Reviews of books from the world of aviation. If you're an airhead, and are looking for your next read, you will find it here.
Review by Sven Atkin. This book charts the story of an incredible woman through the trials and tribulations of British Forces life and the career path she chose within the Royal Air Force. It takes you through the author’s early life, growing up in Northern Ireland, joining the RAF and her subsequent training as an... Continue Reading →
Review by Nick Veronico. Take a scuba diver with an excellent eye for underwater photography who is also a US Coast Guard-rated boat captain and add an extensively published author with a background in the First and Second World Wars and you’ve got the recipe for a great book. Then toss in more than 100... Continue Reading →
Review by Takis Diakoumis. Long out of service, the SR-71 Blackbird continues to represent an engineering feat yet to be rivalled by any other aircraft program. Conceived within the secret confines of the famed Lockheed Skunk Works, the SR-71 was designed to fly higher and faster than any vehicle or weapon that might threaten it... Continue Reading →
Review by Andrew Kitney. The Me 262 has always held a fascination, being the world’s first operational military jet, with so much potential, but falling foul of Hitler’s interference in his ‘miracle weapon’, and German bureaucracy. The type has perhaps received less attention in books than it might have so I was looking forward to... Continue Reading →
Review by Sven Atkin. This book is the personal account of an incredible flying career spanning 51 years in both the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force. The difference is that it’s told from the perspective of an aircrewman who works ‘down the back’ of the helicopter. This was a first for me, and a... Continue Reading →
Review by Charles Page. In 1963, after a presentation by John Andrew, his Boeing boss said, ‘By god, we are going to quit building doghouses, aren’t we, Johnny?’ This marked the launch of Andrew’s major role in planning and supervising new and larger aircraft factories. In this impressive and handsome hardback, John Andrew with John... Continue Reading →
Review by Stuart Forth. The title of this book is a bit of a misnomer for, although the author was a member of No 111 Squadron’s Black Arrowsand went on to become the leader of the Blue Diamonds of No 92 Squadron, these events take up a mere two chapters of a twelve-chapter book. It is actually a... Continue Reading →
Review by Phil Vabre The Boeing 747 – the ‘Jumbo Jet’ – is an icon, instantly recognisable even by the most non-aviation of people. For several generations of Australians, the Boeing 747 represents their gateway to the world and, for many, passage into adulthood. Likewise, Qantas still occupies a special place in the Australian psyche... Continue Reading →
Review by Takis Diakoumis. Former RAF Lightning and Phantom pilot Richard Pike adds another title to Grub Street’s series with this recent compilation, Cold War Boys. This is Pike’s seventh title in the expanding series, having previously enthralled us with vivid tales from Lightning, Hunter and Phantom crews, including his own personal accounts. Cold War... Continue Reading →
Review by Takis Diakoumis. As soon as this recent release from Helion and their @War series was in my hot little hands, I struggled to put it down. This full-colour addition to the series covering Latin American conflict is a fabulous study of this important French aircraft and the weapon system that was quietly feared... Continue Reading →
Flight Line Book Review 