US Air Power 1945-1990 Volume 1: US Fighters and Fighter-Bombers, 1945-1949

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Since the 1940s, combat aircraft operated by the armed forces of the United States represented a military capability which no other nation proved capable of matching. The US-made military aircraft are usually the most controversial and most expensive, but also most powerful, most advanced, produced in greatest numbers, and best equipped and armed. Dozens of designs became outright yardsticks against which all other aircraft in the same category, manufactured by other countries and operated by other armed forces, are judged. This book is the first in a series of volumes to cover the history of combat aircraft in the USA from 1945 until 1990: specifically, this Volume 1 is the chronicle of service requirements that led to the development of specific types of fighters, fighter-bombers, and fighter-interceptors in the USA, the political maneuvering in their support or against them, their research and development and operational history in the period 1945-1949. David Baker presents hundreds and thousands of facts in an accessible, easy to follow fashion of a technical directory of the most important types, in a volume that is richly illustrated with authentic photography and exclusive artwork. AUTHOR: David Baker worked with NASA on the Gemini, Apollo and Shuttle programs between 1965 and 1990. He has written more than 100 books on space flight, aviation, and military technology and is the former editor of Jane's Space Directory and Jane's Aircraft Upgrades. In 1986, he was made a member of the International Academy of Astronautics by NASA manned flight boss George Mueller and is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a member of the US Air Force Association. He received the 1998 Rolls-Royce Award for Aerospace Journalist of the Year and in 2005 he was a recipient of the Arthur C Clarke Award. In October 2017, he received the American Astronautical Society's Frederick I. Ordway III award "for a sustained excellence in space coverage, through books and articles, as well as engagement in the early US space program". David is currently the editor of Spaceflight, the monthly space news magazine of the British Interplanetary Society, of which he is also a Fellow, a lecturer, and consultant. 60 b/w photos, 30 colour photos, 24 colour profiles, 1 map, 1 diagram,18 tables

Reviews

contains an incredible compilation of numerical data detailing the ramp-up of WWII production and subsequent post-war demobilization. all nicely presented, detailed, and understandable.

a very interesting book, especially the political aspect of the subject. Highly recommended for hours of pleasurable reading.

"....This is one I am sure will be popular with modellers, just as much as aviation enthusiasts. The mix of well known aircraft such as the F-84 and F-86, through all the other experimental work delivered in this period, including of course the X-1 breaking the sound barrier. So many pioneering designs, I found this a really interesting read, plus some great reference pictures."

Author Bio

With a background in the aviation and space industry, working with companies and government organisations in the UK and the USA, David Baker has made a lifelong study of aeronautical and aerospace projects to inform his research into the men and the machines of flight and flying. He has written more than 100 books and since the 1990s has served as editor for Horizon, the house magazine for Smiths Industries, for Janes Information Group on two yearbooks, on Aviation News and on SpaceFlight, the monthly magazine of the British Interplanetary Society. David had experience working with NASA and managing his aerospace consulting company from offices in London and in Trenton, New Jersey, visiting many countries around the world to advise governments and organisations on aeronautical and aerospace programmes. In the 1980s, David was made a voting member of the International Academy of Astronautics and received the 1998 Rolls-Royce Award for the Best Propulsion Submission, a category within the RAeS Aerospace Journalist of the Year awards. He is also the recipient of the Arthur C Clarke Award and of the American Astronautical Societys Frederick I Ordway III award for sustained excellence in space coverage, through books and articles, as well as engagement in the early US space program, presented at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center. David lives with his wife Ann in East Sussex.