Customer Reviews

Secret Projects: Flying Wings and Tailless Aircraft

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

 

 

Yet another in Midland's great series, but this one is different because it deals with an aircraft type and not just a single country. Somewhat briefer than companion volumes, and undoubtedly a bit repetitious in some cases, but still a nice gathering of information. There are more photos of actual aircraft and fewer CGI images, though the cover painting of B-49s under attack by Soviet tailless fighters is remarkable. Recommended, if you like this sort of thing.

A first class well researched and well written book, excellent drawings, a good selection of photographs, and as you can always guarantee with any book written by Bill Rose, intelligent and detailed text.
I highly recommend this most excellent book to all.

I found more than a few aircraft in this book that I didn't know about. The authors obviously did their research, and in the process showed that aircraft designers have been quite ingenius in their attempts to design and build mission-specific aircraft.

This is an interesting and useful broad brush summary of tailless and flying wing designs. For the purpose of the book tailless seems to be defined in such a way as to exclude delta wing aircraft. Thus types such as the Avro Vulcan, Concorde, Convair B-58, F-102, F-106, and the various Dassault Mirages are not covered. However, the boundary between tailless and delta is rather vague as the Douglas F4D is described as tailless, although it seems as close to delta as the Vulcan or Concorde. Author Rose recognizes the problem and errors on the side of inclusiveness.

The book is divided into six chapters. One chapter each is devoted to British, German, and Soviet designs. Three chapters are devoted to US designs divided chronologically: pre-1950, 1950-1990, and after 1990. It's hard to tell how much original research went into each chapter. There are certainly a lot of designs which I've never heard of. On the other hand the German chapter seems to be a rehash of previously published works. There is no bibliography.

I had several problems with the book. The author really doesn't ever come to grips with why tailless and flying wing configurations have been so attractive to certain designers despite the fact that only four types described - the Messerschmitt Me 163, the Douglas F4D, the Vought F7U, and Northrop B-2 - ever entered regular service. Rose doesn't really seem conversant with the technical challenges and promises of the configurations. He also uses terms incorrectly. The term lifting body is used when lifting fuselage is meant.

Rose also buys into the myth that German designs developed in the last year of the war heavily influenced post war designs of the Allies. Actually the German technology that was the most influential were developed in the early war years or even prewar, te Type XXI submarine, various jet engines, the A-4 (V-2) rocket, various tanks, etc. Designs developed when defeat was staring Germany in the face were wildly unrealistic and undeveloped and had virtually no influence.

Rose also overstates the influence of the Horten brothers. The Allies did not think highly of them. Rose also repeats the spurious Gotha Go 229 designation when it has been established that it was Horten Ho 229.

All in all, a useful book but hardly definitive which can be said of most books in this series. But if you've liked the other books in this series you'll want to read this one also.