5 comments about U.S. Naval Air Superiority: Delevelopment of Shipborne Jet Fighters - 1943-1962.

1. An outstanding review of post-WWII US Navy fighters. This is a fairly technical book, discussing not just the history of the aircraft but also giving a good view of US jet engine development during the forties and fifties, aircraft systems and an interesting take of how successful each type was based on numbers of squadrons and number of deployments made.



2. Happiness is getting this book for your anniversary. Honestly, I loved this book. It gives you your money's worth. Example, this book not only gives you a run down on every major jet fighter produced from 1943 until 1962, but it gives additional information on carriers, landing development, and weapons systems.
   
   I was pleased with how the book starts with the F1H Phamtom's story and concludes it with the development of the F4H Phantom II (F4B). Also, this book gave an honest history of the much maligned F3N-3 Demon. The J-71 was not a great engine. Indeed, it would have been interesting to see how the F3 Demon would have developed had it been given the much more dependable J-57. But after the Wright engine fiasco the McDonnell engineers came up with a very good all weather fighter. Indeed, the book says that the F3 Demon went on over 57 deployments with the Navy and gave good service from 1957 until 1962. That is over five years of service and many hundreds of flights from a carrier. Indeed, when a person looks at the F3N it's fairly clear that in the modern USN the aircraft would have been given a new engine (the J-57) and an avionics upgrade. The F3N could have served as long as the F4N. But the point is the F4N was a jet in a class by itself and the only reason it was phased from service in the mid-1990s was because of cold war draw downs. That is amazing for a design started in mid-1950s.
   
   I liked all of the chapters of the book. What was weird is reading how Grumman really blew it with the F10F Jaguar. That jet and the Westinghouse engine debacle nearly killed the company. Grumman first get design, the F9F Panther, was not as good as the better McDonnell F2N Banshee. Indeed, the book gives a proposed swept wing F2N-5 design that McDonnell proposes but by that time they were far along on the design on the F3N Demon, an advanced design by any standard. The F9F is a tubby design and is a full 60 miles per hour slower than the F2N. Grumman comes out with the modified F9F-6/8 by the mid-1950s. McDonnell is getting the may kinks out of the Demon but the fact is McDonnell is one generation ahead of Grumman at this point. Then in the late 1950s Grumman produces the F11F, a good fighter but not as good as the F8U Crusader. And by this point it's hopeless because the F11F is in a design fly off against the McDonnell F4N and that jet is in a class by itself. Then the author runs quotes of a Grumman engineer bad mouthing the F2 Fury saying it's not as good on station as the Cougar. Well, the Furys were holding the line against a MiG threat when Grumman was trying to get the lead out of their designs.
   
   Vought had as many problems with their designs as the rest. They made the mild failure, the F6U Pirate, a get with half the thrust of the F2N. Then Vought made the dreadful F7U Cutlass, perhaps one of the worst operational jets in the USN. Vought did a great job with the F8U Crusader, one of the best "gunfighter" jets ever made by any nation.
   
   All in all I found this book from Amazon to be quite enjoyable. I got my money's worth. Now, I have one quibble with the book: there was no break down on jet engines nor much information. That was not a big deal for me because I used to work on F-4C, F-4E, F-100, and the F-105 aircraft. So, I know the engines (J-79, J-57, and J-75 respectively). But if you're an aircraft buff that means you'll be scratching your head on keeping all the engines correct. There is one saying in this book that's true, "You can fly a Pratt & Whitney farther than you can ship an Allison". That goes for Westinghouse.
   
   This book is great and I now remember why I used to love aircraft when a kid.



3. This is probably the best book out there covering the beginning of the US Navy's jet age and all of the changes and transformations that it required.



4. My opinion of this work improves upon every re-reading. It is a truly superb history of U.S. Navy fighters during the period of the early jets.
   
   Furthermore, it is a good read not only for the student of Naval aviation or jet fighters, but also for the reader who does not have much background on the subject.
   
   I own (gulp!) hundreds of books on the subject of Navy air and consider this book by Thomason the best of that considerable library.



5. I came across this book having read several of author Thomason's Naval Fighters books. I was so impressed I did an Amazon search for other books he might have authored. I am now even more impressed. Thomason does for naval fighters what Norman Friedman has been doing for navy ships for three decades.
   
   This book is very adequately described by its subtitle - "Development of Shipborne Jet Fighters 1943-1962". The dates correspond to the contract for the Navy's first jet fighter, the McDonnell XFD-1 Phantom to the first deployment of the McDonnell F4H-1 (later F-4B) Phantom II.
   
   Jet propulsion was what a later generation would describe as a paradigm shift. Virtually overnight the Navy found itself having to learn once again how to operate increasingly sophisticated aircraft at sea. The innovations were coming thick and fast - jet engines, tricycle landing gear, ejection seats, cockpit pressurization, swept wings, guided missiles, etc. Thomason aptly quotes the Red Queen from Alice in Wonderland - "It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place". Thomason superbly describes the technical, strategic, tactical, industrial, and political contexts under which fighter development took place in this period.
   
   Faults are very few and one really has to dig deep to find something to complain about. I came up with no coverage of the XFY-1 and XFV-1 tail sitters but no doubt they were excluded on the grounds of being turboprops, not jets. Still, the Ryan FR and Curtiss XF15C were mentioned (and dismissed) so a paragraph or two would have been nice for completeness sake.
   
   But that is really reaching for something to criticize. This is a superb book in every respect; it is well written, well illustrated, and well organized. Very highly recommended.

5 comments about Secret Aerospace Projects of the U.S. Navy: The Incredible Attack Aircraft of the USS United States, 1948-1949.

1. Wow! This is some excellent stuff here! Zichek has done it again! His love of all things Naval Aviation has shown through once more. The history of the USS United States has long been poorly done but now no longer.
   
   I'd no idea the US aviation companies could come up with such fantastic airplane concepts and designs. I'd never heard of any of these proposals yet, the good Mr. Zichek presents them all in an over abundance of detail. Plans, schematics, performance estimates, company artwork, and computer generated graphics all bring this subject to life.
   
   For to long the whole "Luft 46" crowd has gone around as if it were only the WWII Germans that cooked up anything advanced. Well here is the proof that there was amazing creativity over on the other side of the Atlantic.
   
   This book will appeal to aviation historians, Naval Aviation buffs, modelers, and anyone with a curiosity about the off beat and esoteric.
   
   I highly recommend this book!



2. Wow! Jared has opened a window into a stunning project mostly unknown until now. This book is superb, thoroughly well researched and with fascinating illustrations. Highly recommended to anyone with a passion for aviation, and a must-have for those involved in aerospace design. In fact, I'd be almost tempted to suggest it as a college reference book for aerospace design class. The book cover shows this is Volume 1, thereby alluding to possible future volumes. Let us hope so and encourage Jared in his marvelous effort to unveil the blueprints of a future that never was.



3. Why should only the German projects get the high end treatment?
   
   Zichek turns in a wonderful effort: the designs are competently described and illustrated and are placed in their proper historical context.
   
   Production values are superb with only a few minor glitches from the hit and miss editing that bites most Schiffer books. There are a few instances where text has been dropped or duplicated. One table was reproduced twice. Another was reproduced at a size making reading impossible.
   
   But all in all, if you have an itch for aerospace "might have beens", "long shots", or "what were they thinking?" you'll be pleased with this one. You might also want to check out Zichek's American Aerospace Archive at http://magcloud.com/browse/Magazine/3628 .



4. It is no secret that a large number of German aerospace experts were brought to this country after the war. The von Braun group is best known but there were others. The manned aircraft/missile combination on the cover of this excellent book incorporates a design based on the Tromsdorff D-6000 and the Mistel or piggy back concept developed during the war. The inlet diffusor is based on the work of Oswatitisch from 1944. A careful examination of other designs shows clear derivation of late-war German designs.
   
   The author is to be greatly commended in showing how quickly and with obviously very rapid effort, the Americans went to work to counter the new threat, Russia. The shock of what was found in Germany and not knowing for certain what else the Russians found, and the Americans did not know about, likely spurred this effort. For example, the Russians captured the DFS 346 supersonic aircraft and had it test flown, suspended under the wing of an American lend-lease aircraft and released. The hand of Dr. Alexander Lippisch is evident too in the delta wing designs.
   
   I look forward to further efforts by this author who has uncovered a hidden treasure.



5. This book ties together numerous design efforts by the airframe manufacturers in their post war efforts. Once again the use of archival research by Mr. Zichek similar to his book on the F8B makes this book a real standout. Mr. Zichek is a capable author who is able to look at these proposals in their historical context and identifies not only how they were influenced by the experiences of their design teams but also by their competitors.
   The good news is that this is volume one and compares well with book on the F8B. This is not a coffee table book. Mr. Zichek is as good as Gunston or Miller.

4 comments about Fiat CR.42 Aces of World War 2 (Aircraft of the Aces).

1. The Authors of this wonderful work are two of the most remarkable young aviation historians: Gustavsson is the leading researcher of the biplane fighters of World War Two; Slongo has shown his competence in the history of the Italian Regia Aeronautica.
   
   This book chronologically describes all the major combats in which the last biplane fighter of WWII was involved (also in foreign - Belgian, Hungarian, German and Swedish - service).
   
   The customary Osprey formula offers plenty of unpublished pictures from important Italian collectors and accurate color profiles by the well-known illustrator Caruana.
   
   On the other side the publisher's policy does not let the Authors fully exploit their quantitative analysis of the CR.42 operations. The few data which nevertheless leak out tell a little-known story about the actual effectiveness of this fighter: despite its outdated design and the higher performance of some of its opponents (mainly the Hurricane), the CR.42 enjoyed an overall kill-loss ratio of 2:1 in its first year of war. This proportion is by no means exceptional, yet it is much brighter than the traditionally derisive image presented so far in the English literature.
   
   Considering the competence of the Authors, many minor errors are probably attributable to a sketchy editing (hence the loss of the fifth star) and will be hopefully amended on one of the Authors' website.
   
   However the content of the book is so innovative that it would deserve a more in-depth edition (possibly in Italian, nothing similar still existing in the country of origin of Rosatelli's fighter): that would be the right place for some additional considerations about the technical reasons of both unsuspected victories and painful defeats (engine, gunnery, radio, training...). Will Osprey give us soon a "CR.42 vs. Gladiator" volume?



2. It shouldn't be surprising that the top biplane ace of World War II was an Italian! While British, French and German pilots went off to war in sleek monoplane fighters, Il Duce's fighter pilots were, in the main, flying Fiat CR. 42 biplanes. Nevertheless, during the first two years of the war, Falco units turned in a credible performance, nine pilots making ace in Fiat's robust, maneuverable fighter. Hakan Gustavsson and Ludovico Slongo detail the exploits of those pilots and others in this fascinating Osprey 'Aircraft of the Aces' book, #90 in the series.
   
   In the war's early years, Falco units saw combat over North Africa, East Africa, Greece, Malta and Italy itself, performing in the fighter, fighter-bomber and nightfighter role. The CR.42 held its own against RAF Gladiators despite the Fiat's weak armament and its lack of radio or armor. Arrival of the Hurricane along with effective RAF tactics that discouraged dogfighting Falcos spelled the end of the CR.42 as a first-line fighter.
   
   From 1939 to 1942, nine pilots made ace, the top-scorer being Mario Visintini with 16+ claims. FIAT CR.42 ACES OF WORLD WAR 2 does a nice job of relating the combats flown by Visintini, Baron, Graffer, Canella, Bordoni-Bisleri and others. My knowledge of Mussolini's air force is somewhat lacking so I found Gustavsson and Slongo's book quite interesting and informative. The CR.42's service under Belgian, Hungarian and German colors is also nicely summarized in Gustavsson and Slongo's book.
   
   Ninety b&w photographs help illustrate the Falco's combat career along with 10 pages of absolutely superb color profiles by Richard Caruana. Caruana is a top-notch illustrator and I hope Osprey makes more use of his considerable talents.
   
   If your interest lies in Il Duce's air force, air combat in the Med or biplane fighters, you'll enjoy FIAT CR.42 ACES OF WORLD WAR 2. It sheds a light on a comparatively little-known subject and gives well-earned credit to some talented fighter pilots waging war in Fiat's tough little biplane. Recommended.



3. This most recent title in Osprey's Aircraft of the Aces series came up slightly short in my opinion. The book is, as usual, full of previously unseen photos, a wealth of information, and 40 glorious color profiles of the Fiat CR.42 as it was used by Italy, Hungary, Sweden, Belgium and even Germany during the Second World War. However, the authors presented the information in a chronological order, jumping from one theater of operations to another without any type of break or warning in the chapters. It led to some confusion as I read it, first reading about Fiat's flying over North Africa, then East Africa, then Great Britain, then Greece and suddenly randomly turning up in East Africa again or a different theater of operations. It would have perhaps been better had the authors dedicated a chapter strictly to each theater and not wandered around the Mediterranean, finishing ALL Fiat CR.42 operations in North Africa between 1940 and 1943, then starting the next chapter on operations in East Africa, the chapter after that on flying over Great Britain, etc. etc. They could have still done each theater separately without the annoying jumping around. They could have still presented all information in the book but in a much more orderly fashion, theater by theater. The authors should both be complemented though for their depth of research, follow up to the post war lives of some of the aces, unit histories, and photographic presentation of this seldom covered fighter aircraft. I give it a 4-star rating, and it is a worthy addition to your library.



4. I agreed with one of the other reviewers. The author was jumping from one theater of operations to another regarding the Fiat Aces. He should had a chapter for each theater of operations for France, Greece, Italian East Africa, North Africa, etc. Furthermore, he should have find out what tactics the Fiat fighter pilots use to destroy the Blenheim bomber since it was a fast plane during the 1939-1941 era.
   
   Pretty good stories about how hard it was the British to destroy the Fiat because it was a very manuverable plane against the Hurricane and could climb better than the Gladitor.

No comments about Grumman F9f Panther/Cougar: First Jet of the Grumman Cats (Specialty Press).

No comments about U.S. Air Force Interceptors: A Military Photo Logbook 1946-1979.

5 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. 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.



2. My son has really enjoyed this book - he works with Dad and they have learned quite a bit about drawing aircraft!



3. Lee J. Ames does a good job of helping you learn to draw aircraft in 'Draw 50 airplanes, aircraft and spacecraft' book. I've tried to draw planes before but they looked, well, bad! Now that I've been following the step by step instructions, I've been drawing a lot better! 5 stars from me. A really good book! I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn to draw aircraft.



4. This is the fourth drawing book I have purchased by Lee J. Ames. These are definitely the best drawing books available for kids. I have given several as gifts, and they are always well-loved. The step-by-step instructions are easy to follow, not too challenging, and have great results. Any of the "Draw 50" books are excellent, it just depends on what you're looking for. Great for kids, and beginning artists. Not too detailed, and yet still very nice pictures and hours of fun.



5. My son loves airplanes and my son loves to draw. He uses this to draw some new and different aircraft with the same/similar shapes that are included in the book.

4 comments about Fw 190 Sturmbocke vs B-17 Flying Fortress: Europe 1944-45 (Duel).

1. My discounted copy of this new 'Duel' title arrived today - at this price these titles are worth getting. The Osprey 'preview' image from this volume depicting JG 300 pilots Loos & Dahl boring in on the 303rd BG over Bitburg, 15 Aug 44 appaeared on a number of web-sites pre-publication and my 11-year old thinks its pretty decent - I have to agree this type of computer-art beats the usual dreary battle scene 'painting' in these titles even if the Fw 190's are too close together and the rear B-17 gunner wouldn't be firing a stream of tracer. Whether I can actually persuade my son to read any of the text will be another matter altogether. There seems to be rather more words here than in previous 'Duel' titles starting with a chronology that curiously ends on 2 December 1944. The themes of FW 190 as 'bomber killer' over Germany are explored and there are chapters on the design and devlopment of both types with technical specifications and cutaway artworks, before the author moves on to outline the strategic situation in the European air war. Again. This is a 'Duel' volume - author & publisher should have looked at presenting a couple of the larger air battles over Germany in detail - rather than devoting pages to a strategic overview. There is no chronological account - there isn't the space in this book's 80 pages for anything more than a cursory overview. I particularly liked the B-17 artwork illustrating the various fighting compartments and there are some personal accounts of coming under fire from German fighters. There is a full page colour artwork of the FW 190 cockpit and more artwork depicting the Sturm fighter closing on a bomber Pulk from astern. Photos are small and a little dark and have all been published elsewhere, which is disappointing. Bizarrely the text goes on to discuss the Sonderkommando Elbe ramming Bf 109s of April 1945. There is no detail at all on the huge bomber battles that took place over Germany during late December 1944 and early January 1945.
   
   Some of the text I've read seems curiously to focus on Walther Dahl of JG 300 - there are several pictures of him and his Fw 190s and a full page profile. While acknowledging that his autobiography "Rammjäger" was 'colourful' the book repeats all the old chestnuts regarding his supposed 128 victories and his huge accumulation of bomber kills - for which the authors of the two volume JG 300 history quoted in this book's bibliography found little or no evidence of course. There is a full page given over to a listing of leading Luftwaffe B-17 'killers'. There are two pages devoted to a bibliography entitled 'Further Reading' which includes German-language titles that I somehow doubt will be of interest to the average Duel -series purchaser.
   
   As for the timeline ending on 2 December as already mentioned, that has to be a typo, and should read 24 December, which was the date of IV.(Sturm)/JG3's last big success in the West. Otherwise the book itself is a very selective look at various aspects of the daylight bombing campaign focusing on training, the machines, the men. Nothing to do with the author I doubt, but this is a title assembled to fit a tightly outlined format and as such doesn't work very well at all for me.



2. The heavily armed and rugged Fw 190 was a B-17 crewman's worst nightmare. Moreso than its Bf 109 stablemate, the 'Butcher Bird' had the firepower and staying power to decimate 8th AF B-17 and B-24 units especially those lacking fighter escort. The combats fought between Fw 190s and B-17s are the subject of this 2009 Osprey release, the latest in their 'Duel' series. Over the years Robert Forsyth has written several wonderful Luftwaffe histories; unfortunately his latest effort misses the mark.
   
   Though the idea of pitting the Fw 190 against the B-17 appealed to me initally, I had misgivings about the appropriateness of the match-up. Pitting a P-51 against a Bf 109, for instance, is valid, both aircraft having pluses and minuses in a dogfight. In a Fw 190/B-17 combat however, there was/is no comparison. The Fort always functioned as a clay pigeon albeit a well-armed clay pigeon!
   
   While Forsyth checked off all the squares in the established Duel format, the book doesn't jell into a comprehensive, cohesive whole. He does detail each aircraft's development and design, the training received by its pilot/aircrew, tech specs and so on.
   
   My problem lies in the 'Stategic Situation,' 'Combat,' 'Statistics and Analysis' and 'Aftermath' sections. Some of the material in the first section seemed to fit better in the second and vice versa. As regards the Combat section, there were a number of engagements where Fw 190s caught unescorted B-17 units and did great execution: 6 March 1944, Berlin; 12 May 1944, Brux; 28 Sept. 1944, Magdeburg; 2 Nov. 1944, Merseburg; etc. Had Forsyth used a straight chronological approach focusing on some/all of those combats, his narrative would have been more apropos to the Duel 'who won?' bottom line. Then too, the Stats/Analysis section was too confusing for my simple mind; too much 1:8 of this and 3.6 of that. The Aftermath coda wasted space on Bodenplate, Kommando Elbe and YB-40s, all of which added little to the main topic.
   
   The book's artwork though was a definite plus. The colorful cockpit and tail turret diagrams, armament views and attack formations were interesting and helpful. Gareth Hector's combat scene of JG 300 '190s closing in on 303rd BG Forts was eye-catching. And Jim Laurier's cover artwork, especially the JG 4 scene, was simply magnificent.
   
   So, while the Fw 190/B-17 idea sounds good, for it to succeed, you really need a sharply focused narrative that separates air combats from air campaigns. And, to do justice to such a match-up probably required more than the standard Duel 80-page format. As is, Fw 190 STURMBOCKE VS B-17 FLYING FORTRESS, EUROPE 1944-45 has an unfinished, or perhaps more accurately, a poorly focused feel to it. Great cover art though!



3. This book is nothing more than a collection disparate facts and many grainy old photos and drawings. The actual experiences of German and American crews were far and few between. In all good conscience, I cannot recommend this book to the serious student of the WWII air war (1944-45) over Europe.



4. This is another work in the Duel series, published by Osprey. It seems to me to be fairly representative of other entries in the series. There are a series of photos that contribute to a sense of the contending planes, in the duel between American bombers (the B-17) and German interceptors (FW 190). There are also maps that provide context on the geographic scope of the duel.
   
   The book begins with a bit of history, the recognition by some that bombers could be important weapons in warfare. Americans began to test several possible models. One of these became the B-17 "Flying Fortress." The discussion is not lengthy, but it does give background. Following are sections on the "design and development" of the planes and the technical specifications.
   
   Then, the actual battle situation. As with others in this series, treatments tend to be brief (that is, after all, one hallmark of this series). The combatants are discussed, including their training. We learn of the exploits of some of the German pilots) some of the numbers of planes shot down appear incredible). Combat tactics are discussed, as well as the evolution of those tactics, as both sides tried to figure out how to perform better.
   
   The fate of the German air force is well told, as pilots received less and less training and experienced pilots were killed off by attrition.
   
   Another nice entry in the Duel series. . . .

5 comments about Red Eagles: America's Secret MiGs (General Aviation).

1. Anyone who has read any titles from this author would expect a great deal of primary research and this book doesn't disappoint. In fact, it goes beyond anything else he has produced, which is remarkable considering the absolute secrecy surrounding the Red Eagles. As a former customer of the Red Eagles, I can attest to the close hold nature of the entire operation. Nobody talked about it, period. It was just such a unique and good deal that nobody wanted to jeopardize it. This books captures all the details and even illustrates it lavishly with photos that just didn't exist until now. Well done! Make that, extremely well done tribute to those who flew as Red Eagles and made this remarkable unit a reality and kept it going for so long. No serious library on air combat would be complete without it.



2. "Red Eagles" is an adequate first published account of US operated Soviet aircraft in the late cold-war era. If it turns out to be the only book written on this minor but innately interesting bit of aviation history, then it will have been "decent". It is a chronological, by-the-numbers history that meanders from episode to episode in the history of a series of inter-related programs and fills the space with a lot of chatty personal and organizational stuff, that, while perhaps worth "putting on the record" in some sense, is also dull while many much more interesting aspects of the story were basically ignored.
   
   Since the related units and personnel involved in operating Soviet aircraft (note to the author and others: they were "SOVIET" aircraft, not "Russian" aircraft - shouldn't a professional aviation writer know the difference and/or not write in blatantly incorrect colloquialisms?) changed often, there are no central characters to the story. Instead, it's the story of a series of a number of closely inter-related programs, and so over the course of the book, various pilots are introduced with half page travelogues of the various units they belonged to and the planes that they flew. To a man, essentially, we are told how such and such was a legend from whose backside the sun shone, and then a bit later this individual leaves the unit, never to be heard from again. I have no doubt whatsoever that these men were superb pilots and individuals of the highest caliber, but that the book focuses on them - and focuses on them in such a shallow and chatty way - is ultimately its undoing.
   
   The book's strengths:
   1. Interesting topic! Kudos to Steve for tackling the largely unreported.
   2 Vignettes of pilots. The first few were interesting to read.
   3. Providing a chronological/organizational history and a good sense of how they operated in a grey/black sense regarding things like financing.
   4. Some good technically-oriented flying stories as reported by the pilots.
   
   The book's weaknesses:
   1. No interviews were conducted with ex-Soviet and current Russian, Ukrainian, etc Air Force pilots to verify or say something more intelligent about the aircraft and their characteristics to balance and frame the Aggressor pilots' observations. As such, the description of the aircraft have the depth and feel of the proverbial blind men describing an elephant. I'm not saying that this book should have been, for example, "about" the MiG-17. However, by having virtually everything written "from the inside", it loses a lot of analytical and objective possibility.
   2. Too many vignettes of pilots (what a reviewer on amazon.co.uk calls "name dropping") that are included in lieu of potentially more interesting stuff as above. It gets really old and annoying after a while, and one gets the sense that our author is laying the groundwork for future free rides. Unfortunately, the readers suffer.
   3. Essentially zero discussion of interesting technical questions relating to maintaining foreign-aircraft. Even the brief discussion of engine overhaul is done by a pilot, who would have but the vaguest notion of its specifics. How, exactly, do you overhaul a foreign aircraft engine and fabricate replacement parts of alloys not necessarily easily available in your country?
   4. Essentially zero analysis from people with a more over-arcing and external view of the program. Just like a doctor isn't necessarily an expert on the economics of health care, the pilots and local commanders profiled for the book don't provide much objective insight into the program. Sure, these guys flew fast, had wild adventures, and suffered a few tragic mishaps. And sure, there are plenty of stories of pilots who went in with their F16s, got their butts kicked by a humble fresco or whatever, and then triumphed the next day, the lessons learned. But what did this mean more broadly? The authors' claim of direct link from the programs to success over the gulf of Sidra is a bit unconvincing.
   5. Sloppy writing. I'm not a rivet counter. However, there's only so many times you can see a turbojet referred to as a "motor." Similar mistakes abound.
   
   Additionally, while not a direct weakness, the book would have benefitted a bit from explanatory diagrams a la shaw's "Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering." But, it's clear that Davies has no real technical background (his background is in IT recruitment, which explains the emphasis on organization and recruitment) and that he's kind of "faking it" the whole way, relying on direct quotations and couched, vague technical analysis.
   
   But, despite my criticisms, as I said, it's a decent book.



3. For ten years the United States Air Force operated its own squadron of MiG fighters...and no one knew! The history of that unit - the 4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron - is chronicled in this 2008 release from Osprey Publishing.
   
   Some two dozen other reviewers have already weighed in on Steve Davies' book and I second many of their comments. The 4477th TES/"Constant Peg" Program was a vital element in the USAF producing fighter crews that could survive - and flourish - in modern combat. The acquisition of the MiGs used in the program, the exploratory flights flown, the tactics evolved by 4477th crews, the personalities and politics involved in Constant Peg, the mishaps, etc. make for engrossing reading. I thought RED EAGLES was a great read.
   
   Personally I think Davies deserves a "Sierra Hotel!" for the information he uncovered in his research. Years ago I plowed similar ground regarding Constant Peg's predecessors (Have Drill/Have Doughnut) which is why I'm so impressed by all the info Davies unearthed. At that time (late 1980s/1990s), Have Drill/Doughnut was still pretty hush-hush and some pilots like Tom Cassidy won't talk. Fortunately, Tooter Teague, Mugs and a few others opened up enough so I could include a chapter on Drill/Doughnut in my MIG KILLERS OF YANKEE STATION book. Perhaps Davies could have included even more on "what effect did it all have" but in terms of who-did-what-when, I think he did a first-rate job.
   
   Short and sweet: Fascinating history, fine book. Highly recommended.



4. This book is a fascinating historical documentary of the use of captured Mig-17, Mig-21 and Mig-23 fighters by the US Air Force. These Migs were used to determine their capabilities and to train US pilots to combat them. The book goes into extraordinary detail on the pilots, the planes, the assignments and the tragedies. Every pilot involved with this effort was detailed. It is almost like being there as there is a tremendous amount of first person narrative.
   
   I liked the book because I recall the time when there was so much suspicion about black (secret) Air Force programs and the speculation on what was going on. This book totally reveals the details on one aspect of those times.



5. Steve's book is an excellent read. Granted, there may be some aviation "nuts" who do not like the presentation. However, Steve collected a tremendous amount of information that should satisfy anyone's thirst for knowledge about the program. For those of us who were FWS instructors in the 70s, who flew against the Migs, and who developed air-combat tactics, the book brought back fond memories of one heck-of-a cool time and of some really, really great fighter pilots.

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

1. Haven't had a chance to read it yet,but it looks like an exhaustive study of the subject.



2. Great info on velocity vector management, potential energy awareness, etc. Not one hundred percent current on ACM, but a good staple read.



3. This book is only for the person wanting to learn ACM air combat maneuvering. I would only recommend this book to an actual pilot or someone deeply into simulation gaming. I absolutely love the book though. When you do read it, you have to give it 100% of your attention and must have some previous knowledge to ACM to completely understand what Robert is talking about.



4. Very good book to understand everything about dogfights. A must if you are looking for better SA in combat flight simulators.



5. If you don't have this one book, your library is missing the overall, best book on combat aviation printed to date. A reference book I have used over and over again and will continue to use. The Bible of aerial combat tactics and maneuvering!

3 comments about Convair Deltas: From Sea Dart to Hustler.

1. Bill Yenne's new book, Convair Deltas, is a detailed but very readable look at F-102s, F-106s and B-58s. In addition to an interesting and informative writeup on the airplanes, Yenne includes a listing of every unit each type was assigned to. Best of all, however, is the terrific selection of photos. Many are full page and in color, from Convair and Air Force photographers. All of them are new to me.
   
   This is the kind of book that other airplane books would like to be: lots of interesting information without being so dense that the reader's eyes glaze over in a few pages, filled with great photos.



2. Delta-winged aircraft are largely just an interesting footnote in the annals of aviation history. As with so many other technological achievements, the Germans did it first in World War II with the far-out, unflown designs of Alexander Lippisch. After the War, Britain's AVRO "Vulcan" long-range bomber was perhaps the most distinctive delta-winged aircraft ever. The "Vulcan" was in service for many years in the Royal Air Force (RAF), and saw combat in the British-Argentine conflict over the Falkland Islands (or the Malvinas, depending on which side you were on). In the non-military arena, the Anglo-French Mach 2 "Concorde" airliner carried well-heeled jet-set passengers with speed, exclusivity and luxury until a fatal crash in 2000 in Paris permanently grounded the fleet. The United States has developed more delta-winged aircraft than any other nation, and one American company has built most of them---the Convair Division of the General Dynamics Corporation.
   
   "Convair Deltas: From Sea Dart to Hustler" is an outstanding history of Convair's delta-winged aircraft. If you're familiar with the Specialty Press line of aviation and spaceflight books, you'll know what to expect. This volume does not disappoint. Renowned historian and military/aviation author Bill Yenne starts out with a 10-page history of Convair in its many corporate incarnations. He then jumps right into the full design and development stories of the fascinating delta-winged aircraft that the company produced over a span of nearly 25 years. They're all here: the XF-92A, the F-102 "Delta Dagger," the XFY-1 "Pogo" VTOL fighter, the F2Y-1 "Sea Dart" jet seaplane, the F-106 "Delta Dart" and the incredible B-58 "Hustler" supersonic bomber. Mr. Yenne gives comprehensive, detailed technical descriptions of each aircraft, describes their development and flight-test programs and then covers the operational histories of those that went into production. He includes hundreds of well-chosen black-and-white and color photographs (many of them rare images from his personal collection) and a few drawings of, for example, actual and proposed aircraft configurations, cockpit layouts, etc.
   
   There's not much more to say about "Convair Deltas: From Sea Dart to Hustler" other than to recommend it highly for every aviation enthusiast. It covers a specialized topic, to be sure, but an exceptionally interesting and important one. Mr. Yenne does a superb job of telling the tale of the groundbreaking aircraft that proved out an aerodynamic concept perhaps most famously embodied in today's Space Shuttle Orbiter. Their aerodynamic and structural advantages mean that delta wings will probably always be around, and here's the full story of their early, formative years in development, flight test and operations. This is very good stuff.



3. THE BOOK IS FULL OF BLACK & WHITE AND COLOR PICTURES.
   THE TEXT IS WELL WRITTEN AND TELLS THE STORY OF EACH AIRCRFT PROTOTYPE OR PRODUCTION.
   THE LACK OF DIAGRAMS AND COLOR PROFILES IS NOT A DISADVANTAGE AS THIS BOOK REFERS TO THE MODELLER AND TO THE AIRCRAFT ENTHUSIAST.
   IT WAS THE FIRST TIME I READ CONTINUISLY A BOOK IN JUST 3 DAYS.
   YOU WILL LOVE IT