Developed in the 1960s/1970s, the Tu-144 was the Soviet Union's only practical venture into supersonic commercial aviation. Though its career was all too brief, it was a major technological achievement for the Soviet aircraft industry. The book provides in-depth coverage of the "Concordski," including projected versions, the Tu-144's production and service history, and a comparison with the Concorde. First flown on the last day of 1968-ahead of the Concorde-the Tu-144 had to undergo a long gestation period before the production version entered service in November 1977. Unfortunately, its career proved to be brief; two accidents and a powerful anti-Tu-144 lobby caused the type to be withdrawn in May 1978. The book describes the Tu-144's versions (including the Tu-144LL research aircraft developed under a Russian-U.S. program) and touches on the projected military derivatives. It is illustrated with color side views and previously unpublished photographs.

In the early morning of 20 April 1942, forty-seven Spitfire Vs of 601 and 603 Squadrons of the Auxiliary Air Force launched from the deck of the American aircraft carrier the USS Wasp, which had sailed to a position north of Algiers. The planes were bound for Malta. At the time, the island was under heavy siege by Axis forces. Salvatore Walcott's Spitfire never made it; he crash-landed in North Africa, part of Vichy France, and was interned. After attempting to escape, Walcott was liberated at the end of 1942. He returned to the UK and joined the US Army Air Corps and continued to serve as a pilot until the end of the war and afterwards with the USAF during the Berlin airlift. These are the bare bones of the story. But was that landing in Africa 'an inexplicable defection', as it has been described? Here is the evidence, alongside an exploration of American and British attitudes to men like Walcott who served under foreign flags. Walcott's story has been discussed for many years, but here is the truth. Did the Spitfire's undercarriage fail to retract, as Walcott claimed, or did he lose his nerve? Does the fact that Walcott later gained a reputation as a risk-taker indicate a 'Lord Jim' narrative, whereby he tried to make up for a moment of cowardice? Walcott's ultimately tragic tale is set against the larger narrative of Irish/American and British/Vichy France relations, of the Mediterranean theatre, aircraft design, and the US entry into the war.

The end of the Cold War created a golden opportunity for reducing the defense burden and providing taxpayers with a "Peace Dividend." For the United States Air Force, this resulted over the past six years in drastic reductions: 23% in aircraft inventory, 30% in personnel, and 32% in the number of bases and other major installations. Well-known and long-serving aircraft, such as the A-7D/K, the B-52G, the F-4C/D/E, the F-111A/D, the FB-111A and the SR-71, have been withdrawn from active and reserve components, and some states, such as California, have lost nearly half of their Air Force bases.\nIllustrated with over 410 color photos, this new book provides a rich pictorial record of aircraft (including old and new markings) and units which no longer exist, and offers a visual chronicle of organizational changes between 1988-1995.

Beginning in the late 1950s, the Boeing 707 revolutionized 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 of this classic jet aircraft, whose memorable design has survived to this day, its basic features still recognizable in the Boeing 737. The history of 707 operations is presented in detail, as is the use of the type by various world military forces and governments-and its famed use as the US presidential Air Force One in the 1960s through the 1980s. Its use by many of the world's most famous airlines, including American, TWA, Pan Am, Northwest, Continental, Air France, British Airways, Lufthansa, Cathay Pacific, and Air India, is also covered. Technical specifications for the 707, the Dash 80 prototype, the Boeing 720 (derived from the 707), the aerial refueler KC-135, and E-3 Sentry, as well as contemporaneous photographs, bring to life the fascinating history of Boeing's first commercial jetliner.

This title tells the story of the greatest night bomber of World War II, illustrated with over 275 photographs. It takes you through the design, development, construction and history of the Lancaster, as well as its role in the major battles of the war. It includes first-hand accounts from people who lived through the war in Germany and in Britain, as well as profiles of the pilots who flew and fought over Europe. Stunning photographs of the planes themselves and of the destruction wrought on its target cities bring the devastating power of these machines to life. It features a fascinating and engaging narrative written by a leading military history expert. "The Lancaster Bomber" led the air offensive in the darkest days of World War II. This book describes how the plane was developed to fit into an entirely new role in warfare, and explains how the Lancaster could take the war to the enemy to devastating effect. Also covered is the production of the plane and the modifications made throughout its lifetime. This book shows what it was like to fly a Lancaster over the flak-filled skies of Nazi Germany, and lists where surviving planes can be seen today. This fascinating text is the ultimate reference for anybody with an interest in military history or aviation.

Since the first show in 1973, IWM Duxford's air shows have established a reputation as the world's finest celebration of aviation history and culture. Every year, tens of thousands come to Duxford's iconic shows to see legendary aircraft from around the world take to the skies. Decade by decade, 50 Years of Duxford Air Shows charts the key aviation highlights of the past 50 years through a rich array of vintage photographs and archival material from the original programmes. Fabulous shots of the air shows are complemented by interviews and anecdotes from the partners and individuals, including Ted Inman, the Duxford Aviation Society and John Romain, who restored popular flight to Duxford's historic airfield. Each chapter showcases the event's vibrant history and traces its evolution across five decades. From the rare Spitfires of '75 to the arrival of Concorde and the dawn of Flying Legends, this pictorial celebration recalls Duxford's golden moments.

James Tobin, award-winning author of "Ernie Pyle's War" and "The Man He Became," has penned the definitive account of the inspiring and impassioned race between the Wright brothers and their primary rival Samuel Langley across ten years and two continents to conquer the air.
For years, Wilbur Wright and his younger brother, Orville, experimented in obscurity, supported only by their exceptional family. Meanwhile, the world watched as Samuel Langley, armed with a contract from the US War Department and all the resources of the Smithsonian Institution, sought to create the first manned flying machine. But while Langley saw flight as a problem of power, the Wrights saw a problem of balance. Thus their machines took two very different paths--Langley's toward oblivion, the Wrights' toward the heavens--though not before facing countless other obstacles. With a historian's accuracy and a novelist's eye, Tobin has captured an extraordinary moment in history. "To Conquer the Air" is itself a heroic achievement.

For most of the past century, beautiful models of airliners have been made to promote their airlines' services in travel agents and their own shops. The models also illustrate the evolution of airliner design over these decades: the wood and fabric biplanes of the 1920s, the broad adoption of all-metal airliners in the 1930s, the first jet airliners of the 1950s, the first wide-body airliners of the 1970s and the pioneering small steps in supersonic air travel are all covered. The increasingly colourful exterior schemes adopted by the airlines, to ensure recognition by aspiring passengers, provide an interesting subtext. For model collectors, the airliner type, makers name, scale, approximate age and the materials used are detailed for each model illustrated. A short history of significant model-making companies is covered. With the onset of online bookings and the closure of airline offices and travel agents, the use of models is fast vanishing forever. The focus of this book is to preserve this fascinating era when models were a significant marketing tool, and to ensure that these models, at least in photographic form, survive as a record for future generations.

The 1930s still conjure painful images: the great want of the Depression, and overseas, the exuberant crowds motivated by self-appointed national saviors dressing up old hatreds as new ideas. But there was another story that embodied mankind in that decade. In the same year that both Adolf Hitler and Franklin D. Roosevelt came to power, the city of Chicago staged what was, up to that time, the most forward-looking international exhibition in history. The 1933-34 World's Fair looked to the future, unabashedly, as one full of glowing promise. No technology loomed larger at the Fair than aviation. And no persons at the Fair captured the public's interest as much as the romantic figures associated with it: Italy's internationally renowned chief of aeronautics, Italo Balbo; German Zeppelin designer and captain, Doctor Hugo Eckener; and the husband and wife aeronaut team of Swiss-born Jean Piccard and Chicago-born Jeanette Ridlon Piccard. This golden age of aviation and its high priests and priestesses portended to many the world over that a new age was dawning, an age when man would not only leave the ground behind, but also his uglier, less admirable heritage of war, poverty, corruption, and disease. It was only later in the decade that the dark correlation between the rise of aviation's superstars and the rise of fascism was to be revealed. But for a moment in 1933, this all lay in a future that still seemed so promising. In Broken Icarus, author David Hanna tracks the inspiring trajectory of aviation leading up to and through the World's Fair of 1933, as well as the field of flight's more sinister ties to fascism domestic and abroad to present a unique history that is both riveting and revelatory.

For a brief period in the early Twentieth Century it seemed as if the future of air travel lay with the giant airships of Count von Zeppelin. The First World War ended that dream, fixed wing aircraft superseding the slow moving and unwieldy airships. As weapons of war the Zeppelins were never truly successful although they did manage to terrify huge numbers of unknowing and naive civilians-perhaps more by imagination than by any practical manifestation of their power. The Zeppelin crews of the First World War spent hours in the air, cold and hungry-and with the prospect of a horrendous death, either by fire or by falling thousands of feet to the ground, ever present. As vehicles of mass destruction the Zeppelins were remarkably ineffective. Their real value, lay in their ability to make silent reconnaissance missions over enemy territory and sea lanes. In the post-war days the public began to realise that airships offered a form of air travel that was comfortable, mostly stable and, sometimes, even luxurious. The 'Graf Zeppelin' and the 'Hindenburg' were the height of elegance.Unfortunately, they had two major defects-they were vulnerable to the elements and, due to the hydrogen that kept them aloft, they were also highly flammable. The 'Hindenburg' disaster of 1937 effectively spelled the end of the giant airship as a commercial enterprise but for almost half a century these wonderful machines had cruised elegantly through the clouds.

People always seemed amused whenever Gretchen Ryan recounted tales of her transformative experiences as an air hostess in days gone by. Many even suggested she write a book about it. So she did. These were the debauched days of flying in the 80s, when flying was sexy, hanky-panky abounded, smoking was permitted, passengers wore suits, the cockpit was never locked and the cutlery was made of steel. This was a time of excess, wryly disguised as fun. This humorous, tongue-in-cheek memoir recalls amusing incidents, and a fair few tragedies, both in the air and around the world, as Gretchen's adventures saw her bounding through London, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Ilha do Sal and New York. Against the backdrop of this 'anything-goes' world of flying, for 10 years life was a kaleidoscope of fun and excitement.

The Junkers Aircraft Company of Dessau, Germany forever changed the world of aviation when they produced several aircraft that revolutionised warfare during World War Two. Among them were the Ju 87 Stuka, which was key to the success of the Blitzkrieg, and highly versatile bomber and transport aircraft including Junkers Ju 86, Ju 52, Ju 90/290 and, later, Ju 88. Drawing on a multitude of photographs, diagrams and US government reports, Junkers Military Aircraft of World War Two reveals the history of this innovative aviation company and its many key aircraft that played a vital role in the war. From initiating unprecedented advancements in structural design to producing advanced turbojet engines and radical aircraft that provided a glimpse of the future of aviation, the Junkers Aircraft Company proved to be a true pioneer in the aviation world.

This new book chronicles not only the aptly named P-61 "Black Widow", but also the Douglas P-70 series, the P-38 night fighter variants, the Bristol Beaufighter, B-25s and the DeHavilland Mosquito - the proposed XA-26A and the P-39 nightfighters are also discussed.\nHistorical accounts of American night fighter pilots, as well as the complets history of all night fighter squadrons formed during World War II are included, as is the development of radar and modern air defenses. This book is the product of over twenty years of study and research. Its sources include the National Archives, Northrop Aircraft archived, the U.S. Air Force Museum, the Imperial War Museum, the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum and interviews with P-61 test pilots, designers and engineers. \nGarry Pape\s previous works include books on the P-61 and the P-38 night-fighter versions. He is currently employed by Northrop, after years with Hughes and Lockheed, and lives in California. Brig. Gen. Ronald Harrison is an F-16 Wing Commander in the Air Force Reserves, and lives in Georgia as an attorney.

At the end of the First World War, British imperial power was at an all-time low. That was until a ragtag band of visionaries, including Winston Churchill and T.E. Lawrence, proposed that the aeroplane, the wonder weapon of the age, could save the empire. Using the radical strategy of air control, the RAF tried to subdue vast swathes of the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Wings of Empire is a compelling account of the colonial air campaigns that saw a generation of young airmen take to the skies to battle against cultures that had never seen a plane before. This is the full story of the RAF's most extraordinary conflict, told here for the first time.

This new book by famed U.S. ace Walker Bud Mahurin, is an examination of Germany's Luftwaffe by one who fought against them in the skies over Europe, and who befriended them after the war. Having found himself lucky enough to be included in some of the history of the United States Air Force because of his exploits during World War II and the war in Korea, Mahurin has become acquainted over the years with a number of ex-enemy airmen he fought against. Never expecting to destroy a number of enemy aircraft in his combat experiences, he considered himself fortunate to get to know leading combat airmen in his own air force as well as in the United Kingdom and Germany.

At the time of the One-Eleven's first flight, BAC seemed to have stolen a march on its American rivals. It was comfortably ahead of the similarly configured DC-9, and the Boeing 737 was barely a gleam in Boeing's eye at the time. So why was it that Douglas went on to sell over 1,000 DC-9s (to say nothing of the developed MD-80 and Boeing 717) while BAC shifted only 244 One-Elevens? The answer to that question is just one part of the fascinating tale of the One-Eleven. Also told in these pages is the full story of its concept and design against the troubled background of the industry's consolidation and of its entry into service. So sturdy was the One-Eleven's construction that its service life continued into the 21st century. At least two examples remain airworthy and leading active lives. The One-Eleven was undoubtedly a great British achievement, yet anybody studying the aircraft's history is left with the feeling that it represents an opportunity lost; this book explores why.

The first volume in the two volume set traces the history of the Mosquito from its first flight in November 1940 through to its production and many variants. The aircraft's varied post-war uses are outlined in roles ranging from oil prospecting and air racing to aerial survey. Told in pictures with extended captions and two colour sections, this reprinted volume 1 combines with the new volume 2 to present over 1,000 photographs, making them essential reading for any Mosquito enthusiast.