium hardback joins the publisher’s library of wartime classics, including Band of Brothers by Stephen E. Ambrose and Dispatches by Michael Herr. For readers who came to the story through Apple TV+ — or longtime aviation history enthusiasts — the new edition offers the most visually expansive and archival-rich version of Miller’s account to date.
