A detailed history of the pioneering Bell X-1, the first manned craft to break the sound barrier. Brought to life with dazzling digital art, this rocket-powered aircraft launches Osprey's new 'X-Planes' series and brings the reader into the dangerous and thrilling world of experimental aircraft.In 1947, no one knew if it was possible to break the 'sound barrier'. The Bell X-1 was the tiny, rocket-powered craft that finally broke it. It was the result of innovative ...

A detailed study of how Operation Desert Storm saw Coalition forces respond to Iraq's surface-to-air missile defences with ground-breaking combat aircraft technology.Developed in the wake of the USA's ill-prepared entry into the Vietnam War, aircraft carrying electronic counter-measures equipment and anti-radar missiles were crucial to the success of Operation Desert Storm during the First Gulf War. Iraq's air defence systems were elaborate and co...

A new study of how the first purpose-built anti-tank helicopter gunship – the Bell AH-1 Cobra – engaged communist armor and well-armed irregular fighters in the war for control of Vietnam.The Vietnam War was often dubbed 'the helicopter war' because it was the first conflict in which helicopters took a dominant role. As the only dedicated gunship to be fielded by US forces during the conflict, the AH-1 Cobra saw combat against North Vietnamese Army (NVA) tanks, arm...

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 heavy-weight 'bomb truck' in Vietnam and a launcher of stand-off air-to-ground missiles during Operation Desert Storm

In 1960, SAC's B-52s began a nonstop, eight-year, nuclear-armed patrol. Fully illustrated, this study explains how one of the Cold War's most challenging operations was conceived and flown.Operation Chrome Dome was Strategic Air Command's unprecedented nuclear deterrence operation, a hugely elaborate and costly response to the perceived nuclear missile threat from the Soviet Union.In this book, Cold War aviation historian Peter E. ...

An illustrated account of the early service of the Lockheed U-2, one of the most important and longest-serving intelligence gathering platforms fielded by the US air force.The U-2 is one of the most recognizable aircraft of the Cold War; nicknamed the 'Dragon Lady' after the codename given to it by the CIA, this powered glider was designed and operated in great secrecy, providing US authorities with photographic and electronic information from areas of interest acr...

With specially commissioned artworks and dynamic combat ribbon diagrams, this volume reveals how the 'last of the gunfighters', as the F-8 was dubbed by its pilots, prevailed against the growing MiG threat of the Vietnamese People's Air Force.**When the Vietnam War began, the F-8 was already firmly established as a fighter and reconnaissance aircraft. It entered combat as an escort for Alpha strike packages, braving the anti-aircraft artillery and surface-to-air m...

With first-hand insight into the key role of the US Air Force's fighter-bomber from the Vietnam War through to Operation Desert Storm during the First Gulf War, this book is an unmissable account of some of the most dangerous and demanding missions in the two wars.The advent of the surface-to-air missile (SAM) in the early 1950s threatened the whole concept of aerial bombing from medium and high altitude. Countermeasures w...

A detailed look at the deadly battle between US Navy F9F Panther jet fighter-bombers and communist anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) defenses that proliferated throughout the Korean War.The F9F Panther was one of the many fighters converted for ground-attack duties, following an established US tradition. Originally designed as a jet fighter, in April 1951 it became the first jet to launch from a carrier with bombs loaded, using them to destroy a crucial railway bridge ...

Strap in alongside the Sabre pilots as they experienced the world's first large-scale jet-vs-jet combats. Brought to life with innovative tactical artwork and dramatic first-hand accounts from the pilots themselves.The F-86A Sabre had entered USAF service in 1949, and in December 1950 three squadrons were sent to South Korea. Despite primitive basing conditions and overwhelming Chinese opposition, the Sabre pilots stopped communist air forces from attacking UN grou...

Often described as the US Army's aerial jeep the UH-1 Iroquois ('Huey') was the general-purpose vehicle that provided mobility in a hostile jungle environment which made rapid troop movement extremely challenging by any other means.Hueys airlifted troops, evacuated casualties, rescued downed pilots, transported cargo externally and enabled rapid transit of commanders in the field. Although 'vertical aviation' had only become a practical reality during the Korean Wa...

Conceived during 1941 in case Germany occupied Britain, when US bombers would then have insufficient range to retaliate, the B-36 was to be primarily a '10,000-mile bomber' with heavy defensive armament, six engines and a performance that would prevent interception by fighters.Although rapid developments in jet engine and high-speed airframe technology quickly made it obsolescent, the B-36 took part in many important nuclear test programmes. The aircraft also provi...