Gnat Boys relates the history of the aircraft and includes many fascinating and untold stories told by those who flew the aircraft, many of them well-known and distinguished aviators. The Folland Gnat was used by the RAF mainly in the advanced training role, in the 1960s and 70s, where it proved to be an ideal lead-in trainer for high ......
Helicopters have been going to sea with the Royal Navys Fleet Air Arm for over 70 years. Initially used for search and rescue (SAR) duties from aircraft carriers, the rapid development of both the helicopters and service experience resulted in them taking on the vital anti-submarine (and later anti-ship) attack roles. The 1956 Suez campaign saw ......
An irreverent romp through time looking back over the history of aviation, from Icarus and his wax wings to everything that happened since. This irreverent history looks back at the story of flight since the first patient-to-be jumped from a castle parapet to the joy that is flying with a hen night to Prague. It features all the important ......
The McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier IIvertical/short takeoff and landing (VSTOL)is the US Marine Corps current frontline close-air-support aircraft. A variant of the famed British Aerospace Harrier II, the AV-8B is noted for its ability to hover in place, ideal for operating on smaller carriers and in less-than-ideal landing zones. This book ......
The Russian Air Force is the worlds second largest military air arm, capable of deploying more than 4,000 military aircraft, including 1,522 helicopters, 497 trainers, 873 fighters, 424 transports, and more. Illustrated throughout with detailed artworks with authentic markings and exhaustive specifications, Technical Guide: Modern Russian ......
Illustrated with colourful artworks of carrier aircraft and their markings, Allied Carrier Aircraft of World War II is a detailed guide to all the aircraft deployed by the Allied navies from 1939 to 1945. Organised chronologically by type and nationality, this book includes fighters, fighter-bombers, torpedo bombers, dive-bombers, ......
Joel introduces us to the 48-215, the Humpy, and describes how this modest car, designed for a particular time and place, burst the boundaries of its expectations.
The Pacific Profiles series presents the most accurate WWII profiles of aircraft which served in the South Pacific theatre. Volume Seven covers the Douglas C-47, including numerous derivatives such as the C-53, R4D and DC-3. This was the most universal aircraft type to appear in the South Pacific and was deployed from day one to the cessation ......
The 1944 Allied invasion of France was a combined effort, with land- and sea-based forces supported by a huge aerial task force, which included legendary aircraft such as the Spitfire, Mosquito, Dakota and Mustang. The force comprised the RAF, its commonwealth allies and the USAAF, which resulted in an eclectic mix of gliders, heavy bombers, ......
The vision of Alliott Verdon Roe and his team in designing and building the 748 resulted in a highly successful commercial airliner, that since the 1960s has been responsible for opening new air routes in many corners of the world. Many of the airstrips into which the 748 formerly operated are now fully fledged international airports, with ......
The untold story of the elite force that spearheaded almost every British bombing raid over Nazi Germany by the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Kamikaze Hunters. Perfect for fans off John Nichols Spitfire, Patrick Bishops Fighter Boys and Dambusters Dark low-level raids, dodging anti-aircraft flak to make pinpoint-accurate drops - the ......
This Vulcan To The Sky Calendar for 2023 relives the glory of the XH558 and features fabulous monthly images of this much-loved aircraft.
True aviation enthusiasts will love this Flight calendar for 2023. Each month features a modern commercial airliner from around the world, an informative description and a spacious date grid. This calendar is free of plastic packaging.
Aviation monograph of the F-82 Twin Mustang, an unusual variant of the famous P-51 Mustang. Developed during the Second World War, but too late to see combat, the Twin Mustang was created by the engineering team at North American Aviation to provide long-range escort for larger, slow bombers. With the outbreak of the Korean Conflict, the Twin ......
Allied Fighters 1939-45 offers an highly-illustrated guide to Allied fighter aircraft that fought in Europe during World War II. Featuring all the main models flown by the Allied air forces from 1939 to 1945, the book offers a wealth of detail, including unit markings, organization, numbers of aircraft flown by campaign and exhaustive ......
The elegant, three-engined Savoia Marchetti S.79 Sparviero (Sparrowhawk) was for a period the fastest medium bomber in the world. Designed by Alessandro Marchetti, the first prototype was produced in September 1934 and over 1,300 aircraft were built up to 1943.
During the 1930s, the S.79 made several record-breaking long-range ......
This is the story of Eric William Absolon, a relentlessly enthusiastic Aviation champion, whose lifelong love of aircraft has never wavered throughout his long and varied career. From boyhood fascination to the adult realisation of his ambitions, this first-hand account takes in some of the key events of the dynamic period of twentieth century ......
Written from the unique perspective of a fast jet cockpit, Tornado Over the Tigris captures the essence of what it was really like to fly a Tornado at the front-line of the Cold War in Germany and on operations over Iraq in the aftermath of the Gulf War. After achieving a boyhood ambition to qualify as an RAF pilot, Michael Napier was posted to ......
Using first-hand accounts and brand-new artwork, this book brings to life the realities of flying the Bf 109 in combat during the very first battles of World War II. The Bf 109 was one of the principal fighter aircraft types in the Luftwaffes inventory during the opening months of World War II and it was central to many of ......
In the years after the Second World War, aircraft optimised for various kinds of special missions began assuming ever-greater importance in the inventories of the worlds leading air forces. The Soviet Union was no exception - numerous special mission versions of Soviet military fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters were developed and fielded, and ......
Concise visual history of Boeings first jetliner. Beginning in the late 1950s, the Boeing 707 revolutionised passenger aviation like almost no other aircraft, as the elegant four-engine aircraft made it possible to serve intercontinental long-haul routes quickly and economically. This volume in the Legends of Flight series examines the history ......
For many years the importance and contribution of the Hawker Hurricane was eclipsed by the Spitfire but statistically the Hurricane was superior in the majority of cases. Thanks to Tommy Sopwiths initiative and gamble the Hurricane was ready at the outbreak of the Second World War and in service throughout. As this superbly researched book ......
From the science of weather to the theory of flight, Doug Morris chats about the A to Zs of the airline world. It takes 55 departments to get an airliner off the ground and Doug brings to light all the people involved - with some entertaining anecdotes along the way.
For everyone from frequent fliers to aviation geeks, travel ......
In 1978, in the tailwind of the golden age of air travel, flight attendants were the epitome of glamor and sophistication. Fresh out of college and hungry to experience the world-and maybe, one day, write about it-Ann Hood joined their ranks. After a grueling job search, Hood survived TWAs rigorous Breech Training Academy and learned to ......
Concise visual history of the Boeing 757 passenger jet. First flown in 1982, the Boeing 757 was an impressive accomplishment. The aircraft was fast, quiet, and fuel efficient while still exhibiting stellar takeoff, climb, and landing performance. Hear firsthand accounts from the leaders of the 757 program who skillfully established an ......
The Wellington Bomber was omnipresent during the Second World War, employed in a variety of contexts in the fight against the Axis powers. The pilots who flew this aircraft did so with an immense amount of pride, and there is perhaps no-one better placed to tell the story of this incredible aircraft than these men. Martin Bowman has drawn ......
Having flown an astonishing 400 different aircraft, as a licensed Category 1 test pilot and flight test instructor for both aeroplanes and helicopters, Chris Taylor is arguably one of the best qualified and widely experienced test pilots working today anywhere in the world. After obtaining his private pilots licence at the age of just 17, Chris ......
A uniquely detailed study of a Japanese aircraft carrier that took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor, before being sunk at Midway. Hiryu was an aircraft carrier built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the 1930s. Her aircraft supported the Japanese invasion of French Indochina in mid-1940 and during the first month of the Pacific War, ......
In April 1972, after six gruelling years of design and development, the then Lockheed California Company (now Lockheed Martin) delivered the most technologically advanced commercial jet of its era, the L-1011 TriStar, to its first client, Eastern Airlines. To mark the moment, Lockheed decided to make an impressive statement about the ......
The history of aviation is full of striking and unusual designs, from the biplanes and triplanes of World War I, through the giant bombers and streamlined fighters of World War II to the stealthy shapes and unusual configurations of modern military aircraft like the Northrop Grumman B-2 and V-22 Osprey. Military Aircraft Visual ......
Few aircraft encompass as many contradictions as the Fairey Swordfish - the legendary Stringbag naval torpedo bomber was approaching antiquation at the start of the war yet struck mortal blows against some of the most powerful battleships in the Axis fleets. Naval Aviation historian Matthew Willis explores how modern technology such as radar ......
Modern strategists talk about "force multipliers," and, for air operations, air-to-air refueling is without doubt the greatest force multiplier of all. In-flight refueling has allowed not only the longest bombing missions in history but also persistence in air defense, transport reach and flexibility in ground-attack tasks. Covering a range of ......
A new pictorial history of one of the most significant aircraft of the Second World War. Masquerading as a civilian airliner during the mid-1930s, the Heinkel He 111 medium-range bomber saw its first combat in 1936 with Germanys Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War. The initial stages of World War II confirmed the designs prominent role ......
The Sunday Times Bestseller
The first official story of the Red Arrows, from their Top Gun and commander, celebrating the history of Britains world-famous flying squad. The Red Arrows represent the very best speed, agility and precision of the Royal Air Force, and the pilots behind the planes are rigorously selected ......
In May 1945 with the war in Europe at an end, Britain had to play her part in the occupation of the defeated Germany. The near-bankrupt country was hard-pressed to maintain such a military presence on the continent and still manage our other out commitments across the Mediterranean, Middle and Far East. As the immediate post-war years came to ......