Customer Reviews

The Encyclopedia of Modern Aircraft: From Civilian Airliners to Military Superfighters

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The retirement of the F-14 Tomcat prompted me to buy this book. At one time, aviation fascinated me but I've been away for a while. Things have changed a little. The Tomcat retired?? A "Boeing" F-15. (Boeing?! It's McDonnell-Douglas you young upstarts!) Anyway... The book was published this year so it holds the promise of being reasonably up to date. Having had the opportunity to browse through it a few times this is what I see. No coverage of helicopters or other rotary wings. The V-22 Osprey is not here. No civilian light aircraft. No Pipers, Cessnas or Beeches (some of the military versions are, however). The SR-71 Blackbird and the Concorde are notable absentees. Some former Soviet airliners aren't here.
The book is organized mostly by function and, then, by time frame subsections. Therefore you'll find different versions of the same aircraft in different places. I'd have to recheck but I think I counted five different articles for the C-130 Hercules (for example) each regarding a different function; i.e. older variants, newer variants, gunships, "trash-haulers" and naval versions. It can get a little annoying to have to flip back and forth from one article to the other looking for a sense of time line continuity.
Still, I give it four stars despite my carping. There's about 450 pages to go through and it's a big, heavy book. There's still alot of stuff in this book. There isn't alot of open, white space here. Now, the intense enthusiast might find the book too simple or too idiosyncratic in layout. I'm just not the "train spotter" kind anymore so the book seems to work for me. Hey, it's only $30. Were you expecting a "Janes All the World..."?

One of the most up-to-date books on civil and military aviation that I've been able to find on the market. Each entry is well illustrated,layed out well, clear and consice. My only gripe is that instead of multiple redundant entries for updated versions of the aircraft, one lone entry covering all versions of the aircraft would have been preferable.

I work for the USAF, and I use this book on a frequent basis for reference material. The pictures and facts of each aircraft are very helpful during this reference in my current job. Anybody that likes aviation should get a kick out of this book.

I bought this book for my boyfriend who is a fighter plane pilot. I never had much of an idea what a good book for him would be but Amazon.com surely have treasureable books coz when he received this Modern Aircraft encyclopedia, my Oh My! He absolutely loved it and gave me one sweet tight hug! The book was fully colored and the pictures were amazing.And the best thing about it according to my boyfriend is the Unexpectedly amazing info and content. Up until now, his colleagues envy him for such an amazing reference. Thank you Amazon.com!

Jim Winchester edits ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MODERN AIRCRAFT FROM CIVILIAN AIRLINERS TO MILITARY SUPERFIGHTERS, using the same extensive format and packing in over 300 military and civil aircraft in service around the world. Color photos pack presentations that include specs, history, and many technical details. A top reference pick promising lasting value.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

this book is good , okie its good , but the problem is its one of its kind ..so comparison is real tough, I like the way this book lists the airplanes but i feel many super modern aircraft and futuristic airplanes are missing , this book is a good read but u cannot drool over it for years , I feel this book is a good buy for may be half the price or used as i would prefer reading about modern aircraft on aircraftcompare