Series: Combat Aircraft

This volume examines the history and development of the Ju 188 twin-engined aircraft, the Luftwaffe’s attempt to enhance and improve its peerless Ju 88. The Junkers Ju 188 was the epitome of mid-war German twin-engined aircraft design, representing the enhancement of an earlier type and incorporating increased performance and technological sophistication. As part of the 1939 ‘Bomber B’ programme, it...

A fully illustrated study of the Nakajima Ki-49 ‘Helen’, the twin-engined bomber of the Pacific War, from Japanese aviation expert George Eleftheriou. The Nakajima Ki-49 Donryu (‘Dragon Eater’), codenamed ‘Helen’ by the Allies, was a twin-engined Japanese bomber designed to undertake daylight attacks without the protection of escort fighters. Consequently, while it was officially known as the Army Type 100...

A detailed history of the Canberra, which saw considerable service as a photo-reconnaissance platform for no fewer than 19 squadrons from the early 1950s through to 2006. From its first public demonstration at the Farnborough Airshow of 1949, the English Electric Canberra bomber captured the attention of the aviation world. It could outmanoeuvre all the fighters of the time and...

RAF Jaguar Units in Combat is an illustrated account of the development and action-packed service history of the Jaguar attack jet, featuring first-hand accounts from the pilots that flew it into combat. Developed as a joint venture between Britain and France, the SEPECAT Jaguar was originally intended to be a jet trainer aircraft, but quickly evolved to fulfil a need...

An illustrated exploration of the development, technology and operations of Wilde Sau fighters in the night skies over Germany during the Defence of the Reich. In July 1943, the Nachtjagdverband's defence of Germany from the RAF’s increasingly effective night bombing campaign was nearly brought to a standstill. ‘Window’ – strips of paper with aluminium foil covering one side – had...

The Douglas F3D Skyknight was an early but effective attempt at combining new technologies in a lethal package capable of shipboard operation. Whereas most fighters relied on speed and manoeuvrability, the portly, straight-winged F3D relied on three radars, four 20mm cannon, and – most importantly – darkness. Having first flown in March 1948, the Skyknight’s first taste of war came...

An illustrated study of the ongoing career of the iconic B-52, chronicling its frontline service after Operation Desert Storm in 1991. First flown in 1955, the B-52 has become an icon of deterrence and the long reach of American air power. The aircraft was conceived as a long-range nuclear bomber, but its versatility saw it used as a heavyweight ‘bomb...

An illustrated study of the Luftwaffe’s iconic Fw 190 Jabo units and their high-speed, low-level attacks on the south coast of England. The service debut of the Fw 190 in the late summer of 1941 marked a quantum leap in the Luftwaffe’s capability to oppose the RAF on the Channel Front. Conceived to be purely a fighter, the type soon...

An illustrated study of the famous Heinkel He 219 – the Luftwaffe's only purpose-built nightfighter – and its role in the bitterly contested nocturnal defence of the Reich. Originally conceived as a high-performance reconnaissance aircraft, the Heinkel He 219 went on to become the Luftwaffe’s only purpose-built nightfighter. Despite its many sterling qualities, including ejector seats for its two crew...

Built within a 180-day time limit in 1943, the F-80 Shooting Star first saw service in Italy in the final year of World War 2, and consequently was sent to bases in the US, Europe, and the Far East after VJ Day. It was the latter groups based in Japan that initially bore the brunt of the early fighting in...

Former RAF Tornado pilot Michael Napier chronicles the action-packed history of the Harrier GR 7/9, and its missions in West Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East and Afghanistan over a 14-year period of ceaseless operations. The Harrier GR 7/9 was at the ‘tip of the spear’ for the RAF when it came to employing weapons against well-equipped standing armies and...

A fully illustrated study of the extraordinarily successful early-generation jet, the F2H Banshee, a frontline aircraft that served with 27 US Navy and US Marine Corps squadrons and three Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) squadrons. The F2H Banshee was an extraordinarily successful early-generation jet that outlasted both contemporary and more modern fighter types on the decks of the US Navy’s aircraft...

An illustrated account of the first jet-powered combat aircraft, the Messerschmitt Me 262, and its short but action-packed career during World War 2. Powered by the Jumo 004 jet engine, the Me 262 outclassed anything the Allies had in terms of speed and firepower, offering, as an interceptor, a formidable punch with four 30 mm MK 108 nose-mounted cannon. Such...

The complete story of A-6 combat operations during the Vietnam War, illustrated throughout. Designed in the years following the Korean War and then manufactured for over 30 years starting in 1960, the A-6 quickly became the most capable attack aircraft in the US Navy's stable. The first squadron, VA-75, made its initial deployment directly into combat in south-east Asia in...

At the A-7 Corsair II’s peak in the mid-1980s, some 30 US Navy squadrons flew various versions of the aircraft, including six Naval Air Reserve units, and these many of these units saw action across the Middle East. By the time the jet saw combat in Operation Desert Storm (1991), there remained only two fleet squadrons—many fleet squadrons having either...

The medium bomber 'workhorse' of the Ninth Air Force, Martin's much-maligned B-26 Marauder recovered from its poor start with the Eighth Air Force to go on and equip no less than eight bomber groups in the ETO. Although initially dubbed 'the widow maker', a change of tactics from low- to medium-level bombing for the Marauder soon improved the crews' chances...

Originally designed in the mid-1930s as a fast airliner that could be easily adapted for the bombing role, the He 111 first saw action in Spain with the Legion Condor during the civil war. By the time Germany invaded Poland, more than 700 were in service with the Luftwaffe's Kampfgeschwadern, and they were used with devastating effect during the fall...

The second volume in the trilogy of Combat Aircraft titles devoted to de Havilland's 'wooden wonder', this book focuses on the Mosquito fighter/fighter-bomber variants, and their users. From its earliest development phase, the aircraft was considered as much a fighter as a bomber, and this was duly reflected when the original 1940 Air Ministry order for 50 Mosquito bombers was...

An illustrated combat history of the two-seat (A-1E/G) and single-seat (A-1H/J) Skyraiders and how they helped train the fledgling VNAF. Equipped only with the two-seat models of the Skyraider, American pilots were required to have VNAF ‘observers’ in the aircraft for every mission. Eventually, this arrangement was changed as enough Vietnamese pilots were trained to man their own squadrons, while...

Valiant Units of the Cold War by Andrew Brookes delves into the fascinating history of the RAF's first Cold War strategic bomber, the Vickers Valiant. Procured as a precautionary measure in case of potential flaws with either the Vulcan or Victor, the Valiant played a pivotal role in British military aviation. The Valiant, akin to the US B-47 Stratojet, blazed...