Customer Reviews (1)

Great Book by a BOAC Flight Navigator
This book by a former BOAC Flight Navigator is full of adventure. It's particularly good on the navigation aspect of course, but it's very well written and should be interesting for any aviation enthusiast. Eric "Timber" Woods flew in the RAF in World War II. This book starts with his navigator training then moves quickly into his time as navigator on BOAC's Short Solent flying boats (the last of their kind in 1948-50), andfinishes on the Boeing 707 in the 1960's. His description of a flight on the Solent as it makes a five day trip from Southampton, England to Hong Kong, is worth the price of the book. (If you can't find a copy here, you might try Amazon.co.uk). ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Definitive Reference!
This is the most detailed account of the Harriers developement I have read. I highly recomend it to any aviation fan! ... Read more

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Book Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Coffee Table Book Format.
This is a thin, hardbound book, full of colorful Spitfire photos. It emphasizes restored Spitfires in the U.S.I'm happy to have a copy.J. Campbell "Cam" Martin ... Read more

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Book Description
In this new book Kevin Robertson has brought together a fascinating collection of previously unpublished facts and photographs, to throw new light on the long history of the Great Western Railway. He has drawn upon hitherto inaccessible sources and has chosen to illustrate and record many unusual aspects of the GWR which have been overlooked in other works devoted to this famous company.

The book covers subjects as diverse as experimental signal design, station furniture, the petrol railcar, the 1930s camping coach and even the GWR's accident record - hitherto considered exemplary. It illustrates the stations and the staff and above all the locomotives and the rolling stock upon which the high reputation of the company depended. This book will be entertaining and informative reading for everyone who has a sense of railway history. It will be specially valuable for enthusiasts who are keen to learn more about the background to the success of the GWR during the great age of British railways. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

A dense summary of Battle of Britain
Nice little book, it could be considered a quick summary of the Battle of Britain. Diagrams, drawings and timelines are very usefull. Sometimes it repeats the same thing over and over, but once (or if) you get used to it, it's very enjoyable.

Its All Here-The Biggest Air Battle Yet
The expression: "Turning Point of WWII", is a cliche no doubt, but it may apply to the Battle Of Britain airwar in 1940. Jacobs and Lightsey have done an excellent job of detailing Britain's struggle against the German Luftwaffe.There is just enough technical detail to show this is a well researched book, but not too many statistics and numbers to overwhelm the reader. Paul Jacobs' original and innovative drawings add another dimension to the text.
This book is a super package; the paper, printing, and high quality will provide a long life for a book that will be referred to often. Aviation buffs as well as history lovers will enjoy this book.

Everything You Wanted to Know About the Battle of Britain
This is a very comprehensive review of the Battle of Britain, the campaign which saved Europe from an indefinite period of darkness, oppression, and inhumanity.Without the courage and resilience of the British people and the courage, competence, and sacrifice of the young pilots and crews of the RAF from whom so much was demanded Hitler's legions would have stood triumphant over a defeated Europe.The level of detail about the technological and tactical development of aerial combat and strategic bombing from WWI to WWII, including radar, propellers, engines, gasoline, machine guns, gunsights, will attractaviation 'wonks' and the address of the broader political imperatives which led to war will attract the historian and political scientist.Mr. Jacobs' unbelievable sketches throughout add very helpful imagery of the aircraft which fought the campaign.I was intrigued, too, by the description of the influence of American aviation developments in the building of the German and British airfleets.I wish, though, the authors had addressed in more detail the effect of the early British breaking of German communication codes.A good read! ... Read more

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Despite the passing years, World War II still casts a giant shadow over the present day, even over those too young to have experienced the conflict. This fact is reflected in the continued publication of books on a variety of World War II topics and battle units. Among the many military formations of the period there is one that, justifiably, arouses particularly strong emotions, the Waffen-SS. Feared as ferocious adversaries and despised as war criminals, the fighting arm of the SS seems to sum up all that was evil in Hitler's Nazi regime. It was a major reason why almost unquestioningly the Waffen-SS became the Nazi's instrument in a number of horrific atrocities, which saw the SS branded as war criminals at the Nuremberg trials.

This book does not attempt to analyze the rights and wrongs of the arguments or to glorify the Waffen-SS. It is a record of the formation's campaigns, training and equipment, illuminated by first-hand accounts and a superb collection of photographs from the files of the Historical Research Unit. ... Read more

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Book Description
The inter-war years between 1918 and 1939 saw the newly created Royal Air Force fighting for its very existence politically, being dispatched to the remotest corners of the British Empire and its Protectorates in various policing roles and then finally engaged in a headlong rush to modernize in the face of the new German Fascist regime that was threatening British and European freedom. Yet this important period in RAF history and its effect on political and military rationale during the period has never been completely documented. This exhaustive and comprehensive reference is the most detailed work to be published on the subject. The author gives full information on the changing structure of the Force during the period, squadron operations, political machinations and their effects, the airplanes and their equipment, the personnel, technical advances in navigation and breakthroughs achieved in engine performance. The book is cross-referenced throughout, extremely well illustrated and contains an abundance of location maps and other diagrams. This book will become a Bible for anyone interested in the history of the RAF.

This work has been reviewed by personnel at the RAF Historical Branch who praise it.

... Read more

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The name of Peter Twiss first achieved national prominence in March 1956 when, as a test pilot, he gained the World Air Speed Record in the Fairey Delta 2, flying at a speed of 1132 mph over Chichester in Sussex. Seventeen years earlier, however, in 1939, he had joined the Fleet Air Arm to serve his country in war. After training at Elmdon, Castle Bromwich and Yeovilton, Peter saw service with the MSFU in 1941 and then joined 807 Squadron during 1942. He took part in the Operation Harpoon convoy to Malta in June 1942, aboard HMS Argus, and was awarded a DSC for his role in these operations. Initially flying Fulmars, his squadron later converted to Seafires and, now flying from HMS Furious, he joined the Operation Torch landings in NW Africa. During 1943-44 he became involved in the development of night fighting, serving with the RAF's Fighter Interception Unit, and flying Mosquitoes. 1944 saw him testing naval aircraft in the USA and he ended the war on Seafires again with 798 Squadron.

His new book is divided into two parts. In the first he tells of his war experiences in these varied theaters, thoughts and events he has never committed to print before. The second part reproduces word for word his earlier work Faster than the Sun, the compelling story of his struggle to break the 1000 mph barrier, which has been described as one of the epic accounts of high-speed flight. ... Read more

Book Description
ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW:A timely and impressive work, which will be indispensable to all students of Viking Age history and literature. - E. ChristiansenThe Vikings were the master mariners and ship-builders of the middle ages: their success depended on these skills. Spectacular archaeological finds of whole or partial ships, from burial mounds or dredged from harbours, continue to give new and exciting evidence of their practical craftsmanship and urge to seek new shores. The nautical vocabulary of the Viking Age, however, has been surprisingly neglected - the last comprehensive study was published in 1912 and was heavily dependent on post-Viking Age sources. Far better contemporary sources from the later Viking Age are available to document the activities of men and their uses of ships from c.950-1100, and Judith Jesch undertakes in this book the first systematic and comparative study of such evidence. The core is a critical survey of the vocabulary of ships and their crews, of fleets and sailing and battles at sea, based on runic inscriptions and skaldic evidence from c.950-1100. This nautical vocabulary is studied within the larger context of 'viking' activity in this period: what that activity was and where it took place, its social and military aspects, and its impact on developments in the nature of kingship in Scandinavia.JUDITH JESCH is Reader in Viking Studies at the University of Nottingham, and author of Women in the Viking Age. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Serious research for the serious scholar
Dr. Jesch keeps getting better and better. I have a number of her books and papers, and this one is a keeper. Just got it for Yule, and can't put it down. Of course, it helps if the reader is somewhat familiar with the runic tradition, as well as the sagas.Excellent illos (runes came out nice & clear) and clearly written, with an extensive bibliography, index, and footnotes. Probably the best researched volume on the topic of Viking period ships and the men who sailed in them. It's not a fast read, but it is chock full of details and information. ... Read more

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The '74' was the classic line-of-battle ship of the late eighteenth century, and Bellona was one of the most important and long lived. Launched in 1760, during the Seven Years War, she belonged to the first truly successful class of British 74-gun ships, a design by Thomas Slade that was built in large numbers over more than twenty years. Bellona herself served with distinction over 54 years, fought in four wars and was not broken up until 1814.

The 'Anatomy of the Ship' series aims to provide the finest documentation of individual ships and ship types ever published. What makes the series unique is a complete set of superbly executed line drawings, both the conventional type of plan as well as explanatory views, with fully descriptive keys. These are supported by technical details and a record of the ship's service history.

This volume features a full description of the ship, how she came to be purchased, and the short history of her naval service.

With over 300 perspective and 3-view drawings, accompanied by in-depth descriptive keys.

This revised edition features a large-scale plan of the ship on the reverse of an extended fold-out jacket.

Brian Lavery is probably the world's leading authority on the ship of the line. Apart from contributing numerous articles to magazines and journals, he edited and introduced a reprint of Deane's Doctrine of Naval Architecture, 1670, the earliest full treatise on the subject in English. He is also the author of the highly successful two-volume history of sailing battleships, The Ship of The Line as well as the critically acclaimed best-selling Nelson's Navy. ... Read more