Aviation Books

I apreciated my book, because it's the best guide to Luftwaffe colours and history about Luftwaffe Combat Units.

I have recently acquired the Luftwaffe Colours Collectors Compendium Volume 1 that incorporates:
Birth of the Luftwaffe Fighter Force
Spanish Civil War
Blitzkrieg and Sitzkrieg
Attack in the West.

This series is a detailed study of the colours, camouflage and markings of the Luftwaffe's fighter force that many serious modellers will find extremely useful. Although the narrative is somewhat brief, the series follows the birth, development, tactics and wartime committment of the Jagdwaffe. The amount of research that must have been conducted and accumulated is impressive and is reflected in the many photographs and colour profiles of the machines used or experimented by the the Jagdwaffe. Included are some first-hand accounts by various pilots who flew the famous fighter aircraft of the Luftwaffe. This along with the many illustrations and photographs brings to life the Luftwaffe's fighter arm. This is a wonderful pictorial history and series of the Jagdwaffe.

This series of books is worth the money. They provide a gripping narrative of the history of the fighting units.

As well as this there are extensive pictures and excellent colour line drawings of some of the aircraft used.

This is one book to get!!!

I apreciated my book, because it's the best guide to Luftwaffe colours and history about Luftwaffe Combat Units.

An excellant source of information on the equipment of Japanese imperial naval airmen of WWII. Though unusual in that it is illustrated with color photos of the actual equipment rather than Osprey's usual drawn material. Written mateiral is highly insightful

A good book for those interested in this subject.

This is a book I highly recommend to students of WWII, aviation historians and collectors of militaria/aviation memorabilia. It is not only well researched, it is well written, concise and to the point. Whether a novice collector or a seasoned old hand, you will find information in this book, both documentary and anecdotal, that you simply won't find elsewhere. One very pleasing departure from Osprey's normal format is the use of colour photographs for the centre layouts instead of illustrations. Although Mr. Younghusband's graphics of the insignia are excellent, the colour photography, depicting authentic uniforms and flight clothing being worn, provide excellent attention to detail. Osprey books are typically great value, almost always useful and informative, but this one is a cut above. Mr. Nila has done great justice to the subject and although this is a small book, it fills a big gap on the bookshelves of WWII uniform and equipment enthusiasts.

Wow talk about humbling... I too am an aviation photographer, however unlike the late Mr Adams I shoot with a modern Canon EOS system firing at 5 or more frames per second. Mr Adams was shooting large format single shot cameras in a different era and to say I am humbled is an understatement.. This amazing book with it's black and white photographs illustrates the art of aviation photography at it's best. It doesn't matter what you shoot if you love aviaton and superb photography then this amazing book should be on your list of must haves. About the only thing I could knock this book for is it's lack of at least some colour. But there again perhaps that might have cheapened it. Hell I have just finished reading it and I have already started reading it again. I could go on and on about what I see when I look in this book, the clarity, the composition, the timing, and the artistry of what he truly loved shows. For the works shown withing this book works of art. The author Tim Kershaw's narrative combined with Mr. Adam's own never finished autobiography brings to life a man who, I am very sorry that I never had a chance to meet.

JET AGE PHOTOGRAPHER: THE AVIATION PHOTOGRAPHY OF RUSSELL ADAMS tells of a photographer who not only shot the world's first jet aerobatic photo, but who continued to capture air-to-air photos of Britain's early jet fighters. His images appeared throughout newspapers overseas and home from the 1950s to the early 1960s: even today aviation press often carries them - but until now no single volume has gathered all his photos under one cover. JET AGE PHOTOGRAPHER does so with style: it pairs full-page black and white photos with background history necessary to understand and appreciate them. Plenty of detail makes for a splendid coverage indeed.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

My son chose this book. He wanted to spend his allowance on it. He was very excited about it, and has been using it since it arrived.

As a homeschooler these books are a must have. I add these Dover coloring books as a supplement to all our history and science lessons. The pictures are very well done and the text at the bottom are a plus to any curriculum used today. You can make as many copies as you like and use them over and over again. You can't beat the price and quality that these coloring books offer.

This book keeps up with the promise in the title. It is a easily readable guide to design and perfomance of jet engine with a rigorous treatise of each field, even if the level remains simple.

In fact the mathematical exposition is quite accessible, without a full analytical presentation. Nevertheless the formulae are clearly given with an effective theorical background when needed. Since the volume target is to clarify ideas and principles, each topic is attractively examined, emphasizing the qualitative treatment over the quantitative analysis to improve understanding of physical phenomena. This facet is quite useful because it allows an overall comprehension in mastering design process of jet engine. Besides, the emphasis on having a clear picture of principles provides the basis for a fair evaluation of engine perfomances under real conditions.

As a guide or a reference, this work has neatly achived its goal.

This is an outstanding book by a knowledgeable author that provides the basic know-how and skills that an aeronautical or mechanical engineer with an interest in jet propulsion will find useful and helpful. The book is well written in a readable and easy to follow format that provides the reader with a comprehensive overview of jet propulsion. The author clearly presents the concepts, principles and design issues of modern gas turbine engines.

The reader will learn the various components of a jet engine including the intake design, compressors, turbines, combustion chamber designs, and the jet pipe and how thrust is produced as well as the physics and thermodynamics that go with these.

The book has great explanations, diagrams and figures that the reader will find useful and helpful. I recommend the book to engineers wishing to learn more about the jet engine.

There are very few treatises which share the daily intimate details of the lives of the pilots in the Luftwaffe on the western front. The accounts put you in direct perspective with the pilots of this historic squadron. The historical perspective is most provocative.

Don Caldwell has once again shown himself to be a top researcher and writer. His meticulous delving into the Luftwaffe history of JG 26 is entertaining and informative. Whether the reader is a historian or a casual reader interested in aviation history, this is an excellent read!

Very good - more information on the engines would have been good but the book is still a good buy

This is a truly supurb book. As it says, it covers the Junkers company from 1913 to 1945. And it covers it completely. It starts with the J1 and goes to the J2, and the J3 and so on through every plane the put into production, and every prototype plane they built, and it appears just about every plane they even thought about. Of course planes like the Ju-52 (the three motored Tante Ju that was basically the C-47 of Germany), the Ju-87 Stuka, and the Ju-88 (in about a dozen versions) are given more pictures, more pages than planes that never got off the drawing board.

In addition, Junkers also built engines (Did any other airframe manufacturer also build engines?), not the least of which were the Jumo 211 used in the ME-109, and the 109 series of turbojets used in the ME-262 and the Arado 234.

This book is exhaustively researched. Where could they have possibly have gotten all these photographs of rare aircraft, including almost every type of plane built, a listing of every known surviving plane, even comments on what happened to the follow on designs of advanced engines that were continued by the French, Czechs, and Soviets.

The book is beautifully printed (in Spain) on coated paper so that the photographs show up very well. This will be the hands down definitive book on the Junkers, probably for all time.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Much more than a nuts & bolts history of the development of the JU-87 Stuka, Peter Smith sets about to present an other version of this dive bomber's successes compared to the typical English & US histories.

Although technical and developmental details are present, along with many fine photos (all black & white, would have preferred a few color), the real heart of this book are the stories behind the Stuka. The pilots, the sorties are recountered here. Also of great interest to a land warfare buff are the stories of air/land battles, the coordination behind the blitzkreig, how the army & airforce learned to work together to beat foes that outnumbered them & had better equipment. Smith also uses facts to back up his position that the Stuka as a bomber, suffered losses less than Lancasters, B-17s, Bristol Blenhiems when those aircraft were used in daylight raids without escort.

In the end, it really doesnt matter if the Stuka was a war winner. The Germans were outnumbered, outproduced, outfought, so no matter what was produced, the end result would be the same. While the Stuka was not a war winner, this book does provide more balance to the fact that it was a good weapon system, especially considering it was on the cutting edge of technology when designed in 1933/34. It survived to fight through the last days of WWII, a claim few others can make. I definately recommend this book.

Peter C. Smith is the author several out of print and currently available books on the Stuka. This book is thorough and well researched, detailing many minor details and little known facts about this well known aircraft. The photos are all b&w and not as valuable as many other books on the market for model builders. There is a lot of "meat" in this book and must be read to be appreciated, however there is usually one or two photographs on every page that illustrates the corresponding text.

This book tells a story about a company that many have never heard of and a helicopter that even less have heard of. Kaman Corporation and its H-43 helicopters. They were unsung hero's of the Viet Nam war performing many more resuces per helicopter deployed than any other. If you like helicopters, history, or just want to read something interesting I highly suggest this book.

Yes, there were more helicopters in Vietnam than the Huey. This book tells the story of the kaman H-43 series...you know the "eggbeater" helicopter. The original '43 served the Navy and Marines in both training and observation roles, and when it was redesigned with turbine power it became the primary short-range Air Force rescue craft of the 60's. Read about the Huskie that was lost in Thialand while trying to save a B-52 crew and you'll appreciate not only the helicopter but the brave crews that served in them. I have several of the author's books, and I'd like to see more heicopter histories...