The Big Book of X-Bombers & X-Fighters

Author: Steve Pace
Publisher: Zenith Press
ISBN: 0760351422
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 743

Book Description
They're all here--every X-bomber and X-fighter since 1942. On October 2, 1942, the Bell XP-59 Airacomet soared up and away from present-day Edwards AFB, launching the US Army Air Forces into the Jet Age. In the several decades since, hundreds of new variations of experimental and test turbojet-powered bombers and fighters--X-bombers and X-fighters--have taken explosive flight. These aircraft blazed a trail leading to today's B-2 Stealth Bomber and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The Big Book of X-Bombers & X-Fighters showcases all of the USAF jet-powered X-bombers and X-fighters that have flown since 1942--more than 90 in all, including the alphabet soup of their variants. From experimental to prototype service bombers and fighters--from the XB-43 to the B-2A and the XP-59A to the F-35A--they're all here, with their inside stories revealed. Some of these aircraft were further developed. Others were canceled. All stretched the performance and design envelopes. More than 250 photos illustrate all of these experimental aircrafts' cutting-edge features and zeroes in on histories of their design, flight testing, and weapons testing. Specification tables detailing performance, design, and armaments help round out this compendium of information on truly groundbreaking aviation designs. X-bombers and X-fighters in The Big Book of X-Bombers & X-Fighters include: Bell P-59 Airacomet Republic P/F-84 Thunderjet Douglas B-43 Jetmaster North American B-45 Tornado Boeing B-47 Stratojet Curtiss P/F-87 Blackhawk McDonnell P/F-85 Goblin Convair P/F-92 "Dart" Northrop F-17 Cobra Boeing B-1 Lancer And all the rest! Specifications included for each aircraft include: Length Height Wingspan Empty weight Gross weight Maximum range Ceiling Maximum speed Armament In addition, veteran aviation author Steve Pace shows readers some of the designs that could have been and offers a peek into what might be lurking in the future, making this the definitive guide to USAF jet-powered experimental aircraft!

USAF Prototype Jet Fighters

Author: Dennis R. Jenkins
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781580071376
Category : Fighter planes
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Photos of every U.S. Air Force prototype jet fighter program from the height of the Cold War to today's fighteres capable of supersonic cruise.

Experimental & Prototype U.S. Air Force Jet Fighters

Author: Dennis R. Jenkins
Publisher: Specialty Press (MN)
ISBN: 9781580071116
Category : Fighter planes
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Experimental and Prototype U.S. Air Force Jet Fighters examines the development of fighter airframes and engines since the end of World War II. The book covers each design that reached the hardware development stage and received an XF or YF designation from the Air Force. Sometimes the airframe/engine combination worked, as it did in the North American F-86 Sabre. Other times, technology failed, as it did in the Convair XP-92 ducted-rocket interceptor. In addition to the changing aerodynamic technologies, the evolution of offensive weapons for each evolution of fighter is also reviewed. Much of the data used in the book came from previously classified Air Force program documents. Dozens of never-before-seen photos highlight this review of Air Force fighter aircraft.

Encyclopedia of US Air Force Aircraft and Missile Systems: Post-World War II bombers, 1945-1973

Author: Marcelle Size Knaack
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Airplanes, Military
Languages : en
Pages : 644

Book Description

Century Jets

Author: David Donald
Publisher: AIRtime Publishing
ISBN: 9781880588680
Category : Air planes, Military
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
"This title contains in-depth profiles of the six operational 'Century Series' fighters developed during the Cold War: F-100 Super Sabre, F-101 Voodoo, F-102 Delta Dagger, F-104 Starfighter, F-105 Thunderchief and F-106 Delta Dart. Includes type development history, variants, service record, operators, specifications, weapons, avionics and mission systems."--Publisher description.

Sierra Hotel : flying Air Force fighters in the decade after Vietnam

Author:
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
ISBN: 1428990488
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 228

Book Description
In February 1999, only a few weeks before the U.S. Air Force spearheaded NATO's Allied Force air campaign against Serbia, Col. C.R. Anderegg, USAF (Ret.), visited the commander of the U.S. Air Forces in Europe. Colonel Anderegg had known Gen. John Jumper since they had served together as jet forward air controllers in Southeast Asia nearly thirty years earlier. From the vantage point of 1999, they looked back to the day in February 1970, when they first controlled a laser-guided bomb strike. In this book Anderegg takes us from "glimmers of hope" like that one through other major improvements in the Air Force that came between the Vietnam War and the Gulf War. Always central in Anderegg's account of those changes are the people who made them. This is a very personal book by an officer who participated in the transformation he describes so vividly. Much of his story revolves around the Fighter Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base (AFB), Nevada, where he served two tours as an instructor pilot specializing in guided munitions.

A Concise History of the U.S. Air Force

Author: Stephen Lee McFarland
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 96

Book Description
Except in a few instances, since World War II no American soldier or sailor has been attacked by enemy air power. Conversely, no enemy soldier orsailor has acted in combat without being attacked or at least threatened by American air power. Aviators have brought the air weapon to bear against enemies while denying them the same prerogative. This is the legacy of the U.S. AirForce, purchased at great cost in both human and material resources.More often than not, aerial pioneers had to fight technological ignorance, bureaucratic opposition, public apathy, and disagreement over purpose.Every step in the evolution of air power led into new and untrodden territory, driven by humanitarian impulses; by the search for higher, faster, and farther flight; or by the conviction that the air way was the best way. Warriors have always coveted the high ground. If technology permitted them to reach it, men, women andan air force held and exploited it-from Thomas Selfridge, first among so many who gave that "last full measure of devotion"; to Women's Airforce Service Pilot Ann Baumgartner, who broke social barriers to become the first Americanwoman to pilot a jet; to Benjamin Davis, who broke racial barriers to become the first African American to command a flying group; to Chuck Yeager, a one-time non-commissioned flight officer who was the first to exceed the speed of sound; to John Levitow, who earned the Medal of Honor by throwing himself over a live flare to save his gunship crew; to John Warden, who began a revolution in air power thought and strategy that was put to spectacular use in the Gulf War.Industrialization has brought total war and air power has brought the means to overfly an enemy's defenses and attack its sources of power directly. Americans have perceived air power from the start as a more efficient means of waging war and as a symbol of the nation's commitment to technology to master challenges, minimize casualties, and defeat adversaries.

Military Bomber Aircraft

Author: Grace Hansen
Publisher: ABDO
ISBN: 1680796445
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 27

Book Description
Bomber aircraft are important to militaries around the world that need to destroy large targets. Readers will learn what makes these aircraft bombers, their capabilities, crewmembers, and much more. Big full-bleed photographs, new glossary terms, and a close up look at an aircraft will keep readers wanting more! Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Abdo Kids Jumbo is an imprint of Abdo Kids, a division of ABDO.

USAF Fighters

Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781911639091
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Book Description
The United States Air Force has a proud history of flying the fastest, best equipped and most powerful jet fighters in the world. This bookazine features more than 200 profiles including all 17 of the USAF's front line jet fighters, depicted by renowned artist JP Vieira: F-80, F-84, F-86, F-89, F-94, F-100, F-101, F-102, F-104, F-105, F-106, F-111, F-4, F-15, F-16, F-22 and F-35.

Viper Force

Author:
Publisher: Zenith Imprint
ISBN: 0760340323
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 196

Book Description
The pilot of the F-16 Viper, which is the U.S. Air Forces frontline fighter and attack aircraft, is at the pinnacle of combat aviation. Viper Force tells the story of what it takes to become an F-16 pilot and what its like to fly and fight the Viper in combat. Because the F-16 is a dual-purpose combat aircraft, its pilot must master two widely divergent disciplines: air-to-air flying against enemy fighters to maintain control of the air over the battle field and air-to-ground flying in support of ground forces, soldiers, and marines, in contact. The crucible for creation of the Viper pilot is the air forces 56th Fighter Wing, the successor to World War IIs 56th Fighter Group, the legendary Zemkes Wolpack, which also flew a fighter/attack aircraft, the P-47 Thunderbolt. Viper Force also provides an up-close and personal look at the F-16 Viper squadron at war with information on its missions, command and control in the air, and the crucially important but often overlooked maintenance and ordnance ground crew.