The American Aircraft Factory in World War II [Hardcover]

Bill Yenne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 2006

Few, if any, industrial phenomena have been as dramatic as the United States mid-20th-century shift from peacetime manufacturing to wartime production. While the years 1939 to 1945 saw explosive growth in the manufacture of every type of armament imaginable, none was more emblematic of the industrial climate than the proliferation of aircraft factories. Zeroing in on the crux of the American military-industrial complex at a critical moment, this volume documents the production of legendary fighters and bombers by companies like Boeing, North American, Curtiss, Consolidated, Douglas, Grumman, and Lockheed. It was a production unmatched by the Axis powers or any other country, and a crucial part of why the allies won the war.

Illustrated with 175 period photographs - including 50 rare color photos never before seen in print - The American Aircraft Factory in World War II conveys the incredible acceleration of aviation technology that took place during this period. Author Bill Yenne considers the various prewar governmental acts that got the plants rolling, as well as the notable gender shift that occurred on factory floors as women entered the work force like never before. He also describes the construction of megafactories like Willow Run, factory-design considerations, and the postwar conversion back to peacetime production.

This beautiful coffee table book is an essential part of any World War II history buff's collection, and is a tribute to the veterans of the war - on the fighting and home fronts - who helped build and fly these amazing aircraft that would change the world forever.

 

Editorial Reviews

Review

FlyPast, December 2006

“Lavishly illustrated, landscape-format tribute to the huge US war machine that churned out over 304,000 aircraft between 1939 and 1945. The format and large size of this book was dictated by sheer scale and drama of the illustrations within. Incredible views of production lines are balanced with images of countless ‘Rosie the Riveters’ at work, plus engineers, test pilots and designers. Pictures are mostly black and white, but with good amounts of color—all spectacularly reproduced. The author knits a careful narrative around the imagery.”

WWII History, March 2007

“No story is more emblematic of the all-out industrial effort that that of the American aircraft industry. And no book captures that effort better than this handsome, oversized work by Bill Yenne. Using 125 exquisitely detailed black-and-white photos and 50 color shots, Yenne captures the hustle, bustle, and sheer muscle that was required to turn steel and aluminum into the legendary aircraft of the day—the fighters, transports, and bombers—that helped win the war. The stunning collection of photographs takes the reader onto the famous assembly lines at Boeing, Consolidated, Douglas, GM, Vultee, Martin, Lockheed, and many others, and shows the tremendous amount of work and dedication that went into the manufacture of each aircraft. This beautiful book is truly a magnificent tribute to the men and women who toiled round the clock in the war plants at home so that our boys overseas had the tools of war they needed. All Aviation buffs will want this one.”

Aviation History, March 2007

“Bill Yenne keeps his reputation for consistent quality in his nostalgic book The American Aircraft Factory in World War II…Yenne supports his text with an amazing collection of photographs, a few familiar to aviation buffs, but many others seen here for the first time. This compilation clearly represents an extensive research effort. All in all, The American Aircraft Factory in World War II tells the story of how the United States and its diverse population responded to a crisis in a positive manner, one that benefited the world in their day—and which may also serve to inspire new generations.”

Midwest Book Review, December 2006

"An eye-catching, outstanding production."

In Flight USA, January 2007

“Yenne, one of the best present-day chroniclers of aviation history, ably merges text and images to give a sense of the efficiency and even beauty of American ‘Yankee’ ingenuity at its best. The text is crisp and efficient, but the images are what give the book its edge. From the early images of aviation workers in full suits and ties to the surprising color shots of factory workers, the book underlines the glamour and, dare I say, coolness of a bygone era.”

From the Inside Flap

On the eve of World War II, most American aircraft were hand-built using methods that the nation’s automobile factories had abandoned a generation before. Within a few years, U.S. aircraft factories would be at the epicenter of the largest industry in the world, turning out more than 304,000 warplanes between 1939 and 1945. In fact, during World War II America’s aircraft industry rocketed from fifth in the world to the position of global leader, producing twice as many aircraft as the United Kingdom or the Soviet Union, and more than one and a half times as many aircraft as the three major Axis powers combined.

While this astounding increase in production is difficult to comprehend, author and historian Bill Yenne examines the circumstances and policies behind these statistics while providing a look inside American aircraft factories throughout this extraordinary increasing output. Illustrated throughout with dramatic images from facilities across the country—including rarely published and beautifully preserved color photography—The American Aircraft Factory in World War II sets the stage by describing the genesis of the industry and its development immediately prior to 1939. Readers witness not just America’s great aviation pioneers and the companies they forged, but the real heroes: the men and, for the first time, women on the factory floors who led the American aircraft industry’s metamorphosis from a relic of a fading era to a world leader.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Zenith Press; 1st edition (October 15, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0760323003
• ISBN-13: 978-0760323007
• Product Dimensions: 12.4 x 10.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #156,727 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bill Yenne is the author of several novels and over three dozen books on historical topics, as well as having been a contributor to encyclopedias of both world wars. He has traveled throughout the world researching his books.

The "New Yorker" wrote of "Sitting Bull," his biography of the great Lakota leader, that it "excels as a study in leadership." This book was named to the number 14 spot among Amazon's 100 Best Books of the Year.

"Library Journal" observed that "enthusiastic World War II readers will be drawn to" his dual biography, "Aces High: The Heroic Story of the Two Top Scoring American Aces of World War II."

Recently, his book "Convair Deltas" was named as "Book of the Month" by "Air Classics," while his book "Tommy Gun" was named "Pick of the Month" by "Shooting Illustrated."

His book "Guinness: The 250 Year Quest for the Perfect Pint" was listed among the top business books of the year by "Condé Nast Portfolio Magazine," which rated Yenne's tome as its TOP pick for "Cocktail Conversation."

Yenne's "Rising Sons: The Japanese American GIs Who Fought for the United States in World War II," was praised by Walter Boyne, former Director of the National Air & Space Museum, who called it "a fast moving... page turner," and the "best book yet written on the saga."

The "Wall Street Journal" wrote, when reviewing his "Indian Wars: The Campaign for the American West," that Yenne writes with "cinematic vividness," and says of his work that it "has the rare quality of being both an excellent reference work and a pleasure to read."

The author lives in San Francisco, California, and on the web at www.BillYenne.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Flying High, March 23, 2007

By 

Jeffrey Teich (Evanston IL) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The American Aircraft Factory in World War II (Hardcover)

Some years ago I had the opportunity to interview a group of older women. I asked each of them what had been the best time of their lives. They all responded alike: the war years. Men, dances, and work, they said, and giggled with the rush of memory. The war created the first real optimism in a generation. The war banished the world-weariness of the twenties and swept away the pervasive hopelessness of the Depression. There was work. There was purpose. Those powerful emotions show palpably in the photographs of this excellent volume.

While the author culled most of these selections, many in color, from publicity photos and noted collections of World War II memorabilia, there is no denying his knack of choosing prints which convey the sense of busyness. Women in neat kerchiefs and housedresses- not many jeans here-and a few men insert bolts into Plexiglas or weld the naked frames of bombers. Energy colors the faces of drill press operators and riveters, engine inspectors and metal polishers. One particularly excellent photo shows three women dizzily framed in the receding cross-section of a B-17. Another, echoing Raphael's Madonna of the Chair, offers a woman encircled by the interior of a nacelle. Rows of lights reflecting off aluminum and plastic and the very groundplans of the factories themselves add a dynamic geometric dimension to many of the selections. All the illustrations represent multiple themes both artistic and historical.

The planemaker's art had also come a long way in a few years. Mr. Yenne thoughtfully documents the development of aircraft building techniques and gives us some priceless views of the early factories and their picturesque founders. I have only one complaint. Absent is the great Howard Hughes who, I believe, is still the only fixed wing test pilot to wear a fedora. Igor Sikorski also donned this headgear to take the VS-300 on its first flight.

I see no point in enumerating all the types of aircraft represented in this work. Liberators, Mustangs, Fortresses, Avengers, Texans. They are all here. Some masses of longerons and bulkheads too raw to name, others being pushed by many hands onto the tarmac. There are roomfuls of props and engines and parts of all sorts, lines of bombers waiting to mate with their engines, turrets wanting guns. And everywhere in the distant background read the words of war. Buy Bonds, We Can't Win Without Them, Keep`Em Flying. How different from a sign appearing on a Naval Aircraft Factory gate in 1918:

"Spanish flu has endangered the prosecution of the war in Europe.... Don't spit."

Mr. Yenne has produced a wonderful volume. Nothing to spit at here.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An eye-catching, outstanding production results., November 6, 2006

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The American Aircraft Factory in World War II (Hardcover)

There are plenty of visual treatments of the battles of World War II, but relatively few covering the underlying military support systems at home. The American Aircraft Factory in World War II fills this gap, covering the history, work, and production efforts of military aircraft factories across the country that contributed greatly to the success of soldiers. This was a major manufacturing shift which changed the business and military face of America: chapters document the production of fighters by manufacturers using new and converted factories alike, and even pack in fifty unusual color photos new to print, here. An eye-catching, outstanding production results.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a winner, March 23, 2007

By 

D. Minder (Mitchell, SD, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The American Aircraft Factory in World War II (Hardcover)

I couldn't have been happier. This book does an outstanding job of telling the story of building aircraft in World War II. I was at an age -- at that time -- when I soaked up everything I could find about our war planes. The book filled a lot of blanks for me.