5 comments about Illustrated Anatomy of the World's Fighters.

1. Gorgeous color photos of fighters through the ages are on the inside covers and the intro sections. However, the main substance of this book are the highly detailed and labeled b/w 3-D cutaway diagrams of some well known fighter aircrafts from the WWI Morane-Saulnier Type N, WWII P-38 Lightning, DeHavilland Mosquito to the modern Dassault Rafale, Saab Gripen, F-22A Raptor and Eurofighter EF2000 Typhoon. Great for fast referencing including a brief history and specs (powerplant, performance, weight, dimensions, and armament) for each fighter. A worthy addition to any fighter enthusiast, historian, or hobbyist's library!!!



2. A detailed overview of the development of fighter aircraft achieved through detailed pictorial, diagramatic and written analysis of 100 examples. True to form, the authors knowledge of technically important and interesting but little known and often ignored types, as well as the better known classics, is what makes this book really stand out and draws the reader back again and again.



3. Great book! Excellent reference material for artist or fighter plane buff.



4. Excellent, detailed illustrated book of some of the worlds greatest fighters. A must for those who like military aircraft.



5. Terrific book. I build models on my computer in 3D and this book is a great resource. The drawings are splendid.
   And the text clear. If you find aircraft fascinating, you will enjoy many hours with this book

No comments about Supermarine Spitfire Owner's Workshop Manual: 1936 onwards (all marks).

No comments about Luftwaffe Fighters & Fighter-Bombers over the Far North.

2 comments about Draw 50 Airplanes, Aircrafts, and Spacecraft: The Step-by-Step Way to Draw World War II Fighter Planes, Modern Jets, Space Capsules, and Much More... (Zephyr Book).

1. Draw 50 Airplanes has been around for a while. I'm glad that it is still in print. Wish it had been around when I was a kid, doodling airplanes. A bunch of my favorites are there: Sopwiths, P-40s, Spitfires, F-86 Sabres, P-38s. Hopefully, someday, there will be a revised edition that can capture some late arrivals to the first century of flight that today's kids really like- the Space Shuttle, the SR-71 Blackbird, the F-117 Nighthawk. There are dozens of "how to sketch", "how to draw" titles out there. This is not one of those books. This book skips the nuances of perspective and the agony of descriptive geometry. It is not about fine art... it is not about drafting... When you sign a note to a friend, did you ever want to be able to add a quick Spitfire with a flourish? One that someone else thinks looks like a Spitfire? Or how about a sketch of the Wright Flyer? This is THAT kind of a book. This is about the serious business of producing a happy characture of the airplane that dances in your head. It will egg you on until you pick up a pencil and make an airplane appear on the page. It will help you perfect that skill. A curved line here, a pair of straight lines there. One pencil stroke at a time. And it obviously wasn't written just for kids. This book can help just about anyone create some really neat airplane doodles. Who knows what comes from that... So many rich experiences in life depend on having some early successes, the hopeful satisfaction that causes you to press onward... J. Campbell Martin



2. Great book for the budding artist who loves aircrafts! Each one is fairly easy and helps them to be creative even outside of the book. Highly recommend.

5 comments about Grumman F-14 Tomcat: Bye - Bye Baby...!: Images & Reminiscences From 35 Years of Active Service.

1. A great source of information and memories on the F-14. Great pictures, human interest from pilots and air crew, a book to treasure.



2. Ive always believed cops and fighter pilots shared something in common. You dont know how it feels unless you've felt that trickle of sweat running down your back during a high speed pursuit or chasing boogies over foreign skies, the chase is the name of the game.From running up stairs in the projects to flying at night with ghosts you never know whats going to happen. This book is beautiful to flip through or read the raw, undiluted tales from the pilots themselves. One pilot said " he waited till his knees stopped shaking before he got of the plane after a hop". Ive waited too. Its nice to hear that.



3. Excellent book showing off the Tomcat in its greatest perspective : outstanding choice of pictures and very interesting comments by F-14 users (flyers, maitainers, ... sometimes World famous Tomcatters)



4. Great pictures of the mighty F-14 and lots of cool commentary by former Tomcat drivers from the US and one from Iran. The authors could add more from the Iranian side too as there is more from Iran than the US Navy experience with this great aircraft. All in all, a great collection.



5. I am so very proud to have known George Hall throughout my life and career as a photographer. I am also proud to have more than half a dozen images in the book well displayed. George was a great influence on my persistence in keeping with doing photography and he was always very kind in giving me insight. Nicky and George were also very gracious hosts when ever I would come to see them. This book is the wonderful culmination of all of out hard work and love of the high flying adventure that is modern military aviation. In my opinion, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat will always be the sexiest aircraft ever to fly.

5 comments about Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War.

1. Overall, this book has more merit as the basis for someone interested in producing a 'Made for T.V. movie', then it does for anyone seriously interested in COL Boyd's career and his contribution to the art or war.
   
   In 'BOYD', Coram attempts to portray COL Boyd's career (1952-1975) as a single faceted, 'fighter pilot's crusade' against the inept and corupt Defense bureaucracy.
   
   This portrayal ignores the significant influence that 'Nuclear Brinkmanship' had on defense policy and military thinking at the time of the Cold War (1947-1991) and results in a substantially biased and diminished work that all too often relies upon innuendo, conjecture and exagerations in order to preserve the author's story line over any form of historical objectivity.
   
   During the Cold War, the major threat and focus of the senior military and civilian leadership of this country was on the 'nuclear triad' (i.e. Strategic Bombers, ICBMs & Nuke Subs), not on tactical fighter combat. Against this backdrop, Coram's antithesis, "Bigger-Higher-Faster-Farther" while making for a very poor fighter, does describe the performance parameters that could lead to an exceptional 'bomber interceptor', that would address one of these three threats to our national security. A part of the story that Coram gives no attention too and a fine example of the lack of objectivity that permeates this book.
   
   Finally, two of COL Boyd's most important contributions to the art of war, 'The OODA Loop' and 'Destruction and Creation' (the former of which had a significant influence on the development of the Land Warfare Doctrine that defeated Iraq twice in the last two decades), only get cursory coverage in this book at best.
   
   As important as Coram makes Boyd's E-M theory (i.e. a technical measurement of aircraft performance) out to be , its influence and impact on aerial warfare and the art of war is mostly technical, of which the benefits it will provide, can only be temporary at best.
   
   Even now, technical improvements in 'air to air' and 'missile engagement' technology (i.e. Radar, AIM-7s, AIM-9s and even pilotless aircraft,...etc.) are such that it is possible to forsee the day when these advances will succeed in eliminating most, if not all of the area of the fighter engagement envelope that E-M was created to address.
   
   When that happens, Robert Coram's book which is mainly aimed at the controversial aspect of COL Boyd's E-M contribution, will have missed the mark of how it could have told the story about "The 'Man' That Did Change the Art of War".



2. An excellent read. As a former Naval aviator and now an employe for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics where the F-16 is built, I can attest to Boyd's drive to build the best lightwight fighter in the world. He was certainly correct in his methodolgy to build somethng that the rest of the world did not have. Sales prove that. But the information in the behind the scenes tactics that Boyd employed are exceptional reading. Highly recommended - everyone that I have suggested that they read this book has agreed



3. I'm not sure how Robert Coram's book justified all the gushing praise printed on its cover and front matter. It's a serviceable biography if one wants to learn about John Boyd's relationship with his mother but don't expect to learn a lot about his theories: potentially Boyd's "real" impact on the US military.
   
   The reader will learn that Boyd was a rebel, a potty mouth, he flipped the bird to superior officers, evidently enjoyed prodigious Schadenfreude when a competitor failed, etc. Anecdotes demonstrating these character flaws of Boyd's come at the reader ad nauseam. If I had a dime for every time Coram writes words to the effect that "Boyd's behavior would have ended the career of a lesser officer" I'd be a wealthy man. Boyd basically banged his head against a concrete wall most of his career. However, I wonder how much, if at all, Boyd's legacy survived the ten years since his death (he died in March, 1997, I'm writing this in March, 2007).
   
   Boyd demonstrated that as an old colonel once told me "Those who think also serve." His first theories concerned air-to-air combat as the world's air forces transitioned to jet planes and evidently were successfully implemented by the USAF late in the Vietnam War. Due largely to Boyd's self-destructive tendencies he was not allowed to fly fighters during that conflict. In the 1970s-80s he kept thinking while serving, among other places, at the Pentagon. Here his main mission in life seemed to be the vain attempt to keep the F-15s and F-16s "pure fighters" against the efforts of USAF generals to load them down with avionics and ordnance.
   
   I first became aware of Boyd in the early `80s when a friend turned me on to the Boyd- or OODA Loop. Clearly this concept had universal applicability to just about any military situation plus those in the political, commercial, diplomatic, etc. realms as well. From then on I kept my eyes open for anything about Boyd (hence my initial high-hopes for Coram's book when I saw it reviewed in "Air & Space" magazine) but in the pre-internet age that was difficult. Ten years later I stumbled across "A Discourse on Winning and Losing" at the Ft. Leavenworth library. Its simplicity and elegance were obvious. Unfortunately, the other 99% of the US military was as tradition-bound (and I don't mean that in a good way) and entrenched as those USAF fighter generals, Boyd's thinking didn't fit into American doctrine so found few adherents.
   
   Regrettably, the reader of Coram's book will learn little about these theories. As a journalist he's competent to discuss Boyd the teen-age life guard or USAF workaholic but only knows the very basics about the military (a couple of airplane rides notwithstanding) so Coram has to rely on others to tell him about Boyd's philosophy and here he falls way short. Therefore, after a few paragraphs or a couple of pages superficially describing the OODA Loop, etc. it's back to anecdotes concerning Boyd the curmudgeon telling yet another general to pound sand.
   
   Coram's book is a bibliography only in the most limited sense. I'd wager 99% of his readership are left wondering "OK, so this guy Boyd made full colonel and was a great thinker but his personality and modus operandi were so strident and off-putting that his potentially great message was squandered due to his personal baggage. Therefore where's his greatness in this?"
   
   Then there's the remaining 1% of us who are still waiting for a serious treatment of Boyd's thinking that would fulfill the implied promise of Coram's subtitle and explain how Boyd "changed the art of war." I have little doubt Boyd contributed to the military arts and sciences in exactly this manner but one's not going to learn that from the admiring Coram.



4. In 2008, John Arquill (Netwars) will publish a book on American military reform. In it he makes three recommendations, the elimination of the Pentagon, the end of strategic bombing strategy, and force reductions to 100,000 in each of the main services.
   
   This book, published in 2002, tells the story of a man who fought to realize these same notions in the 70s, 80s and 90s.
   
   The book reads like a novel. As told, John Boyd is a flawed genius on a lonely mission, assisted by a few friends. There isn't much work done to place Boyd in context. Instead, Boyd is the context. He is Newton, Sun Tzu and George Washington blended into one great, tragic master. I think the story would stand on its own merits without the hype.
   
   Within the excited rhetoric, one can get a sense of the dark bureaucratic games played in Washington. This alone is worth the time spend reading.
   
   One of the most interesting themes involves bureaucratic wars between Army, Navy, Air Force and any politician in power. As told here, true Air Force vitriol was not expended on foreign enemies, it was saved for the Navy, Marines and Army. After all, there is always a much higher chance that your career will be cripled by a competing service, than by a foreign power. As Orwell wrote in "1984", "The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power. Not wealth or luxury or long life or happiness: only power; pure power."
   
   These tales occupy half the book and are told almost exclusively from the recollections of Boyd's friends. In fact, the second half of the book is really about the activities of Boyd's friends, not Boyd. Frankly, I don't know what to make of this. You can read it with blind faith in Boyd, or take any one of many over-generalizations and dismiss the whole thing. There are plenty of gratuitous insults against anyone not a fighter pilot to turn off any but the most friendly reader. Perhaps, it is best to see it as an attempt to see it like Boyd saw the Pentagon bureaucracy battles. As such, you get to ride copilot and enjoy the ride. At a minimum, it will make your next reading of Sun-Tzu more interesting.



5. Fascinating insight into the mind of a genius. I read it in one day and did not want it to end.

No comments about Messerschmitt Bf 110 B, C, D & E: An Illustrated History.

No comments about Experimental & Prototype U.S. Air Force Jet Fighters (Specialty Press) (Specialty Press).

5 comments about Fighter Combat: Tactics and Maneuvering (New Edition).

1. Fighter Combat by Shaw is the definitive book on air combat in any decade.
   
   Like so many others have said, Shaw's book is utterly comprehensive, covering everything from the most basic of basics, to advanced maneuvering tactics for fighting when faced with superior odds and superior aircraft. I originally purchased Fighter Combat as an aid to my knowledge in combat flight simulators, but I quickly found that even small portions of Shaw's book contained a level of knowledge that absolutely dwarfed my own.
   
   Highly, highly recommended. If you're a flight-sim enthusiast, a jet fighter enthusiast or the like, there is no more authoritative work.



2. A very competent insight on the dynamics of ACM and the relationship of the aircraft and weapon systems.



3. ... then this book is a must-have. However if you are a pretty casual flight simmer and just are out for fun, this will just complicate your approach unnecessarily.
   
   I got it with the intention of getting more serious, but unless you are a young person with ambitions of joining the air force, you may be better off just getting what info there is on line already.
   
   This book covers all aspects of ACM, and it is excellent for that. Just that after having read the book, I found I lacked the time to PRACTICE the maneuvers covered therein. And practice is the only way you will be able to translate what's in the book into anything more real. If you have an interest in combat flight, you may enjoy the book anyway, on another level.
   
   All in all I'd have to say that it was a good addition to my library- now just trying to get the time to implement it in my fav sim.



4. This book is a serious educational tool for modern fighter pilots. I tried reading it in high school when I thought I wanted to "grow up to be a fighter pilot." The best thing about it is that I learned that being a fighter pilot requires a lot more knowledge of math and physics than I'd ever imagined. Real fighter jocks have to be a great deal smarter than they are portrayed in movies.
   
   The subject matter is fascinating, and the book is clear and well-written. If you read it carefully, you will certainly learn something, but unless you are also sitting in a cockpit day after day, you won't have any context for the information you've put in your head.
   
   I suppose a die-hard combat flight sim pilot might be able to improve his or her air combat skills with this book, but, honestly, for a civilian, the only reason to read this book is because you are so obsessed with air combat that you simply must immerse yourself in this subject matter. I doubt someone who has never flown into real air-to-air combat will ever have a true appreciation of the knowledge this book has to offer.



5. If you have any interest in this area this is a must have book.
   Simple and generaly fast reading,with lots of images to further extend the meaning of the text. Written by someone who knows about the art of fighter fighting. Good for real and virtual pilots alike (so many people say)

No comments about American Secret Projects: Fighters & Interceptors 1945-1978 (Secret Projects).