Fighter Pilot From Cold War Jets To Spitfires

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Fighter Pilot: From Cold War Jets to Spitfires

Author : Christopher Coville
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 1399015605
Total Pages : 250 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (99 download)

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Book Synopsis Fighter Pilot: From Cold War Jets to Spitfires by : Christopher Coville

Download or read book Fighter Pilot: From Cold War Jets to Spitfires written by Christopher Coville and published by Air World. This book was released on 2022-01-12 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A young boy sits in the back of a Chipmunk aircraft at RAF Woodvale, near Liverpool. He has never flown in anything before. As the power goes on and the little aeroplane soars into a clear blue sky, he decides at once that this is the only thing he wants to do in life: to be an RAF pilot. Fighter Pilot: From Cold War Jets to Spitfires tells the riveting story of how a boy from Liverpool, at the height of the Cold War, joined an RAF that was largely led by veterans of the Second World War. Christopher Coville arrived at the RAF College at Cranwell to find an environment shaped by English Public School traditions, but he made the grades needed to be streamed onto fighters, and went on to fly the Lightning, Phantom and Tornado F3 in the air defense role. Christopher eventually became station commander of RAF Coningsby and while in that role flew with the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, becoming the only station commander to qualify on the Hurricane, Spitfire and Lancaster. He also qualified on helicopters and multi-engine aircraft and became responsible for the quality of the displays performed by the Red Arrows, flying with them regularly. Along the way, he steered the RAF’s biggest re-equipment programme since 1945 during a tour at the Ministry of defense and filling a challenging top NATO post during the wars in the Balkans. While this is a book about a young man from Liverpool who joined from grammar school and became a three-star Air Marshal, it is also, above all, a story written by a passionate aviator, whose affection for flying leaps out of every line, in a book which is full of excitement, deep knowledge of flying and affection for his fellow servicemen and women. But it is also a wonderful narrative about people, the great characters forged by military life, and honed by fear, exhilaration, and occasional tragedy. Fighter Pilot: From Cold War Jets to Spitfires is a unique perspective on aviation, written by a talented and dedicated pilot at the very top table of the RAF. This book culminates with his retirement, as the No.3 in the RAF, and being invited to have lunch with The Queen.

Fast Jets to Spitfires

Author : Ron Lloyd
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 1526759098
Total Pages : 224 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (267 download)

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Book Synopsis Fast Jets to Spitfires by : Ron Lloyd

Download or read book Fast Jets to Spitfires written by Ron Lloyd and published by Air World. This book was released on 2020-09-30 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How often have you glanced skywards at the sound of a passing aircraft and wondered what it would be like to fly one of those gleaming metal machines? Or admired the skill and the daring of the fighter pilot swooping down upon his enemy in the awe-inspiring, unrivalled elegance of a Spitfire? Ron Lloyd has had the experience of flying the majestic propeller-driven aircraft of the Second World War as well as the roaring, sound-barrier-breaking jets of the Cold War – and in this exciting book, he places the reader in the cockpit, describing what it really feels like to be sitting at the controls of a fighter aircraft. Ron Lloyd joined the RAF after the Second World War. During his early service he was selected to be one of the pilots to fly the wartime aircraft in the famous feature film The Battle of Britain, being fortunate to fly a Spitfire and even a Messerschmitt Bf 109 during the six weeks of filming. His role with the RAF, on the other hand, saw him on the front line in the Cold War, piloting de Havilland Vampires, Hawker Hunters, Gloster Javelins, Lightnings and Phantoms. He also served on exchange in the USA where he flew Convair F-102s, Convair F-106s and Lockheed T-33s. Ron wanted to share the thrills and the dangers of flying such aircraft with those who have not had such privileges – as well as relive such moments with those who have. Packed with unique photographs of the golden age of British military aviation, _Fast Jets to Spitfires_ brings the recent past back to life and allows readers to experience, through Ron Lloyd’s graphic accounts, the pure joy of being airborne, alone and in control of the great flying machines that have helped forge this nation’s history.

Lightnings to Spitfires

Author : Clive Rowley
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 139901563X
Total Pages : 304 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (99 download)

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Book Synopsis Lightnings to Spitfires by : Clive Rowley

Download or read book Lightnings to Spitfires written by Clive Rowley and published by Air World. This book was released on 2022-01-15 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A former fighter pilot chronicles his career flying for the Royal Air Force for over four decades in this action-packed memoir. For forty-four years, Clive Rowley flew with the Royal Air Force, and for thirty-one of those years he specialized as an air defense fighter pilot. Such was his love of fast fighter aircraft that, in order to stay flying, he transferred to Specialist Aircrew terms of service, relinquishing any chance of further promotion above his rank of squadron leader. During those years Clive flew Lightnings, Hawks, and Tornado F.3s but, perhaps more intriguingly, for eleven years he flew Hurricanes and Spitfires with the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF), the RAF’s, if not the world’s most famous “warbird” display team, which he ultimately led and commanded. Many readers will have watched him, perhaps unknowingly, as he flew these iconic aircraft, often alongside the Lancaster, at air shows and large-scale commemorations around the UK and Europe. During the Cold War, Clive flew the BAC Lightning from Gütersloh in Germany and in the UK, becoming an expert in the art of air combat in the process. Then for sixteen years he flew the Tornado F.3 as the RAF moved into expeditionary operations. Packed with humorous and often hair-raising anecdotes, but also revealing the shock and sorrow he felt at the deaths of friends and colleagues, this book is a highly detailed account of life as a fighter pilot in the RAF in the last three decades of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first. Clive is open about the fears he sometimes felt in this dangerous world and how he allayed them to continue flying for more than four decades. This book is illustrated with wonderful photographs from his time on the front line as well as with the BBMF, many of which have never been published before. If you have ever wondered what it is like to fly supersonic jet fighters, like the Lightning and the Tornado F.3, or iconic “warbirds,” such as the Hurricane and Spitfire, Clive Rowley brings you into those cockpits and shares his experiences.

From F-4 Phantom to A-10 Warthog

Author : Steve Ladd
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 1526761254
Total Pages : 269 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (267 download)

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Book Synopsis From F-4 Phantom to A-10 Warthog by : Steve Ladd

Download or read book From F-4 Phantom to A-10 Warthog written by Steve Ladd and published by Air World. This book was released on 2020-09-30 with total page 269 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This behind-the-scenes account of a USAF career is “an absorbing read, written with the classic humor fighter pilots seem to have” (Flight Line Book Review). From Baron von Richthofen to Robin Olds, the mystique of the fighter pilot endures. The skill, cunning, and bravery that characterizes this distinctive band of brothers is well known, but there are other dimensions to those who take to the skies to do battle that have not been given the emphasis they deserve—until now. You don’t have to be an aviation aficionado to enjoy Colonel Steve Ladd’s fascinating personal tale, woven around his twenty-eight-year career as a fighter pilot. This extremely engaging account follows a young man from basic pilot training to senior command through narratives that define a unique ethos. From the United States to Southeast Asia, Europe to the Middle East, the amusing and tongue-in-cheek to the deadly serious and poignant, this is the lifelong journey of a fighter pilot. The anecdotes are absorbing, providing an insight into life as an Air Force pilot, but, in this book, as Colonel Ladd stresses, the focus is not on fireworks or stirring tales of derring-do. Instead, this is an articulate and absorbing account of what life is really like among a rare breed of arrogant, cocky, boisterous, and fun-loving young men who readily transform into steely professionals at the controls of a fighter aircraft. “This book will appeal to a variety of readers with its Vietnam War combat stories and accounts of flying the Warthog in Cold War Europe. Fun, flying, international experiences—you won’t want to put it down.” —Aviation News

Low and Fast

Author : Charles Banks
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781952311239
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (112 download)

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Book Synopsis Low and Fast by : Charles Banks

Download or read book Low and Fast written by Charles Banks and published by . This book was released on 2023-06-02 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many people have approached me asking what it felt like to fly jet fighters. In fact, most people have never flown in a small plane. They truly are missing the most incredible feeling of being airborne alone, among the clouds, looking down at the ground and feeling amazingly free. All takeoffs and landings are thrilling. These feelings are more or less intense for each type of plane flown. As you look back through our history, various conflicts dictated different missions and types of aircraft. Industry changed designs of airframes and weapons based on the mission, cost, and time to manufacture. In the 1970's and 80's, during the tensions of the Cold War, numerous borders around the world were being contested, sometimes using military force. Communist and Socialist dictators were taking over many countries. There was a worldwide feeling that it could all explode into World War III at any moment. In that climate, military pilots worldwide constantly prepared for the worst, hoping that being fully prepared would deter political and military action. This is the story of one of the pilots who flew the F-4, the F-105, the F-111, and the O-2 in defense of his country. This pilot prepared for fighting at high or low speed and high or low altitude with most of the missiles, rockets, and bombs that a fighter aircraft could carry. His missions in Vietnam steeled him for deadly combat. This combat experience prepared him to protect our country and our allies in the Far East and in Europe throughout a loyal career.

Fighters in the Blood

Author : Black' Robertson
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 1526784874
Total Pages : 440 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (267 download)

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Book Synopsis Fighters in the Blood by : Black' Robertson

Download or read book Fighters in the Blood written by Black' Robertson and published by Air World. This book was released on 2020-08-31 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A retired RAF air marshal looks back on his career and the career of his World War II pilot father in this military memoir. As this fascinating memoir unfolds, moving backwards and forwards through time, two parallel stories emerge: one of a Second World War Spitfire ace whose flying career comes to a premature end when he’s shot down and loses an eye, the other of his progeny, a second-generation fighter pilot who eventually reaches the rank of air marshal. The narrative is unique in its use of two separate and distinct voices. The author’s own reminiscences are interwoven with those his father recorded more than thirty years ago, embellished by extracts from some 300 of his wartime letters. Intensely personal and revealing, controversial too at times, this account is above all about people, not least those with whom the author flew while serving with the USAF—a tour marked by tragedy; that said, they proved altogether more friendly than the P-38 pilots who twice attacked his father in North Africa! A daughter with dual citizenship subsequently helped him sustain his links with the US, both while serving and afterwards in business. The irony is that the son spent a lifetime training for the ultimate examination—one that, despite strictly limited preparation, his father passed with flying colors. To “Black” Robertson’s eternal regret he was never able to put his own training to the test. His father, “Robbie,” was awarded the DFC and retired as a flight lieutenant after five years or so. He himself served for nearly thirty-six years, earned a Queen’s Commendation, an OBE and CBE and served as an ADC to HM The Queen. But after reaching almost the top of the RAF tree, in one important sense he retired unfulfilled; his mettle was never tested under fire. Anyone interested to know more about flying, about the RAF, about leadership, about character even, need look no further than this beautifully crafted, immensely readable account. Praise for Fighters in the Blood “Offers an insightful look into the professional development of an RAF airman from Cranwell cadet to Air Marshal, the evolution of the Royal Air Force itself from the early jet era of Hunters through the demanding days of NATO versus the Warsaw Pack and the defence of British interests (e.g. the Falklands) with the Phantom, and then on into the post-Cold War world where the need to strengthen RAF airpower is challenged by drawdowns, budgetary stringencies, and often misguided Mandarins driving questionable defence policy. I was struck by how beautifully the author integrated his father into the story . . . it is at once very moving and very effective, and, once again, works to integrate the RAF "then" with the RAF of the 1960s-1990s. The photographs are wonderful. This book is a real winner.”” —Dr. Richard P. Hallion, Aerospace Historian

Cold War Fighter Pilot

Author : Harold Wade
Publisher : Trafford Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1412225248
Total Pages : 230 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (122 download)

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Book Synopsis Cold War Fighter Pilot by : Harold Wade

Download or read book Cold War Fighter Pilot written by Harold Wade and published by Trafford Publishing. This book was released on 2004-07-08 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cold War Fighter Pilot covers experiences leading up to USAF pilot training for the author and then describes in considerable detail the flight training and a variety of experiences that are intended to explain what military pilots do as well as how and why they do it. Technical terminology is minimized or explained, yet enough of it is included to give the reader an idea of the complexity of the job. The author logged over 3,000 hours as a USAF fighter pilot, instructor pilot and maintenance fight test pilot, much of it in supersonic aircraft.

Spitfire Ace

Author : Gordon Olive
Publisher : Amberley Publishing Limited
ISBN 13 : 1445644371
Total Pages : 462 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (456 download)

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Book Synopsis Spitfire Ace by : Gordon Olive

Download or read book Spitfire Ace written by Gordon Olive and published by Amberley Publishing Limited. This book was released on 2015-07-15 with total page 462 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The amazing story of one of ‘the Few’, Spitfire fighter pilot Gordon Olive, who shot down ten enemy aircraft during the Battle of Britain.

From Lightnings to MiGs

Author : Russ Peart
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 1399007505
Total Pages : 298 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (99 download)

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Book Synopsis From Lightnings to MiGs by : Russ Peart

Download or read book From Lightnings to MiGs written by Russ Peart and published by Air World. This book was released on 2021-10-30 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It was supposed to be just a training flight. The two Soviet-manufactured MiG 21s, each with two practice bombs and four air-to-ground rockets, were lined up on the runway in Bangladesh at the height of the Cold War, when air traffic control suddenly reported an incursion by Indian Air Force Jaguars. Though ill-equipped for combat, the two MiGs were scrambled. One of the MiGs pilots was an RAF officer Squadron Leader Russell Peart. On a seven-month loan to the Bangladeshi Air Force, Peart suddenly found himself at the centre of the simmering hostility between two neighbouring nations. By the time they reached the area that had been threatened by the Indian pilots, the Jaguars had gone. Later, when Squadron Leader Russell Peart spoke of the incident to the British High Commissioner, he was told not to shoot down any Jaguars as the Indians had still not paid for them! Russell Peart flew many other aircraft in his varied career, including the MiG 19, and while a test pilot at Boscombe Down trialled such designs as the Tornado GR1. But it was whilst he was seconded to the Sultan of Omans Air Force, particularly during the so-called Secret War in Dhofar, that he saw the most action. In that theatre the author flew some 200 operational sorties, 180 of which involved live fire, during which he was hit many times. He was also hit and wounded by a 75mm shell. Russ Peart has written in detail of his exciting RAF career, from flying Lightnings in the Far East to winning the top prize in the International Tactical Bombing Competition against a handpicked team of United States Air Force fighter pilots and being awarded the Sultan Of Omans Distinguished Service Medal. Supplemented by a selection of previously unseen photographs, this uniquely original memoir throws new light on the operational flying undertaken by some RAF pilots during the tense years of the Cold War.

Fighter Pilot

Author : William R. Dunn
Publisher : University Press of Kentucky
ISBN 13 : 0813146100
Total Pages : 345 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (131 download)

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Book Synopsis Fighter Pilot by : William R. Dunn

Download or read book Fighter Pilot written by William R. Dunn and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2014-04-23 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This WWII fighter pilot memoir recounts the author’s many exploits as a flying ace during WWII in the Normandy invasions, the Battle for France and beyond. Born in Minneapolis in 1916, William R. Dunn decided to become a fighter pilot at the age of twelve. In 1939 he joined the Canadian Army and was soon transferred to the Royal Air Force. As part of the RAF’s famous Eagle Squadron, Dunn was sent to Europe to fight in the Second World War. Flying Hawker Hurricanes and Supermarine Spitfires, he was the first Eagle Squadron pilot to shoot down an enemy aircraft. When he later transferred to the US Army Air Forces, he became the first American ace of the war. Lieutenant Colonel Dunn saw action in the Normandy invasion and in Patton's sweep across France. Twenty years later he fought again in Vietnam. In this lively memoir, Dunn keenly conveys the fighter pilot's experience of war—the tension of combat, the love of aircraft, the elation of victory, the boisterous comradeship and competition of the pilot brotherhood.

The Spirit of Attack

Author : Bruce Gordon
Publisher : AuthorHouse
ISBN 13 : 1491846046
Total Pages : 116 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (918 download)

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Book Synopsis The Spirit of Attack by : Bruce Gordon

Download or read book The Spirit of Attack written by Bruce Gordon and published by AuthorHouse. This book was released on 2014-01-28 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: SCRAMBLE! In a couple of minutes my wingman and I would be airborne on another adventure. Sometimes we intercepted an airliner, sometimes a misplaced B-52 bomber, and sometimes Russian bombers probing our defenses; Russian warships; MIG fighters; or troops in contact in Vietnam, calling for napalm only yards from their positions. Twice it was UFOs - Unidentified Flying Objects! This book is a series of short stories, supported by more than 90 photographs. The first part has my own stories; later stories were contributed by my fellow pilots. The last story is from WW II of our P-38 fighters attacking the Romanian oil fields and getting badly mauled by defending Romanian fighters - and a Romanian pilot's view of the battle! Only the spirit of attack borne in a brave heart will bring success to any fighter aircraft, to matter how highly developed the aircraft may be. That quote from Adolf Galland, an Ace of the German Luftwaffe in WW II, was the motto of our 317th Fighter Interceptor Squadron in Alaska. The fighter pilot is a hunter, and his quarry is the most dangerous in the world - men who want to kill him! The best defense is a good offense - ATTACK! The US Air Force had a program called Every Man a Tiger. A tiger does not kill impulsively or in anger, but plans his attack carefully and strikes with cool ferocity. We were tigers! Fighter pilots tell stories around the bar, but they seldom write them down. These stories were written by the fighter pilots themselves! Come with me and hear of the beauty of flight, the mortal danger of electrical power failure at night in a snowstorm, and the thrill of attack with 20mm cannons firing right under your feet!

Flying American Combat Aircraft

Author : Robin Higham
Publisher : Stackpole Books
ISBN 13 : 0811750515
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (117 download)

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Book Synopsis Flying American Combat Aircraft by : Robin Higham

Download or read book Flying American Combat Aircraft written by Robin Higham and published by Stackpole Books. This book was released on 2005-07-06 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Riveting accounts from the pilots who flew such planes as the F-15, B-52, C-130, and many more. Dozens of in-the-cockpit photos.

RAF & East German Fast-Jet Pilots in the Cold War

Author : Nigel Walpole
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 1526758393
Total Pages : 512 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (267 download)

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Book Synopsis RAF & East German Fast-Jet Pilots in the Cold War by : Nigel Walpole

Download or read book RAF & East German Fast-Jet Pilots in the Cold War written by Nigel Walpole and published by Air World. This book was released on 2020-11-23 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “You’ll learn what these pilots went through knowing that their actions or reactions could trigger a global nuclear war.” —Historic Aviation RAF and East German Fast-Jet Pilots in the Cold War is the result of ten years of research, involving many visits to the former German Democratic Republic by a small Anglo/German team of military specialists. Their purpose was to explore the lives of RAF and East German fighter and ?ghter-bomber pilots, in the air and on the ground, at work and play, during the Cold War in North Germany. The book is based largely on personal testimony from these pilots, coupled with facts drawn from official archives and comment from other historical sources. Where possible, political considerations have been avoided and no outright criticism has been intended, readers being left to draw their own conclusions on the thinking, strategies, equipment and tactics discussed. Far from being an intellectual polemic on the Cold War, the text and photographs merely record a slice of history as seen through the eyes of a select few who took up arms in the defense of their respective homelands—and faced each other daily across the Iron Curtain. In an insightful conclusion, Nigel Walpole reassess the threat that both sides believed was genuine during those tense decades of the Cold War and examines the possible course and nature of a conflict which neither NATO nor the Warsaw Pact wanted but both actively planned for. “The writer has avoided politics where possible, and in doing so reassesses the threat and uncertainty—and ultimately the fears—both air forces faced. It’s truly fascinatingl.” —Flypast

Fast Jets to Spitfires

Author : Ron Lloyd
Publisher : Air World
ISBN 13 : 1526759071
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (267 download)

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Book Synopsis Fast Jets to Spitfires by : Ron Lloyd

Download or read book Fast Jets to Spitfires written by Ron Lloyd and published by Air World. This book was released on 2020-09-30 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A memoir of RAF service in the postwar era and the golden age of British military aviation, including photos. How often have you glanced skyward at the sound of a passing aircraft and wondered what it would be like to fly one of those gleaming metal machines? Or admired the skill and daring of the fighter pilot swooping down upon his enemy in the awe-inspiring, unrivaled elegance of a Spitfire? Ron Lloyd has had the experience of flying the majestic propeller-driven aircraft of the Second World War as well as the roaring, sound-barrier-breaking jets of the Cold War—and in this exciting book, he places the reader in the cockpit, describing what it really feels like to be sitting at the controls of a fighter aircraft. Lloyd joined the RAF after World War II, and during his early service he was selected as one of the pilots to fly the wartime aircraft in the feature film The Battle of Britain, giving him the opportunity to fly a Spitfire and even a Messerschmitt Bf 109 during the six weeks of filming. His role with the RAF, on the other hand, saw him on the front line in the Cold War, piloting de Havilland Vampires, Hawker Hunters, Gloster Javelins, Lightnings, and Phantoms. He also served on exchange in the USA where he flew Convair F-102s, Convair F-106s, and Lockheed T-33s. Packed with unique photographs of the golden age of British military aviation, Fast Jets to Spitfires allows readers to experience, through Ron Lloyd’s graphic accounts, the pure joy of being airborne.

Blue Skies

Author : Bill Olmsted
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 306 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (89 download)

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Book Synopsis Blue Skies by : Bill Olmsted

Download or read book Blue Skies written by Bill Olmsted and published by . This book was released on 1988-10 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The autobiography of a Canadian Spitfire pilot in World War II.

Contrails

Author : John William Jaacks
Publisher : Xlibris Corporation
ISBN 13 : 148368430X
Total Pages : 254 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (836 download)

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Book Synopsis Contrails by : John William Jaacks

Download or read book Contrails written by John William Jaacks and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2013-08-21 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: CONTRAILS Memoirs of A Cold Warrior Jack Jaacks writes a moving personal account of a Midwestern farm boy who dreamed of becoming a military officer and an Air Force Pilot. During the Cold War of the 1950's an attack against the United States by Russian bombers carrying nuclear bombs was believed to be a certainty. America built an Air Defense system to protect itself. Nearly 2000 fighter-interceptor aircraft and 5,000 pilots guarded the skies above America Like fighter pilots of generations before them, the U.S. Air Defense Command pilots flew into hostile skies and lived out the dreams of their youth. And, like their forefathers, many died in keeping America free. No Soviet bomber ever penetrated the U. S. Air Defenses. Jaacks flew the first jet Fighter-Interceptors, the Sabers, Starfires, Scorpions and Delta Daggers in Alaska, the continental U.S., Canada, and in Europe with the Royal Netherlands Air Force. Contrails describes the intensity of a life of an interceptor pilot and how Jaacks became a member of the elite cops of aviators that was the first line of defense against a Soviet nuclear attack against America.

Life in the Wild Blue Yonder

Author : John Lowery
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781515195795
Total Pages : 362 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (957 download)

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Book Synopsis Life in the Wild Blue Yonder by : John Lowery

Download or read book Life in the Wild Blue Yonder written by John Lowery and published by . This book was released on 2015-10-22 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is about the life of US Air Force pilots during the cold war years, with special emphasis on events that occurred during the 1950s and 1960s.The introduction of jet aircraft, combined with the World War II mindset that seemed to disregard aviation safety made life in the wild blue yonder a very dangerous way to make a living. Many changes were required in both the fighter pilot operational philosophy and military discipline. The stories provide a look at various events that occurred during this period. As you will read, it was an interesting and challenging era, interspersed by long periods of great anguish for some and sudden death for many others. Of special note is our government's abandonment of number of our airmen who were known to be prisoners of war but who were not repatriated. The Cuban involvement with our POWs is especially distressful in that some of the POWs they held simply "disappeared," with 17 airmen taken from Hanoi to Havana for "medical experiments in torture techniques." With a combat tour completed in both Korea and Vietnam the author was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses and nine Air Medals. He finished his military career with 7,500 hours in 28 types of military aircraft, of which 5,000 hours were in jet fighters and 460 hours in aerial combat. This is the author's ninth book; others include "Professional Pilot Third Edition," "Anatomy of a Spin," and "A Pilot's Accident Review."