Aviation related books/literature

pepe the prawn

Just wondering what books are out there that ye could recommend.

I've read chickenhawk by Robert mason which I would thoroughly recommend.

Also, not quite aviation related, but Bravo Two Zero is another great read.

Any recommendations?

Tenger

Quick and the Dead by Bill Waterton

First and Last by Adolf Galland

Vulcan 607 and Phoenix Squadron by Rowland White

Empire of the Clouds by James Hamilton Paterson

Red Line by John Nichol

Duffer2010

Fighter Boys -Patrick Bishop
First Light-Geoff Wellum
Tornado Down-John Nicol and John Peters
Air Spectaculars-Madeline O'Rourke

notharrypotter

From an Irish persepective

"Cleared for disaster"


Wings over Ireland: Story of the Aer Corp

Also by same author is

200 years of aviation in Ireland.

eatmyshorts

Fate is the Hunter by Ernest Gann.

arubex

"Man is Not Lost" by Dickie Richardson.

How the inter-war RAF stumbled from navigating by following roads to astronavigation. Also quite lucid stories of Egypt in the 1930s and commanding Whitleys with clapped-out Merlin engines flying from Ballykelly!

"Dive Bomber in Action" by Peter C Smith

The brief but successful history of the dive bomber as a weapon. Lots of snippets with interviews with former crews including those often overlooked out in Burma and the Pacific.

"By Jupiter!" by Bill Gunston

Before Bill G went all encyclopaediac on us he wrote this biography of the life of Roy Fedden, chief designer of most of Bristol's big piston engines. A window into an era when a single man could literally change the course of history, in several regards.


There's also one about the German scientist who moved to the USA after the war and joined GE; most of their turbine engines are his babies! I'll update it when I remember the title...

billy few mates

Anatomy of an Air Disater by Gerry Byrne is a fascinating read...

http://www.amazon.com/Flight-427-Anatomy-Air-Disaster/dp/038795256X

And if you've an interest in sports, the Sports Gene is well worth a read...

http://www.amazon.com/Sports-Gene-Talent-Practice-Success-ebook/dp/B00CQ1D1OI/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1432468242&sr=1-1&keywords=the+sports+gene

Nforce

Some in my library include..

Red Eagles: America's Sectret MiGs by Steve Davies
Sea Harrier Over The Falklands : "Sharkey" Ward
Vulcan 607 : Roland White
Phoenix Squadron: Roland White
Sled Driver : Brian Shul

Razor44

Low level hell and easy target are about chopper pilots in Vietnam.

FWVT

Flying the Airbus A380
Capt. Gib Vogel

pepe the prawn

Just remembered this thread.

I’m just finishing reading “The wind beneath my wings”, a book detailing the life and experiences of John Hutchinson, a former Concorde pilot. He has led an extremely eventful life, the book covers his early days of growing up in India to moving to the U.K. and joining the RAF, his transition to civil aviation and his experiences on the 707, 747, and Concorde to name but a few. He’s had his fair share of tragedy too, much of which is detailed in the book.

Highly recommended.

faoiarvok

Skyfaring by Mark Vanhoenacker

Couple of excerpts here: http://www.slate.com/search.html#search=Skyfaring%20Mark%20Vanhoenacker

b318isp

"Fate is the Hunter" by Ernest G Kann is easily the most impressive book I've read on flying. If you can get over the rosy prose in the first chapter, the rest of the book is a jaw dropping, eye popping read of the dangers in aviation in the 1930-1950 period. Simply, a must read; arguably the best book on aviation ever written.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fate-Hunter-Ernest-K-Gann/dp/1908059028/ref=pd_sim_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=9NPWSP8J3ND1ZZZDZQJN


On a more technical side, "Handling the Big Jets" was a seminal book about the transition from mid sized propeller airliners to heavy jets, detailing the differences in operating and flying them.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Handling-Big-Jets-D-P-Davies/dp/0903083019


Some of the oldest books still maintain huge validity. "Stick and Rudder: An Explanation of the Art of Flying" crosses the line from finesse in aircraft control into flying as an art form.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stick-Rudder-Explanation-Art-Flying/dp/0070362408/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510742545&sr=1-1&keywords=stick+and+rudder


Finally, nearly anything by Eric "Winkle" Brown is amazing. The variety of aircraft he flew and the extent of the scope of dangers he was exposed to are almost unique in the world of aviation:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wings-My-Sleeve-Worlds-Greatest-ebook/dp/B002VCR0OO/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510742712&sr=1-1&keywords=eric+brown

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wings-Luftwaffe-Flying-Aircraft-Consign/dp/1902109155/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1510742712&sr=1-7&keywords=eric+brown

L1011

The Naked Pilot: Human Factors in Aircraft Accidents was interesting enough, bit dated (1990s) in examples more than concept.

Stovepipe

The Aviation Book by Fia o'Caoimh, first class drawings of all kinds of aircraft; ISBN 978-0-500-51303-3, Thames and Hudson, 2006.......brilliant book and a must have for the sheer skill involved. Fia is an architect and a friend of mine, so I'm biased. This book is a lifetime keeper, as it's the kind that will have you dipping in, again and again.

dogmatix

My top picks of the last few years -

The quick and the dead - Bill Waterton.
Empire of the clouds - James Paterson.
Wings of the luftwaffe - Eric Brown.
The Kamikaze hunters - Will Iredale.
Back to the Drawing Board: Aircraft That Flew But Never Took Off - Bill Gunston.
Tumult in the clouds - James Goodson (a reread but still great).
Any of the "secret project" books by Tony Buttler.

Lustrum

The flightdeck survival manual, by James McBride is an interesting read. Lots of anecdotes and some good lessons to learn for all pilots, however he's a bit of a Jose Mourinho in my opinion - if he was a lollipop he'd lick himself!

Also Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint Exupery, mostly about his time flying for Aeropostale and setting up post routes from France into the Sahara and South America. A great insight into pioneer flying in the 30's, some of the stuff in it is bananas!