Customer Reviews

Ultimate Aircraft

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For the committed aircraft enthusiast, you just won't find a more valuable reference source for fascinating information about the evolution of aircraft and the pioneers who gave humans wings.

Ultimate Aircraft charts every main step from the first experimental gliders to the high-powered supersonic jets and the high-capacity airliners of today. If you have ever watched the Blue Angels flying overhead while floating in the ocean, you will know why an aircraft could get your attention. I have seen the Blue Angels flying a few times and I am always amazed at their precise flying and talent.

This book includes an extensive biographical section which profiles the major designers, engineers and pilots who have changed the fact of transportation around the globe. You will read about the Wright brothers and Chuck Yeager. There is a comprehensive glossary which defines terms such as: Flutter, Ballonet, Dope, Lateral Control, etc. The Index provides instant access to many topics.

The first part of the book reveals the history of aircraft, the second part is a visual gallery of aircraft and the book ends with an extensive section on Aviation Innovators. Page 110-111 is quite fun and page 111 folds out to show the Boeing B-52G in detail. Page 140 shows a Northrop Grumman proposal for an Uninhabited Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) which looks like an alien ship to me!

On some of the pages a small box has all the specification for the aircraft being discussed. The pictures are stunning and you will soon decide on your favorite plane.

Philip Jarret was the assistant editor of Aeroplane Monthly magazine. He is now a freelance writer and editor, and has produced countless articles on a wide variety of aeronautical subjects. He also lectures on aviation topics. He is also the author of Icarus: Percy Pilcher and the Quest for Flight and is also currently series editor for the Putman History of Aircraft volumes. Other books in this Ultimate series include: Ultimate Harley-Davidson and Ultimate Train.

A definitive reference to aviation history! This book makes me want to go watch Top Gun! Perhaps play the music in the background while you read. My husband is threatening to take me parachute gliding, who knows...I might just do it. So, if you never hear from me again....:).

~The Rebecca Review

Colorful, big, jammed full of photos. I find this book fascinating. I do wish that the book had mentioned Clarence "Kelly" Johnson Kelly: More Than My Share of It All given his remarkable number of aeronautical engineering accomplishments. Overall, however, the book does a good job recollecting the early days of flight and the astonishingly swift development of aircraft. Some of the photos of aircraft from the 1920s and 1930s are amazing -- truly weird designs. I have my copy of this book in my vehicle, so when I have to wait to pick up my kids from school I can leaf through it. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

This is a beautiful book, filled with tons of gorgeous photography. My son will sit quietly & look at it for long periods of time. There is also information about the planes that I'm sure he'll appreciate when he's a little older. Its a hardback book & worth the price - we will have it for a long time.

I purchased this book for a Christmas present for my husband who loves anything about aircraft. I asked how he likes the book so far as he just started reading it. He says it is a good book. Very interesting, very comprehensive. There was a specific reference to a Grosvenor aircraft, which my husband was very surprised to see in the book.

I bought this book as a gift for my Dad, a lifelong aviator. The large format pages feature full-color illutrations and comprehensive text. The book covers aircraft dating back to the Wright brothers and forward to the present. Many hours of reading and perusing pleasure are provided by this high-quality book.