Aviation Books

What can be said about a account of a forgotten area of WW II. This book covers the Allied Air Operations from 1942 thru 1945 in a part of the
world that rarely gets any coverage in ANY World War II publication.
And it is a quite detailed account of the day to day operations of the men
and aircraft involved. The author excels in this with spades, as does his other publications. Well worth the price.

Christopher Shores' monumental history of the air war in Southeast Asia from 1942 to 1945 wraps up with this Grubb Street volume covering "the long road back" following the British defeat in Burma. Marked by impeccable research, this volume and the others in the BLOODY SHAMBLES set constitute the definitive story of that little-known air campaign.

Picking up immediately after the British retreat from Burma, Shores charts the Allies regrouping, resurgence and ultimate triumph over the Japanese. The Southeast Asia theater was considered a backwater by the Allied High Command, British Southeast Asia air units making do, for example, with Mohawks, Blenheims and Hurricanes for far too long. Eventually re-equipped with modern aircraft like Spits, Mosquitoes and Beaufighters, RAF units were joined by USAAF units flying P-51s, B-25s, B-24s, etc. in supporting Allied ops such as the Arakan campaigns, support of the Chindits and Merrill's Marauders and the push into Burma.

Shores crams a lot of information into 381 pages of text but AIR WAR FOR BURMA is eminently readable. (Appendices take up another 46 pages). The volume features over 220 photographs, many previously unpublished, along with area maps.

Though other books have dealt with this subject over the years, Shores' trilogy will stand the test of time as being the definitive account. His research into and use of official British, Japanese and American records along with personal reminiscences combine to produce a fresh, comprehensive and factual account of a geographically wide-ranging air campaign.

This is military aviation history at its finest.

*****

An aside: In reading AIR WAR FOR BURMA, it was eye-opening to read of the over-claiming that resulted from the air combats fought. By utilizing Allied records and surviving Japanese records, Shores was able to uncover and present the first accurate account of those long-ago combats.

The shocking thing about this work is that it is publically available. It provides a remarkable look into the process and forces that are driving United States air operations (for good or ill) in the Joint arena. It should be required reading for every military aviator. Its only essential flaw is that it began as commissioned study, and its customer is obvious.

The shocking thing about this work is that it is publically available. It provides a remarkable look into the process and forces that are driving United States air operations (for good or ill) in the Joint arena. It should be required reading for every military aviator. Its only essential flaw is that it began as commissioned study, and its customer is obvious.

I have been a pilot for a regional airline for three years and only just happened upon this book recently; I wish I'd known about it earlier. Extremely informative and "reader friendly" with practical and easy-to-apply methods of using airborne radar to its fullest potential, this book should be required in every ground school and is a must for all pilots who utilize radar in their day-to-day operations.

After reading this book I feel very comfortable with using airborne radar. Mr. Barr uses easy to read text to deliver his points. He also uses pictures to explain his points which is very helpful. I would recommend this book to anybody who flies airplanes with weather radar.

VERY NICE BOOK IN FACT ONE OF THE BEST IN THE SUBJECT. PICS, INFO, HISTORY, SYSTEMS...AND MORE.

Volume Three in the Specialty Press "Airliner Tech Series", Scot Germain's Airbus A340 includes coverage of flight tests, pilot reports, FMGS details and latest 500/600 versions of this "workhorse of the sky". Profusely illustrated with 160 b/w photos in addition to four pages of color photography, Airbus A340 is a definitive introduction to one of the most technologically advanced commercial aircraft to date. Indeed, the Airbus A340 was the first aircraft to be completely designed on computer. Airbus A340 will be greatly appreciated by aviation enthusiasts and historians.

A clearly-written, logically-organized overview of aircraft jet engine design including thermodynamics, cycle analysis, and component design and evaluation. Includes an overview of how jet engine design fits into the overall process of aircraft design.

This is one of the best books on the market on aircraft engine design for the professional engine designer and aeronautical engineer specialising on this subject. The book is well organized and well written with clear and easy to follow explanations.

The book methodically, step-by-step guides the reader through the engine design process from request for proposals for a new aircraft to the final engine layout.
The author clearly presents the concepts, principles and design issues of modern gas turbine engines. The book has great explanations, diagrams and figures that the reader will find useful and helpful.

The book comes with the AEDsys software on COD-ROM that gives in depth computational support for every design step.

All-in-all, a fantastic book that is well recommended to the target audience.

I bought it as a gift and it was very happily received. It made a great coffee table book!!

An excellent history of nose art with lots of quality graphics of nose art. I am researching this subject for custom painting of motorcycles and sidecars. I highly recommend it for the subject of nose art.

Great detail of well known and not so well known general aviation aircraft. A must for the pilot who is looking for an aircraft or for any general aviation library.

If you need to know in which years a certain light aircraft was built, or the differences between different models of aircraft then this book if for you. Its really aimed at the avaiation pilot, enthusiasts or aviation professional. A book full of information that must have taken years to compile. A valuable guide for me when I did my Cessna Skymaster site.

Living as I do overseas, to get anywhere normally involves air travel, usually long haul. However reading this book ensured the 'long-haul' did not appear to be so long. Although beware of laughing out loud on a 12 hour flight - people start to stare :)

I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone who has ever suffered the slings & arrows of airline fate, informative ; instructive in parts and overall just a very amusing book that will make the day go a little quicker. It should be part of the on board seat pocket in front of you on EVERY flight. Well worth the read.

If you or someone you know spends an inordinate amount of time in airline purgatory, then this book is certain to tickle your funny bone and also to educate you about the fascinating world of the airline industry.

The authors both spent years in the industry, and more hours than they care to remember wedged into cramped middle seats on long plane trips. They have combed the archives for the funniest airline stories and put together a gem of a book that will keep you chuckling even after the person in front of you puts his seat in the fully-reclined position and dumps the contents of your tray in your lap.

The book is divided into sections by general topic. The book starts out with the titilating topic of the Mile High Club and the lengths to which some bored or overly-sexed passengers will go to in order to join. There are sections that chronicle the rudeness of the rich and famous, who of course deserve better service than the rest of us; on pilots and their quirks and cockpit behavior; on safety and comfort (or lack thereof); a section on luggage horror stories (this section could easily be longer than the New York phone book if everybody who'd had one contributed, so I'm sure it was edited down to the absolute best); and much, much more.

This is the type of book to take on a long airline flight. You can pick it up and put it down at your leisure, as each small anecdote is only a page or so long. Read a section, then pry the rubber-tipped suction arrow off your forehead shot by the five-year-old in 36-E. Read a little more, then take a break to pry the snoring businessman off your shoulder. It's a good book for dipping into or reading in one sitting.

Highly recommended. Five stars all the way!

There is no need to review this item. Anyone contemplateing this purchase is already familiar with this series of books and is at Amazon to find the best price on this item.

I am sure you can make it with the FAA Written test if you have this book.

This trilogy consists of Antoine de Saint-Exupery's three most famous early aviation books: "Wind, Sand and Stars", "Night Flight", and "Flight to Arras". (St-Ex's other most famous work, "The Little Prince", is in a more fictional vein and is not included in this volume).

The reader is served up with a similar theme in each of these three books . . . generally while at the controls of his aircraft, Saint-Exupery introspects and philosophizes, usually quite agreeably in my opinion. Regularly, St-Ex snaps the reader back to the situation at hand, often a life-or-death emergency of some sort. A wonderful effect. Obviously, this is important first person historical writing concerning the early days of aviation. To summarize each of the three books within this volume:

WIND, SAND, AND STARS - easily the best of the 3 in my opinion and an epic piece of writing. Autobiographical, and written while serving in the pioneering days of the airmail service, both trans-Sahara and trans-Andes. Magical tales of flying, the mountains, and the deserts. Included is a night flight crash into a mountain and the near fatal starvation experience afterward (with, as always, the inner reflections by the writer). And a landmark piece of literature to boot.

NIGHT FLIGHT - fictional tale of the early Argentine mail service. The mental struggles of the pilots and the manager who orders them to their task (and often their death). As always, the author expands the specific tale to include the implication on the whole of mankind. As the title indicates, this is night flight mail service . . . that is without radar or GPS, and having only primitive navigational techniques. In a storm (and one develops), this means literally flying blind.

FLIGHT TO ARRAS - an autobiographical tale of a WWII French air corps suicide reconnaisance mission to Arras, against HEAVY German defenses. Very deep introspection by the author while he "finds himself" on the death mission. Starving for oxygen at high altitude while struggling with frozen controls. Flying into a wall of enemy ground fire. Ruminating on the failing French war effort, comradeship, and indeed the role of the individual within mankind. Deep stuff and hard to keep in touch with at times. Great piece of writing.

Night Flight is the Stuart Gilbert translation, the other two are by Lewis Galantiere. This volume of 3 books is a convenient way to own these works, and by far the most economical. Should be in the library of every aviator, but these are important works that can be enjoyed by any reader. Highly recommended.

I was exposed to St. Ex in the ninth grade by my French teacher. He had us read the "Little Prince". My dream was to be a pilot and I could relate to the story. Going through college I read other books by St. Ex. and have been a fan ever since. I am a pilot and his writing touch the heart and soul of the reader. Both from physical experience and from spiritual wanderings.

One could call this the essential guide to St. Ex. The selections cover his early years in the airmail service and through his patriotic devotion to duty and his countryman and the fall of France. These are real life adventures with true heros doing what they must for honor and duty serving a new need of mankind delivering the mail, and flying against the odds.

Read it, it's about much more than the early adventure of flying the mail. It's sets one to contemplating as well.