Archive for Items Categorized 'Aviation', only excerpts shown, click title for full entry.

Horten Ho 229

by Andrei I. Shepelev & Huib Ottens

The work of the Horten brothers is very remarkable, especially given their young age and the circumstances under which they worked. The Ho 229 was their last and most ambitious project—yielding lessons that are puzzling engineers still.

Soviet Naval Aviation 1946–1991

by Yefim Gordon & Dmitriy Komissarov

A subject shrouded in mystery and suffering from spotty information. No more. Both history and machinery are covered.

Wave-Off! A History of LSOs and Ship-Board Landings

by Robert R. “Boom” Powell

If you have even the remotest interest in flying—of any sort—or teamwork—of any sort—don’t miss this book because it’ll offer food for thought about many things!

British Private Aircraft

by Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume

This book and its sister volume may look unassuming but they are nothing of the sort. They are also so well written that anyone with an ear for language will find them enriching.

Tupolev TU-22/TU-22M

by Yefim Gordon & Sergey Komissarov

Similar names, different aircraft. One was the first Soviet supersonic nuclear-capable bomber but failed to live up to expectations, the other a completely reconfigured improvement. This book needs no improvement.

Taming the Skies: A Celebration of Canadian Flight

by Peter Pigott

Fifty of the most significant aircraft in the history of Canadian aviation are discussed in good detail and with lively writing.

Vought F-8 Crusader: Development of the Navy’s First Supersonic Jet Fighter

by William D. Spidle

The Navy’s first fully operational supersonic aircraft would become the most successful military aircraft ever built. This book covers its design and development as well as the early stages of its operational history.

The Human Archaeology of Space

Lunar, Planetary and Interstellar Relics of Exploration

by Peter Joseph Capelotti

Capelotti teaches archaeology and concerns himself with both terrestrial and aerospace archaeology. Here he successfully achieves his goal of gathering “into a single source the data on the artifacts that Homo Sapiens have discarded in space and place them into the framework of archaeology.”

A Postcard History of Japanese Aviation: 1910–1945

by Edward M. Young

Japan adopted Western technologies late but then with a vigor unmatched by other Asian nations. Several hundred postcards tell that story here.

Ladies of Lascaris: Christina Ratcliffe and the Forgotten Heroes of Malta’s War

by Paul McDonald

The RAF did tremendously important reconnaissance work on Malta, and the women and girls who worked as plotters and cipherenes helped. Obviously, they had private lives, and Ratcliffe’s in particular is way out there.

Project Terminated

by Erik Simonsen

“Too many cooks spoil the broth” . . . this book puts the blame for pulling the plug on seemingly viable aviation projects on hapless bureaucrats who keep the military from doing its thing. But it ain’t that easy . . .

Flying Saucer Technology

by Bill Rose

Never mind the names—Flapjack, Foo Fighter, Flying Top, Umbrellaplane—this interesting book is not about space aliens but actual man-made stuff that flew, or might have.