The Big Book of X-Bombers & X-Fighters: USAF Jet-Powered Experimental Aircraft and Their Propulsive Systems

If I needed to buy one book that was an outstanding introduction to the experimental aircraft and engines of the USAF, this would be it.There is just enough coverage on paper airplanes and black programs to retain the interest of the knowledgeable and plenty of text for those new to the subject. And, I did enjoy the artwork.HOWEVER, if you have an extensive library on the USAF, there is no need to add this book to your library.Aside from the editing issues mentioned in other reviews, the only other criticism I can level is personal. I did not care for the watermarking of the pages.This book would make an excellent gift for someone who is just starting to develop a serious interest in aircraft.Edit: Added "experimental" to clarify review.Although this is considered to be a "critical" review, please note that I do like the book and have enjoyed reading it. Utilizing the "star" rating and my reading preferences it is an okay book. If your library is lacking, this is an excellent first time buy.

We aviation fans (anoraks) are terribly generous in our reviews. There are lots of things wrong and/or irritating about this book but, in the end, it is a great book with brilliant illustrations.The title "The Big Book of..." suggests this book is headed straight for the bargain shelves of the giant cafes-with-some-books which used to be called bookstores.So the book is not even aimed at the man who knows his aircraft inside and out.Then the title clearly says X Bombers and X Fighters..so the big book shop customer may be misled into thinking that this may include America's wonderful series of X planes, well covered by Miller but totally absent here...Yet they can be important here; the author gives us the gem that Lockheed were in charge of much of the flying of the feeble Douglas X3 which helped lead onto the F104 which assorted European governments were bribed to buy as their main all weather fighter..Then there are the fighters pretty well ordered of the design board so very underrepresented here - so not much on the Sabre or Phantom 2 - two planes totally dominant in their eras. Those never ordered also pose a difficult problem.The F108 was never built but , in design, it took at least 5 major shapes!. One would like all the century series fighters all together but they do not quite fit the time line and pop up all over the place.The engines, or often lack of them, are put into a section of their own quite out of any time line.The contribution of early British jets, flown with their designer Whittle to the US is graciously acknowledged. And the later gift of the same engines by the British Labour Government (probably through corruption and/or blackmail - there's nothing new in the world) is equally graciously passed over though many Americans died because Russian MiG 15s had a British designed engine.Many reviews question the production values of the book. Misprints, bits of history repeated or left out entirely, dreadful layout,oddly positioned sidebars, illustrations infuriatingly out of sync with the text, scandalously bad index. Aaaarrgh ! A rough attempt at a timeline has bombers, fighters and, er.., fighter bombers seemingly mixed up higgledy piggledy.So is this just a scissors and paste job for a mass market?So this a highly irritating book with a one star rating? No because it has many saving graces. OK, you can learn more from Lloyd S Jones' books on US fighters and bombers, but there are lots of gems here.Firstly the timeline, which later becomes a bit of a 'mare, is wonderful for those early years of Jets.The story of the Bell Airacobra is wonderfully told. Were you aware also that F105 first flew in 1955, the F101 in 1954, the fastest 'fighter' of all time the YF12 in 1962 ? So that very definitely explains why a whole lot of advanced fighters on the drawing board at that time were then cancelled !! A particular gem is that the successful licensed made Martin B57 was only asked to fly-off against the British Canberra version - and lost. And General Curtis LeMay allegedly saying of the North American 'WS-110A' supersonic bomber "This isn't an airplane, its a three ship formation!" Of course , the champion of the timeline is the B52 bomber of Doctor Strangelove fame. Director Stanley Kubrick, writer Terry Southern and stars Peter Sellers, George C.Scott, Sterling Haydn and 'pilot' Slim Pickens are all long dead, but what about the B52? Design approved in 1948, first flown in 1952, it is expected to serve until 2044; the longest serving warplane ever. Although it is pretty well matched by the Tupolev 95 'Bear' first flown in 1952 and which had its combat debut (!) in 2015 in Syria.The book is also well worth buying for its illustrations alone;sometimes with contemporary company illustrations or models, sometimes modern artist representations and often with outstanding photographs, often in earlyish colour when film had to be bought,paid for and developed! Particularly good on all those back-up early bombers (often by Convair or Martin) in case the Boeing did not work.So, be generous. Enjoy the good and do not let the bad ruin the book for you.

When talking about X-planes, we usually refer to planes designed to conduct aeronautical research. But until 1962, the US Air Force used the letter X in a different sense to denote prototype aircraft. I like how Steve Pace narrowed the scope of this book to cover prototype fighters and bombers (and prototypes of fighters and bombers that made it to the production phase) in the post-1940 period, and the book even covers some fighter and bomber projects that didn't make it past the drawing board (e.g., WS-125, Boeing proposals for F-108 competition), but also serial numbers for those prototype aircraft.

I've been an aviation maniac all my life, and Steve Pace's final project is a must-own. It's got information on projects that I've never seen before, amazing photos, and a great balance between deep-dive details and readability. The only negative is that the page formatting and layout in the Kindle version is wonky in places, so it can be a little frustrating as it jumps back and forth. Regardless, be sure to add this to your collection.

Too often books that purport to cover a long series of airplanes have just a photo or a sketch of the less-well-known aircraft, but this book has a good deal of information about each. Especially considering the age and obscurity of some of the aircraft, the amount of information is quite impressive. It is the most complete treatment of the experimental fighters and bombers that I have seen.

The photos and the organization of this book are very good. I applaud the goal of compiling all this information in one tome.The quality of the editing is poor. There are factual errors in the prose. In some cases, these errors may be due to lack of proofreading vice bad research, but they are errors none the less. This is a shame because of the caliber and detail of the rest of the book.

This is a beautiful book with lots of good info and the author seems to try to account for all airframe designations but I can't understand why the XP-75 Eagle is not included.

Scholarly, complete, (and for an airplane nut like myself) immensely captivating. In the 1950's I worked as a young engineer for Northrop Aircraft and I found several references to their products in this book, all well documented and in accord with my experiences working within the company. It is truly a "Big Book", in importance, size, content, and also weight! Pace has done a great job and I love it!

USAF.books are allways intresting.Just the job.

Nice

A beautifull book on the history of the USAF.Great pictures ,nice profiles and a easy text to read.,lots of information.Nice to have in my collection.Well Worth the price..Gary

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