Fighter Planes (Beginners Plus)

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Each made very different and often contradictory demands of an aircraft, but the Mosquito was, perhaps uniquely, successful in all four roles. But having chosen wood partly to avoid a shortage of raw materials, there was now concern that supplies of the lightweight balsa that, sandwiched in between plywood, made up the Mosquito’s skin, might run out.

That is, until the arrival of the Albatros D II, a sleek inline-engined machine built for speed and with twin-gun firepower. Thus, the later part of 1916 saw an epic struggle in the skies above the Somme pitting the manoeuvrable yet under-gunned DH 2s against the less nimble yet better armed and faster Albatros D IIs.

Albatros Aircraft of WW I (Volume 2) - Late Two-Seaters

In 1916 German aerial domination had been lost to the French and British fighters. German fighter pilots requested an aircraft that was more powerful and more heavily armed, and the Albatros design bureau set to work on what was to become an iconic aircraft design. By April 1916, they had developed the Albatros D.I, that featured the usual Albatros semi-monocoque wooden construction with a 160hp Mercedes engine and two forward-firing machine guns. This book examines the technology and strategy that defined the outcome of the battles between the Spad VII and the Albatros D III. Author: After first entering RAF service with a photo reconnaissance unit, the first Mosquito bomber squadron formed a few months later. The Robert Thelen-led Albatros design bureau set to work on what became the Albatros D.I and D.II and by April 1916, they had developed a sleek yet rugged machine that featured the usual Albatros semi-monocoque wooden construction and employed a 160hp Mercedes D.III engine with power enough to equip the aeroplane with two forward-firing machine guns. In all, 500 D.IIIs and 840 D.III(OAW)s were produced and saw heavy service throughout 1917. The history of military and commercial aircraft from all over the world, decade by decade, to the present day in stunning visual detail

By October, the newly dubbed Mustang Mk10 was ready for takeoff. It reached an astonishing 427mph at 21,000ft. Even more astonishing, as it flew higher it no longer lost speed. It gained it. In dropping a total of nearly 27,000 tons of bombs on the enemy, Mosquitos suffered fewer losses per thousand sorties than any other aircraft in Bomber Command. Born-from-experience calls from German fighter pilots requested that, rather than compete with the maneuverability of these adversaries, new single-engine machines should be equipped with higher horsepower engines and armed with two rather than the then-standard single machine gun.With the inclusion of these aircraft into their reorganized air force, Germany was able to regain control of the skies by autumn 1916. Along with the later designs they inspired, the Albatros D.I and D.II were instrumental in allowing the Germans to prosecute their domination through 'Bloody April' and well into the summer months that followed. From September 1916 until late 1918, biplanes from the Albatros firm formed the primary equipment of Germany's fighter forces. Starting with the D I of 1916, these aircraft underwent a continuous programme of development and production to the D Va of late 1917. And, because of its unique wood and glue construction, furniture factories, cabinetmakers and musical instrument manufacturers around Britain were able to put their carpentry-skilled workforces to work helping keep up with demand for de Havilland’s masterpiece.

They were also equipped to carry a single passenger. “The British pilots put me in the bomb bay,” laughs Niels Bohr, played by Kenneth Branagh, in Christopher Nolan’s epic Oppenheimer. The Mossie was not only beautiful but fast and extraordinarily versatile. Nonetheless, it was the looks that everyone noticed first. It seemed like a thing of nature, sculpted by the wind like a Saharan sand dune, proving the truth of the old aviation adage: “If it looks good, it flies good.” Most variants could manage at least 400mph; some had a range of more than 1,500 miles. This performance made it ideal for a multitude of wartime roles, all of which it performed triumphantly. Uncover the engineering behind more than 800 aircraft models, from military jets to commercial planes. This visual history book captures the fascinating story of aeroplanes and aviation, and how this groundbreaking discovery has influenced the 21st Century. caption id="attachment_7491" align="alignnone" width="166" caption="West with the Night reminds us that flying is not just a man's world."] [/caption] ‘Poetry in flight’ best describes this 1942 memoir from aviatrix Beryl Markham of bush flying in Africa and long-distance flight, which includes her solo flight across the Atlantic. Lyrical and expressive her descriptions of the adventure of flying continue to inspire others, including Boeing test pilot Captain Suzanna Darcy-Hennemann, who said Markham's book was 'closest to her heart' in a RAeS lecture. Biggles Pioneer Air Fighter W.E. Johns

David and Margaret White, a husband and wife team, tell the story of this little plane beautifully, from its gestation in the mind of a German immigrant in California, to the wartime corruption and shortsightedness that delayed the introduction of the Mustang after its successful test flights, to its final triumph in the skies over Europe in 1944 and 1945.

The Mosquito brought to bombing some much-needed accuracy, enabling surgical strikes on key targets that were beyond less gifted aircraft. Its numerous battle honours included some of the RAF’s most celebrated feats, including the daylight raid on Berlin in January 1943, timed to arrive just as Herman Göring was about to make a radio speech to mark the 10th anniversary of the Nazi takeover. The Reichsmarschall was cut off by the sound of 500lb pound bombs exploding across the capital. caption id="attachment_7494" align="alignnone" width="222" caption="Fiction it may be, but Bomber conveys the courage and tragedy of WW2 night air raids in an unforgettable way."] [/caption] A masterpiece of storytelling and research, Len Deighton’s novel Bomber focuses on a single night in RAF Bomber Command’s aerial campaign against Germany in WW2. As well as the Lancaster crews, it also includes the point of view from ground crews, civilians and the Luftwaffe nightfighters. A brutal and harrowing account of total aerial warfare. F-4 Phantom - A Pilot’s Story - Robert Prest Albatros fighters reached their zenith of deadly efficiency in the spring of 1917, when the Albatros D III took a heavy toll of Allied aircraft. Nearly every one of the 81 Jagdstaffeln, or fighter squadrons, operated one or more types of highly decorated Albatros aircraft at some point in their history. When in late 1938, as the prospect of war loomed over Europe, designer Geoffrey de Havilland first suggested the idea of a lightweight twin-engined bomber that relied on high speed rather than defensive gun turrets to protect itself, the Air Ministry told him: “Forget it.” Contents: Introduction - Design and Development - Technical Specifications and Variants - Operational History - Conclusion. Author:

Albatross Aces of World War 1

But the book’s successes are also a tribute to David White’s father, Theodore H White, because his Making of the President books of the 1960s and 70s were some of the most celebrated books of nonfiction of the last century. In the end the Germans would regain air superiority, and hold it into the following summer with the employment of their new Jagdgeschwader (larger fighter groupings), but the FE 2 remained a tenacious foe that inflicted many casualties - some of whom were Germany's best aces (including 'The Red Baron'). caption id="attachment_7496" align="alignnone" width="200" caption="Night flight captures the solitude and risk of early air mail routes."] [/caption] A classic of aviation literature, the novel Night Flight is heavily based on French aviator and writer Saint-Exupery’s experience of working as an airmail pilot, in the interwar years. The book captures the danger and loneliness of these early commercial pilots, blazing routes in the days before radar, GPS and jet engines. Vulcan 607 – Rowland White