Air Forces & Warfare

Seven minutes past midnight on 9 March 1945, nearly 300 American B-29s thundered into the skies over Tokyo. Their payloads of incendiaries ignited ...

In 1955, the Vulcan B.Mk2 was proposed and a new wing modification was designed to take advantage of the more powerful Olympus engines and a new st...

As the war began to turn against Germany, the Luftwaffe was forced to defend the Reich against increasingly overwhelming numbers of Allied fighters...

The General Dynamics F-111 was one of aviation history's most promising planes when it came out in the early 1960s. Despite a rocky service career,...

This second of two volumes continues the P-38 story by focusing on the later, mass-produced models of this historic fighterP-38J through P-38M. Eac...

The Douglas Dauntless was the US Navy's frontline dive-bomber in the early days of WWII. Even after the larger and more powerful Helldiver joined t...

The Avro Lancaster was the Royal Air Force's main four-engine bomber in World War II. Its superb design, overall performance, and load-carrying cap...

For 100 years, the world's oldest independent air force, the RAF, forged a distinguished record in military air operations from the First World War...

Air Commodore John Langer's career has been eventful to say the least. During the Second World War he flew gliders in India in preparation for airb...

At the beginning of 1916, as the world entered the second full year of global conflict, the cities, towns and villages of Britain continued to lay ...

Vulcan: God of Fire is a historical account of Britains nuclear deterrent force, the development of atomic/thermonuclear weapons and the bombers. I...

At the time of its introduction into service, the F-111 was a revolutionary aircraft and was, without doubt, extremely popular. Capable of deliveri...

Design work on the Skyraider began at the behest of the US Navy late in WWII. Production began in 1946, and the type made its combat debut in the h...

Modern strategists talk about force multipliers, and, for air operations, air-to-air refueling is without doubt the greatest force multiplier of al...

While volumes have been devoted to the legendary Flying Tigers, the ultimate American Volunteer Group, another virtually unknown band of flyers pre...

The F-105 Thunderchief was primarily designed for tactical nuclear operations. For this reason, it was on nuclear Victor alert in Europe (Bitburg...

The 1944 Allied invasion of France was a combined effort, with land- and sea-based forces supported by a huge aerial task force, which included leg...

The North American Mustang is one of the most well-studied aircraft. However, much of what is commonly understood about it, particularly its early,...

A key component in any armed force, helicopters operate in a range of roles not only previously filled by aircraft but also many that are completel...

The exclusive and definitive look at the 50-year history of the Navy Fighter Weapons School. The history of air combat has seen one recurring ...

Vietnam War Army Helicopter Nose Art brings to light over 250 recently recovered Vietnam War photographs from Army aviation veterans. The vast majo...

The B-24 Liberator remains to this day the world's most produced heavy bomber and multi-engine aircraft, and the most-produced military aircraft in...

Perhaps the most famous aircraft to come from English Electric, the unique design of the Lightning originated in a proposal in 1947. The prototype ...

A lavish photographic history that reveals the vital role that the pilots and their aircraft played throughout the course of World War II. Soaring...

In 1948, Hawker Aircraft, faced with new jet projects that could not use their existing airfield at Langley, began the process of searching for alt...

Today, the Mustang is a living legend and is remembered as probably the finest long-range single-seat piston-engined fighter ever built. Here, in ...

Little has been written about Royal Marines rotary aviation, the small and select unit which operated light helicopters between 1965 and 1995. Offi...

From the war torn valleys of Afghanistan to the frozen peaks of the Himalayas, David Wiseman's incredible story is an inspiration to us all. Andy M...

Before the P-47 Thunderbolt gained a bubble top fairing, these fighters had slightly different some claim to be more racial figure. In the first ...