On July 25, 2010, Arnold Ebneter flew across the country in a plane he designed and built himself, setting an aviation world record for aircraft of its class. He was eighty-two at the time and the flight represented the culmination of a dream he'd cultivated since his childhood in the 1930s. Eileen Bjorkman - herself a pilot and aeronautical engineer - frames her father's journey from teenage airplane enthusiast to Air Force pilot and Boeing engineer in the context of the rise, near extermination, and ongoing interest in homebuilt aircraft in the United States. She gives us a glimpse into life growing up in a "flying family" with two pilots for parents, a family plane named Charlie, and quite literally, a propeller under her parents' bed. From early airplane designs serialized in magazines to the annual Oshkosh Fly-in where you can see experimental aircraft on display, Bjorkman offers a personal take on the history of building something in your garage that you can actually (and legally) fly as well as how the homebuilt aircraft movement has contributed to aviation and innovation in America. Watch the book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8PvowEMkmQ

During the Second World War, the Soviet Union's Petlyakov Pe-2 Peshka dive-bomber was unique in that it was as fast as most fighter aircraft. This was in a period when it was considered by the RAF that it was impossible for monoplane aircraft to conduct vertical bombing with any degree of success. During the war the Pe-2 was the principal dive- and light-bomber of Russia's air power across the vast Eastern Front and it continued in service until the early 1950s with the air forces of the Warsaw Pact countries and Yugoslavia. Conceived by a team of top aircraft designers whom Stalin had incarcerated in a prison camp on trumped-up political charges, the Pe-2 had originally been designed as a high-altitude twin-engine fighter plane, but, due to the outstanding success of the German Stukas in the Blitzkrieg, its role was quickly changed to that of a fast dive-bomber. The Pe-2 arrived in service around the time of the German attack on its hitherto ally. Although only a handful had reached front line units by the start of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, the Pe-2 soon became the main dive-bomber in both the Soviet VVS and Naval service. Mass production, by factories hastily moved back beyond the front, meant that numbers increased rapidly, and more than 11,000 of the type, including many variants, were built up to 1945. The Peshka became the mainstay of the Soviet counter-offensive that ultimately resulted in the fall of Berlin. Pe-2s also led the way in the brief but annihilating Manchurian campaign against Japan in the closing days of the war in 1945. Using official sources, including the official Pe-2 handbook, and numerous colour and black-and-white photographs made available to the author from both official and private sources and collections, this book is the definitive record of the Pe-2 - the dive-bomber supreme!

It has been 100 years since the first airfield was established in the country town of Yeovil. Since 1915, aircraft have been designed, manufactured and tested at Westland, including the Lysander, used to transport British agents to Europe during the Second World War. In 1948 the company focused solely on helicopters and its aircraft have been sent all over the world since then, used in lifesaving with Air Ambulance and Search and Rescue and deployed in warfare such as Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan. To celebrate the centenary of the UK's only major helicopter manufacturer, David Gibbings has collated an anthology of writings that retell Westland's history and its special relationship with Yeovil, which has rarely been quiet since the first aircraft took off from the airfield that now lies at its heart.

Following the devastating raids on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, lightning advances by Japanese forces throughout the Pacific and the Far East, and a desperate battle by the Allied command in the Dutch East Indies, it became evident that an attack on Australia was more a matter of 'when' and not 'if'. On 19 February, just eleven weeks after the attacks on Pearl Harbor and two weeks after the fall of Singapore, the same Japanese battle group that had attacked Hawaii was ordered to attack the ill-prepared and under-defended Australian port of Darwin. Publishing 75 years after this little-known yet devastating attack, this fully illustrated study details what happened on that dramatic day in 1942 with the help of contemporary photographs, maps, and profiles of the commanders and machines involved in the assault.

Completely designed, developed and manufactured in France, the Rafale multirole fighter jet has turned into one of the most successful Dassault products in the market of 4th Generation multirole fighter jets. In addition to the 128 examples currently in service with the French Air and Space Force and Navy Aviation, 225 other Rafales were sold to Croatia, Egypt, Greece, India, UAE and Qatar.

For years, French Navy Aviation and the Air and Space Force have been the two main operators of the multirole combat aircraft. The first had its first Navy variant, the Rafale M, put into operation in 2002 while the latter began operating its first Rafale Bs in 2006. Since that, they both have used these aircraft in combat during various anti-terrorist operations in Afghanistan, Libya, Mali, Chad, Syria and Iraq.

In addition to that, their aircraft were used to bolster defense of NATO’s eastern borders during the recent war in Ukraine.

109s! Two, head-on views diving from my left, blinking with light. Curling blue tracers strand about me as I turn towards them. A third got my sight on him for an instant before he went under my nose. My helmets too big for me. Turn pressure pulls it over my eyes. Can't see. Stupid. Push it up and straighten out: that's better. Two more 109s, from the right this time. Turn in towards them. Can't turn sharply enough. Damn the helmet! Another 109 below me. Drop on to his tail. I'll get him all right. My aircraft shudders and shudders and shudders and shudders as I pour bullets and shells into it. It bursts with black smoke and topples over sideways.' Malta Spitfire Pilot is the journal of Flight Lieutenant Denis Barnham. Having joined the RAF at the outbreak of war, Denis grew from an inexperienced young pilot into a battle-hardened Spitfire ace - most of which occurred in the 200 gruelling operational hours that followed his arrival on the embattled island of Malta, in a period of just ten weeks in the spring and summer of 1942. Malta was of great strategic importance to the Allies and was pivotal to their success in North Africa as it provided the perfect launching pad for aircraft to attack Axis supply ships in the Mediterranean. As a direct result, the island, in turn, suffered intensive aerial bombardment by the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica. This memoir was written by the author as he and his fellow pilots battled against terrible odds and under constant attack. It is one man's dramatic and moving account of the air battle to save Malta.

'Utterly brilliant: a fantastically exciting book... This really does read like the best kind of thriller. His best book yet' James Holland, author of Normandy '44 April 1982. Argentina invades the Falkland Islands. In response, Britain despatches a naval task force. Eight thousand miles from home, its fate hinges on just twenty Sea Harriers against the two hundred-strong might of the Argentine Air Force. The odds against them are overwhelming. The MoD's own estimates suggest that half the Harriers will be lost in the opening days of the conflict. They need backup. Within three weeks 809 Naval Air Squadron is reformed, trained and heading south, ready for war. Not since World War Two had so much been expected of such a small band of pilots.

For anyone who is interested in the air war 1941-45, the information provided here is of inestimable value. There are no more than a handful of Second World War Luftwaffe members alive today. Patrick Eriksson had the foresight to record these experiences first-hand before it was too late. Some witnesses ended up as senior fighter controllers. The recollections and views of the veterans are put within the context of the German aerial war history. By no means all the witnesses were from the ranks of the so-called 'aces'. It was on the Eastern Front that, essentially, much of the Luftwaffe was destroyed, and this is the subject of the second in the author's trilogy. Death wasn't always in the air: '"Quick, out of the aircraft, the Russians are here." The airfield had been overrun. Chaos followed.' In addition to giving voice to those who were there, Patrick Eriksson describes pilot training and scrutinises the Luftwaffe's complicated victory claims system to find out if it really was as accurate as is often suggested.

In the summer of 1940, the future of Britain and the free world depended on the morale and skill of the young men of Fighter Command. This is their story. The Battle of Britain is one of the most crucial battles ever fought, and the victory of Fighter Command over the Luftwaffe has always been celebrated as a classic feat of arms. But, as Patrick Bishop shows in this superb history, it was also a triumph of the spirit in which the attitudes of the pilots themselves played a crucial part. Reaching beyond the myths to convey the fear and exhilaration of life on this most perilous of frontlines, Patrick Bishop offers an intimate and compelling account that is a soaring tribute to the exceptional young men of Fighter Command.

Ever since Thucydides pondered reasons for the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War, writers, philosophers, and social scientists have all tried to identify and catalog factors that promote conflict escalation. Historians emphasize path-dependencies: the future grows out of the past, hence tomorrow's wars are rooted in yesterday's conflicts. Political scientists attend to changes in power balance or domestic political forces. All of these causes, however, are constructed by human beings and involve the memories, emotions, and motives of both the leaders and the led. In July 1914, the long peace of the great European powers was shattered when the Sarajevo assassinations quickly escalated to a world war that few ever anticipated. In contrast, at the height of the Cold War, the Cuban Missile Crisis could have easily plunged us into a thermonuclear world war, but was ultimately peacefully resolved. Why? In Roots of War: Wanting Power, Seeing Threat, Justifying Force, author David G. Winter identifies the three psychological factors that contributed to the differences in these historical outcomes: the desire for power (power motivation), exaggerated perception of the opponent's threat, and justification for using military power and force. As Winter illustrates, several different lines of research establish how these three factors lead to escalation and war: the role of power motivation is demonstrated by comparative content analysis of documents (i.e. diplomatic communications, leaders' speeches, and media coverage) from crises that escalated to war versus similar events that did not; case studies of several American and British wars; and analysis of "new wars" (i.e. civil unrest, state-sponsored violence, and terrorism). Drawing on this research, Roots of War is a powerful testament to the roles of power and the preservation of peace, and demonstrates their enormous influence in diplomatic interventions in the past and present-day.

The last great mystery of World War I has been solved. Drawing from more than two thousand pages of unpublished material, archeological digs in France and dozens of interviews with the descendents of those involved, The Stand: The Final Flight of Lt. Frank Luke, Jr. writes the last chapter on the life and death of America's most spectacular fighter pilot. After fifteen years of research, author and Telly Award-winning television host Stephen Skinner pens a driving, dynamic account that fills in the blanks left behind byhistoryafter the legendary Arizona balloon buster died under controversial circumstances deep in enemy lines in September of 1918.

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER! Military History Matters Book of the Year Bronze Award Winner 'Compelling... sensitive, colourful and moving' -- Saul David, Telegraph 'Fascinating and utterly gripping' -- James Holland 'Absorbing' -- Daily Mail Book of the Week The incredible story of the crack team of men and women who transformed RAF Bomber Command and helped the Allies deliver decisive victory over Nazi Germany. The Pathfinders were ordinary men and women from a range of nations who revolutionised the efficiency of the Allies' air campaign over mainland Europe. They elevated Bomber Command - initially the only part of the Allied war effort capable of attacking the heart of Nazi Germany - from an impotent force on the cusp of disintegration in 1942 to one capable of razing whole German cities to the ground in a single night, striking with devastating accuracy, inspiring fear and loathing in Hitler's senior command. With exclusive interviews with remaining survivors, personal diaries, previously classified records and never-before seen photographs, The Pathfinders brings to life the characters of the airmen and women - many barely out of their teens - who took to the skies in legendary British aircraft such as the Lancaster and the Mosquito, facing almost unimaginable levels of violence from enemy fighter planes to strike at the heart of the Nazi war machine.

Howard Hughes' life ambition was to make a significant contribution to the field of aviation development. But the monumental folly of his endeavours on the HK-I Hercules meant that he came to be known and remembered to a great extent for all the wrong reasons. The 'Spruce Goose' (a name Hughes detested) became a product of his wild fixation on perfection and scale. Once completed, it was the largest flying machine ever built. Its wingspan of 320 feet remains the largest in history. Yet it only completed one flight; flying for a mile on its maiden voyage above Long Beach Harbour, before being consigned to the history books as a failure. Experienced author Graham M. Simons turns his attention to the production process that saw this colossus take shape. In words and images, all aspects of this process are illustrated. We have shots taken during the initial design period, images of the craft under construction, and photographs taken at the test flights. In addition, Simons has been gifted access to the highly prized and rarely seen aircraft manual produced for the aircraft, content from which has been extracted and used to supplement the narrative. The book goes on to explore the political issues that sprung up as a result of Hughes' endeavours, looking into the Senate War Investigations Committee's findings which explored the extent to which government funds had been utilised in the development and construction of the flying boat, adding a whole new layer of controversy to the proceedings.

The story of the RAF, and in particular Fighter Command, during the Battle of Britain has been told many times. It is a tale of the gallant pilots of The Few', in their Hurricanes and Spitfires, with the nation's back to the wall, fighting off the Luftwaffe's airborne assault against enormous odds. But the story of Fighter Command's operations immediately after the Battle of Britain is less well known. Marshal of the Royal Air Force Hugh Montague Trenchard commanded the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War. His policy then had been for his aircraft and men to be continually on the offensive, always over the German lines taking the fight to the enemy. After being promoted to command the RAF, Trenchard retired in 1930. In November 1940, Trenchard showed up again at the Air Ministry and proposed that the RAF should Lean Towards France' - that it should go on the offensive. The RAF would, claimed Trenchard, win the resulting battle of attrition. One of the main outcomes of the RAF's new offensive stance was the introduction of the Circus sorties. These were attacks undertaken by a small force of bombers with a powerful fighter escort. They were intended to lure enemy fighters into the air so that they could be engaged by RAF fighters, the primary objective being the destruction of Luftwaffe fighters, followed by the protection of the bombers from attack. A further development of the Circus missions were Ramrods, Rhubarbs and Rodeos, all of which were variations on the same theme. A Ramrod was similar to a Circus, though in this instance the primary objective was the destruction of the target, the main role of the accompanying fighters being to protect the bombers from attack. A Rhubarb was a small-scale attack by fighters using cloud cover and/or surprise, the object of which was to destroy German aircraft in the air and/or striking at ground targets, whilst a Rodeo consisted of a fighter sweep over enemy territory with no bombers. Drawing on official documents and archive material, as well as accounts by many of those involved, James Starkey reveals just how Trenchard's views won through and the RAF went on the offensive from late 1940 into 1941. Was it a failed strategy? If so, why was it not halted once the results began to be seen?

By the early months of 1944 in the Pacific, the US Navy's burgeoning force of carrier-based F6F-3/5 Hellcats had pretty much wiped the skies clear of Japanese fighters during a series of one-sided aerial engagements. However, starting in October they faced the superb Kawanishi N1K1/2 Shiden/Shiden-Kai, a formidable fighter with improved armament, a powerful engine and excellent manoeuvrability that in contrast to earlier Japanese fighters had the ability to withstand a greater degree of battle damage.

Japanese pilots using this aircraft would claim more than 170 aerial victories over Kyushu and whilst escorting Kamikazes attacking Allied ships off Okinawa. US Navy Hellcat pilots in turn were credited with many of the scores of Shiden-Kais that were downed attempting to defend Japan. This fully illustrated book compares these two fascinating aircraft, using specially commissioned artwork, first-hand accounts and a thorough technical analysis.

She flew the swift P-51 and the capricious P-38, but the heavy, four-engine B-17 bomber and C-54 transport were her forte. This is the story of Nancy Harkness Love who, early in World War II, recruited and led the first group of twenty-eight women to fly military aircraft for the U.S. Army.
Love was hooked on flight at an early age. At sixteen, after just four hours of instruction, she flew solo "a rather broken down Fleet biplane that my barnstorming instructor imported from parts unknown." The year was 1930: record-setting aviator Jacqueline Cochran (and Love's future rival) had not yet learned to fly, and the most famous woman pilot of all time, Amelia Earhart, had yet to make her acclaimed solo Atlantic flight.
When the United States entered World War II, the Army needed pilots to transport or "ferry" its combat-bound aircraft across the United States for overseas deployment and its trainer airplanes to flight training bases. Most male pilots were assigned to combat preparation, leaving few available for ferrying jobs. Into this vacuum stepped Nancy Love and her civilian Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS).
Love had advocated using women as ferry pilots as early as 1940. Jackie Cochran envisioned a more ambitious plan, to train women to perform a variety of the military's flight-related jobs stateside. The Army implemented both programs in the fall of 1942, but Jackie's idea piqued General Hap Arnold's interest and, by summer 1943, her concept had won. The women's programs became one under the name Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), with Cochran as the Director of Women Pilots and Love as the Executive for WASP.
Nancy Love advised the Ferrying Division, which was part of the Air Transport Command, as to the best use of their WASP ferry pilots. She supervised their allocation and air-training program. She proved adept at organizing and inspiring those under her command, earning the love and admiration of her pilots. Her military superiors trusted and respected her, to the point that she became Ferrying Division commander Gen. William H. Tunner's troubleshooter.
By example, Love won the right for women ferry pilots to transition into increasingly more complex airplanes. She checked out on twenty-three different military aircraft and became the first woman to fly several of them, including the B-17 Flying Fortress. Her World War II career ended on a high note: following a general's orders, she piloted a giant C-54 Army transport over the fabled China-Burma-India "Hump," the crucial airlift route over the Himalayas.
Nancy Love believed that the women attached to the military needed to be on equal footing with the men and given the same opportunities to prove their abilities and mettle. Young women serving today as combat pilots owe much to Love for creating the opportunity for women to serve. Her foresight and tenacity nearly seventy years ago helped ensure their future. Now author Sarah Byrn Rickman, aviation historian, presents the first full-length biography of Nancy Love and her role in the WAFS and WASP programs. Her book will appeal to all with a love of flight.

By the middle of 1918 the British Army had successfully mastered the concept of 'all arms' warfare on the Western Front. This doctrine, integrating infantry, artillery, armoured vehicles and - crucially - air power, was to prove highly effective and formed the basis of major military operations for the next hundred years. Yet, whilst much has been written on the utilisation of ground forces, the air element still tends to be studied in isolation from the army as a whole. In order to move beyond the usual 'aircraft and aces' approach, this book explores the conceptual origins of the control of the air and the role of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) within the British army. In so doing it addresses four key themes. First, it explores and defines the most fundamental air power concept - the control of the air - by examining its conceptual origins before and during the First World War. Second, it moves beyond the popular history of air power during the First World War to reveal the complexity of the topic. Third, it reintegrates the study of air power during the First World War, specifically that of the RFC, into the strategic, operational, organisational, and intellectual contexts of the era, as well as embedding the study within the respective scholarly literatures of these contexts. Fourth, the book reinvigorates an entrenched historiography by challenging the usually critical interpretation of the RFC's approach to the control of the air, providing new perspectives on air power during the First World War. This includes an exploration of the creation of the RAF and its impact on the development of air power concepts.

This is a very British story from more than 50 years ago. It is a story of remarkable technological ambition from a different country than is seen today. It was an era in which the country adjusted to decolonisation and a dangerous nuclear arms race close to home. The maturing Cold War engineers of the British aviation industry sought to outdo the nationally-celebrated and frankly propagandised achievements of their fathers' generation. Meanwhile, black and white post-war austerity was being replaced by the colour and rhythms of the swinging sixties. For everyone, engineers or otherwise, the country was changing fast. Britain and the Bomb tells one of the great British stories from the Cold War - the transition of the nuclear deterrent from the Royal Air Force to the Royal Navy. The author draws upon insights from the laboratories, the military, popular culture and from politicians to make sense of a complex time and to challenge some widely-held perceptions that Britain in the 1960s lost her technical ambition and ability. Rather than industrial chaos and short-termist leadership, there is instead a story of shrewd, but pragmatic, moves in the chess game that was the Cold War. The author looks at how Britain saw the role of nuclear weapons, providing insights for the decisions that now lie ahead for Britain in the twenty-first century. The story pivots around a single day in April 1965. The recently-established Labour government very publicly cancelled the much-vaunted TSR2 nuclear strike bomber, causing dismay among aviation enthusiasts. The passing decades have done little to diminish the controversy and a pervasive sense of nostalgic melancholy about a lost Britain. What really happened to the TSR2 and more importantly what happened in the years that followed? By taking a wider view, the merit of the 1965 decision is apparent, providing better understanding of the even bolder and more ambitious decisions that were needed into the 1970s. Those bold actions were once highly secret and are still not widely-known or understood. While Britain very publicly cancelled her strike bomber ambitions she very secretly pursued a different nuclear weapons project: the `Chevaline' upgrade of the submarine-based nuclear deterrent. That engineering success deserves to be remembered. This is a fascinating book that takes us back to a time of British boffins, supersonic test pilots, mods, rockers and Cold War spies.

Considers how people have confronted, challenged, and resisted remote warfare Drone warfare is now a routine, if not predominant, aspect of military engagement. Although this method of delivering violence at a distance has been a part of military arsenals for two decades, scholarly debate on remote warfare writ large has remained stuck in tired debates about practicality, efficacy, and ethics. Remote Warfare broadens the conversation, interrogating the cultural and political dimensions of distant warfare and examining how various stakeholders have responded to the reality of state-sponsored remote violence. The essays here represent a panoply of viewpoints, revealing overlooked histories of remoteness, novel methodologies, and new intellectual challenges. From the story arc of Homeland to redefining the idea of a "warrior," these thirteen pieces consider the new nature of surveillance, similarities between killing with drones and gaming, literature written by veterans, and much more. Timely and provocative, Remote Warfare makes significant and lasting contributions to our understanding of drones and the cultural forces that shape and sustain them. Contributors: Syed Irfan Ashraf, U of Peshawar, Pakistan; Jens Borrebye Bjering, U of Southern Denmark; Annika Brunck, U of Tubingen; David A. Buchanan, U.S. Air Force Academy; Owen Coggins, Open U; Andreas Immanuel Graae, U of Southern Denmark; Brittany Hirth, Dickinson State U; Tim Jelfs, U of Groningen; Ann-Katrine S. Nielsen, Aarhus U; Nike Nivar Ortiz, U of Southern California; Michael Richardson, U of New South Wales; Kristin Shamas, U of Oklahoma; Sajdeep Soomal; Michael Zeitlin, U of British Columbia.

Detailed book explores the landing gear systems of World War II German combat aircraft.

This is the story of the air war over Western Europe, much of it told by the Halifax pilots and air crew who took part. It spans the period between 1942 and 1945 and covers the encounters between the Luftwaffe and the air forces of Britain and the Commonwealth. Many unique experiences are recounted from the day bombing raids that were hurled against Hitler's war machine. The author has sought the experiences of RAF and German fighter pilots, who explain how they stalked their prey and pounced from. This book contains vivid accounts of some of the most heroic actions in the history of air warfare.

The sovereign status of Taiwan - or the Republic of China - has been a source of instability in the Asia-Pacific region for much of the last 70 years. While Taiwan aspires to be an independent and democratic nation, the communist-led People's Republic of China sees it as a breakaway province. With Beijing flexing its muscles in recent years amid rising tensions between China and the US, the potential for a military flashpoint along the narrow Taiwan Strait cannot be overstated. The strategy of the Republic of China Armed Forces is to present Beijing with a credible deterrent, and should this fail, defend against a People's Liberation Army attack and possible invasion. The Republic of China Air Force (ROCAF) is charged with the defence of airspace over and around Taiwan and enabling military operations in land and sea domains. If necessary, it could also take the battle into China as part of a multi-pronged offensive effort. While the ROCAF is relatively well-equipped and trained, attempts to modernise have been hit by political and fiscal challenges. The ROCAF has made some headway with mid-life upgrades for the majority of its more than 20-year-old fighter fleet and will receive a much-needed boost with the introduction of F-16C/D Block 70s in the coming years. However, it still lacks many force-multiplier capabilities such as aerial refuelling and electronic warfare. Amid qualitative and quantitative improvements to the PLA air combat fleets, the military balance across the Taiwan Strait continues to tip towards Mainland China. This book provides a comprehensive study of Taiwan's air force with in-depth analysis backed by high-quality images. It examines ROCAF combat capabilities today, its aircraft fleet, and what the future holds for the air arm.