Product Description
Covered are the secretive origins and development of Germans Panzer troops are recounted in numberous photographs, along with a historical account of the vehicles used by the Panzer troops that would later storm through Europe. ... Read more

Product Description
Over 20 years of research went into the creation of this history of the development, characteristics, and capabilities of the Panther. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Germany's Panther Tank - Superior book
This is an excellent book for all serious armor fans and historians. The text is extremely detailed, printed on high glossy paper, there are tons of crisp B&W photos, line drawings and each change/development of the Panther tank is outlined. The inside, exterior and photos of the tank in action are shown to good effect. There are also reports back from the tankers who used the Panther in action - what was good, what changes they wanted to make it better and what the US tankers thought of the Panther tank.

A replacement for the Panzer Mark III had been begun as early as 1938, but the real sense of urgency came after the encounters with the Russian T-34 and KV-1s. Tank for tank, the Panther is argueably the best of WW2. But is was complex, not easy to maintain and the Allies produced more tanks in a month than all of Germany's tank production in a year.

Four stars - why not five? For this price, I'd like to see a few pages of color plates showing the camouflage schemes used on the Panther. The majority of line drawings are in English, but some of the German documents were not translated, a disservice to many customers.

I bought this book in 1996, I'd buy it again. It's really a must have for WW2 armor students, those who want a definative account of the Panther tank. A great addition to the collection.

Panther Tank-The Quest for Combat Supremacy
Thomas Jentz and Hillary Doyle have done it again with this publication. A fine, quality publication that will be often used as reference by the serious modeling enthusiast. Outstanding and valuable vintage images of the exterior and interiors of the various versions of this famous combat vehicle. Images are clear and offer great details for the modeler.

Scale line drawing of the versions are supplemented by original engineering drawings that offer additional details.

The narrative offers insight into the design, construction and modifications required by combat experience.

Chapter nine covers the final version, the Ausf. F model, that never saw combat.Several fine images of this prototype model are included.

There is a chapter on planned versions that never made into production, along with production histories of the Ausf D, A and G versions, along with a chapter on operational characteristics, and the book is summarized Chapter 10, Operational History.

This book is a very worthwhile addition to the reference library of anyone interested in military history, or those who engage in the hobby of modeling historical vehicles.Buy it!You will not be sorry.This is a reference that will be used often.

Panther, a little dated
I found the panther book well researched but a little basic. Some areas including the more obscure late war options need more detail and the book itself would benefit from the latest research. The book is a good read and as such represents good value but leaves you wanting more. Perhaps the Trojca books or similar would be a better option.

Germany's Panther Tank
This book provides an excellent technical and developmental history of the Panther. The author has obviously done his research on this vehicle. The book is well worth the price.

Panther Tank in extreme detail
The ultimate guide to the Panther Tank, is full of detail acounting the progress from drawing board to final version of this extremly well designed battle tank of world war two. Excellent for detail for the modeller keen on fine detailing the Panther Tank in any of its versions. Great read and some fine drawinings of all the Panther Tank models built during the war.
Well worth the money. ... Read more

Product Description
The McDonnell-Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is presented here showing its development, production and use by the United States Navy, Marine Corps and by various foreign air forces. Use by the Blue Angels, and the very latest model updates are included. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A great photo chronicle.
This book gives you the basic information about the F/A-18 & very nicepictures. What I am impress is the pictures are in color, it is verydifficult to find this kind of pictures. The information provided are verybasic but it will satisfied you. This book will be a valuable aset to fansof the F/A-18 because it has very amazing pictures & very basic butcomplete information about the F/A-18 Hornet. ... Read more

Product Description
Provides a detailed account of the use and the design of the German heavy 24 cm cannon. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Deceptive Title
Although the cover of this volume in Schiffer's military history says "German Heavy 24 cm Cannon," the inner title page says only "Heavy 24 cm Cannon." It turns out that both of these titles are inaccurate and deceptive. This thin volume is in fact, a brief history of only the six Skoda-built 24 cm M.16 cannons that were purchased by Germany from Czechoslovakia in 1938. Indeed, the author does not even mention that the Wehrmacht employed at least eight other models of 24 cm cannons during the Second World War. While I was certainly not expecting a comprehensive approach from such a short publication, I was expecting at least a survey of the topic.

Despite the disappointment about the narrowness of the author's coverage, this volume does provide a fairly adequate description of the six Skoda M.16 cannons in the Second World War. The 90 B/W photographs in the volume are very good and are supplemented by several silhouette drawings of support equipment. The author provides a brief background description of how the 24 cm cannon was developed by the Austro-Hungarian Army in the First World War and how the Wehrmacht became interested in acquiring the weapons. The author then provides a lengthy photo section that details the installation procedures for the 24 cm cannon in a firing position. A brief, 2-page section discusses the operational service of the Skoda M.16 cannon in the German II/84 artillery battalion; the guns operated primarily around Leningrad in 1941-44, but two remained in action up to May 1945. The author also provides two pages of technical data on the weapons, as well as two pages on the 24 cm ammunition and a map of the firing locations around Leningrad. Overall, this volume covers the Skoda M.16 cannon fairly well, but readers expecting it to cover other German 24 cm cannons will be disappointed.
... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (4)

Check Out the Price!
This book covers a great deal about Japanese airplanes not only the A6M (a.k.a Zero) series fighters but also other planes.

A new copy can cost as much as $230 (!), and I was fortunate to buy two copies for around $20 each; one for my instructor at my aviation school and one for myself.

This is probably the best book written in English about the A6M with many photo images.

The two famous pilots, Saburo Sakai & Tetsuzo Iwamoto both flew Model-21, which is the one on the cover page of this book (the one painted in light grey).They never met with each other but shared the same philosophy; find the enemy before they find you.Iwamoto had allegedly shot down over 200 enemy fighters.After the war was over, Sakai had a chance to fly some of the American fighters and concluded that the P51 Mustang was the best fighter during the WW2.

Zero, History of Japan's Legendary A6M Zero Fighter
When you are not fluent in Japanese, there are not very much other publications about the A6M Zero I could recommend you to buy. This book has it all: splendid photographs - both historical and of surviving planes-, an indepth text which not just tells the allied side of the story - there is a forword by Zero Ace Saburo Sakai himself -, and a good bibliography of 27 earlier publications about this plane, proving that the author can read the original language himself because most of them are in Japanese. It also list all the classics in the English language up to publication date, only missing the ARCO/Aircam No. 18 by Richard M. Bueschel, published in 1970 and since long out of print, though updated and reissued by Schiffer Books in 1995. The Polish/British Mushroom Publications brought out a Zero monograph by Artur Juszczak as well in November 2001, more focussed on modellers, which can also be used as a sort of 'Walk Around', because there are shots of almost all parts and angles of the plane, something which it has in common with another Polish 'Zero' book by Arthur Lochte.

The definitive Zero book
Mikesh is that rare combination of combat pilot (he was a FAC during the Vietnam War) and historian (former curator at the Natl Air & Space Museum). Japanese military aviation is his speciality, and this book is thedefinitive history of Japan's remarkable Zero fighter.

A must for WWII Japanese Aviation Historians
Zero Combat & Development by Robert Mikesh, does a splendid job of telling the story of the history and development of the A6M all models are included and a break down of their history and purpose of coming into playare described.The book covers the successes of the earlier A5M and discusses the specifications handed to Horikoshi. It does an excellent jobof explaining the structural defect present in the early model A6M's andwhat corrective measures were taken to prevent more accidents.It showsmany photos interior cut away drawings and specifactons. I am an aviationhistorian and a model builder and I even learned from reading this book. Also valuable is the information obtained from the captured A6M and thetest of many American fighters of that time against the A6M. Don't just take my word for it read it for yourself. ... Read more

Product Description
This amazing airplane first flew in 1949 and is still in front-line service with the RAF. It has served in a variety of roles including those of tactical bomber, photo-reconnaissance, navigational trainer, maritime strike, electronic countermeasures and target-towing. It was manufactured in the USA under license as the Martin B-57 and has been exported to Argentina, Chile, India, Peru, South Africa and other Commonwealth countries.

This book looks at the development of the aircraft during the early days of jet power and especially at its Rolls-Royce Avon power-plant. Each of the many marks and variants are described and illustrated by many remarkable and rare photographs. The type's record of service with RAF squadrons throughout its service life is given together with descriptions of the many experimental models that were used in the development of a variety of weapons and avionic systems. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

cool book
Some really serious and genuine research and work has gone into this book. i love the color profiles and esp. the one of the NASA bird. cool.
i also love the easy reading style, just because i like aircraft doesn't mean i want to be bored with reams of data. this author seems to realise this and tho with plenty of data (and some thats new i think), has written a a very good book, maybe, dare i say it, one of the best on this really interesting bird. ... Read more

Product Description
Dr. Christensen's work offers novel insights that contribute to our general understanding of military intelligence. It frames the study of intelligence against larger developments in U.S. military, diplomatic, and domestic political history. It examines bureaucratic and inter-ser vice rivalries and shows how they affected the development of important national policies. It assesses the impact of technical developments on policy questions that confronted U.S. officers. ... Read more

Product Description
This text offers a detailed illustrated history of the air balloon from the first flight of the Montgolfier brothers' hot-air balloon in 1782, to Steve Fosset's attempts at achieving record-breaking feats. It covers every aspect of the balloon - from military device to luxury airship. ... Read more

Product Description
When the first aviators sought engines to power their flying machines nearly a century ago, they did so in a world of rapid and exciting progress. This was a time of experiment and adventure, in which it soon became clear that what was needed was an engine that could give ample power but within reasonable limits of weight and bulk. That has been the criterion ever since, and still is. Here, expert aviation author Bill Gunston takes a thorough look at the history, development and application of these remarkable power plants, from those used by the Wright Brothers for their pioneering flights in the early 1900s right up to the small engines fitted to microlights today. He assesses what has led to the present state of piston aero engine design, as well as giving some thoughts on what the future might hold. Also included is a comprehensive review of all today's engines: air-cooled, liquid-cooled, units derived from basic automotive (car) designs, as well as some unconventional models. This fully updated second edition includes details of new families of engines being developed at the present time, as well as suggestions as to what the future might hold. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Makes complicated things easy to understand
Bill Gunston is extremely knowledgable about his subject and explains things very clearly.
As he says this is not a book that lists all aircraft engines but traces the technical development of the aircraft piston engine.
Anybody interested in engines would like this book.

development of piston aero engines
Another fine offering from Bill Gunston.This author has the experience and knowledge to cover this topic well.Enough technical detail, yet easy to follow, and maintain interest.
Recommended.

Piston Areo Engines
If the evolution of piston engines is what you want, this is the book to have. If your into cars boats or anything with a piston this book gives you an understanding of how things came to be
in the modern piston engine. Good casual reading for the gear head. I especially like the part on oil and gasoline.

good book
A very interesting and entertaining book, but best for people who have a grounding in internal combustion motors.The book documents quite a technological journey of piston aero engines including typical human-disappointments and achievements but includes just enough interesting facts and trivia to keep the reader going....

Quite a few pictures break-up the dialogue nicely.

Johan Verhagen

An Excellent Read
Another winner from the prolific Bill Gunston.This compact volume is packed with info for the piston aero engine enthusiast.The black and white production is superb, with excellent pictures and/or diagrams on almost every page.Only wish would be a hardback version! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

lighter than air
lighter than air is a great book. its educational and fun to read. it really gives great information on air that u need. u should get it or try it! ... Read more

Product Description
The Gladiator was the last biplane fighter in service with the RAF. Despite its obsolescence in 1939 it saw considerable active service in WW2, from the African desert to the snows of Finland. In this two-volume set, Alex Crawford tells the complete story of the Gladiator. Volume 1 covers the development and operational history of the aircraft, with full details of all the units which flew the Gladiator, the many foreign users, and air-to-air claims made by Gladiator pilots. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent, but newer edition is better
This is one of the early Mushroom Model Publications "Yellow Series" covering the Gloster Gladiator. It's a 6-1/2" x 8-1/2", 160 page, square bound card cover. Unusually for a Yellow Series book there is a very extensive service history and had this book been published later it would no doubt have been placed in the "Orange Series" but that series had not been launched at the time of publication (2002).

The book has since been revised into a two volume, larger format "White Series" of which only Volume 1 has been published. Having read both I can unequivocally state that the revision is better but the first edition offers considerable value.

The book is divided into sections covering RAF service, FAA service, foreign service, appendices, color profiles, detailed color photographs of surviving examples, and a one page bibliography. All is very well done but some photos are postage stamp sized.

The only outright error that caught my eye was the description of the Bristol Mercury engine as a sleeve valve type when it clearly is a conventional poppet valve engine. I'm curious to see if Volume 2 of the revised edition corrects this. Also in the section on Latvian aircraft we are told that the Latvian markings on the top wing were placed asymmetrically to confuse enemy pilots but the photos do not confirm this and the color profile are rendered with the markings placed symmetrically. The revised edition has it the same way.

In sum, there is no real need to try to find this book with a new edition available. However, if you don't want to pay the steep asking price for the two volume revised edition and can find this volume at a reasonable price there is no reason not to pick it up.

A Detailed Look at a Plane Obsolete from the Start
The Gloster Gladiator was the last biplane fighter in service with Britain's Royal Air Force. It was designed to meet a specification issued in 1930 and by 1935 had entered squadron service. Even by that time the prototypes of the Hurricane and the Spitfire had flown so the Gladiator was obsolete. Still when World War II started or shortly thereafter, it was one of the fighters in service with not only the RAF but with the air forces of a number of other countries, at least including: Egypt, Greece, Sweden, Belgium, France, China, Ireland, Finland, Germany (captured from Russia), Iraq, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Portugal, Russia (captured from Latvia and Lithuania). The plane continued in service, in admittedly second line duties until at least 1945.

Alex Crawford is fascinated by the Gladiator and has spent some 25 years collecting information about the plane and its use. So much information was collected that it is being published in two volumes. This volume is primarily on the use of the plane by the various air forces. Volume II will concentrate on giving a full technical description, complete with detail photographs of all aspects of the airframe. It also will picture all of the surviving aircraft from around the world. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

This Book Is a Star
Propliner enthusiasts consider the Lockheed Constellation to be the most beautiful airliner built.In this book, authors Curtis Stringfellow and Peter Bowers do an admirable job of presenting this graceful bird, both civil and military variants, in considerable detail.

The authors describe each variant - the Army C-69; the civilian 049, 749, 1049, and 1649 Starliner; and military Super Constellations - in considerable detail.They cover Constellation operations with major and second-tier operators on every continent.Reference sections detail accidents and incidents, surviving Constellations, major operators, and civil registrations.The publisher also provides an index, a feature lacking in the Airliner Tech series.Included are shots of the flight deck and interior for each of the major commercial variants.The wealth of detail in this book is sure to please any propliner or aviation enthusiast! ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (7)

Key reference work
This is the essential reference work on the subject of autocannon and similar weapons, at least in English. Note however that the author maintains an online errata-and-updates site, and also participates in several online forums where related subjects are discussed. Those additional sources of information must be considered integral to the book to gain its full continuing value.

Great book.
It is immensely informative but well written so that it's easily absorbed. Great book.

Excellent Reference
This book sets a standard that would be hard to beat.The author knows his subject and the production is superb.I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the field covered, and to others as an example of how a book should look.

Great book for the technically inclined
An excellent review of automatic weapons for the technically inclined.There is little or no operational history involved, but this book's detailed development histories of weapons and their ammunition is more comprehensive than anything I've seen since Johnson's books from the '40s.If you are into the details of automatic weapons and the ammunition they fire, you must have this book.If you are looking for operational military history of how these weapons were employed, this is not for you.

Great book, a mine of information
This book is a very well written history of large caliber automatic weapons. It gives a good coverage of the mechanisms and characteristics of the weapons, but it's real importance to me is it's well illustrated gallery of the rounds used in the weapons, complete with specifications of the rounds and the weapon and country using them, something that is rare to find in other works.In a library of over 1000 volumes on weaponry, this is one of the most used references I have. ... Read more