Jane's Fighter Combat in the Jet Age (Jane's Air War, 1) (Hardcover)

by David C. Isby (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Fighter Combat in the Jet Age covers the entire history of jet fighters in action, from the end of World War II to the present. Meticulously detailed, it features 300 photos, line drawings and graphs that reveal how jet fighters and their weapons have developed and improved, utterly changing the face of air combat. It also focuses on the key technological developments of the Cold War, such as the fighters built to intercept nuclear bombers and to dominate European skies in a Third World War.

With combat examples from Southeast Asia, the Falklands and the Middle East, Fighter Combat in the Jet Age compares and contrasts the fighter aircraft of different nations and manufacturers. Also included are spreads with sidebars and boxes describing fighter tactics, major air battles, experimental weapons and famous pilots. It's enough to thrill aircraft enthusiasts of all ages.

From the Publisher
Fighter Combat in the Jet Age covers the entire history of jet fighters in action, from the end of World War II to the present. Meticulously detailed, it features 300 photos, line drawings and graphs that reveal how jet fighters and their weapons have developed and improved, utterly changing the face of air combat. It also focuses on the key technological developments of the Cold War, such as the fighters built to intercept nuclear bombers and to dominate European skies in a Third World War.

With combat examples from Southeast Asia, the Falklands and the Middle East, Fighter Combat in the Jet Age compares and contrasts the fighter aircraft of different nations and manufacturers. Also included are spreads with sidebars and boxes describing fighter tactics, major air battles, experimental weapons and famous pilots. It's enough to thrill aircraft enthusiasts of all ages.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Collins Reference; 2nd edition (June 6, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0004708229
• ISBN-13: 978-0004708225
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,074,758 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Factual account of the jet age, May 19, 2000

By	Brian (Ohio) - See all my reviews

I am a young plane enthusiast and I found this book very well written and informative. It takes the form of chapters which each cover a certain era(WW2, Korean War, Vietnam, etc). These chapters each have great stories in them, while at the same time they present great facts that are hard to find anywhere else. It is very interesting and will keep you on the edge of your seat/chair/whatever. I reccomend this book for anyone who is interested in planes at all, young or old.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very well written and documented book, January 5, 1999

By	James Qurashi "james_vf84" (St-Sulpice, Vaud Switzerland) - See all my reviews

After having opened this book I was very glad to see that the author had gone to no expense at collecting information of air battles and the tactics that derived from them. From the end of WWII until the Cold War era the book is rich in illustrations and historic facts. Most of this information is probably unknown to most aircraft enthusiasts. The comments and conclusions to the jet era and combat tactics that followed are more than well elaborated. Perhaps the slight downfall, the only one that is, seems that as from the Cold War to present day the book seems to have lost some of its momentum. There is less information concerning the Israelis numerous conflicts compared to the Korean or Vietnam era. However, in general this book has many outstanding photographs and is very well documented. One might add that this recommendable book deserves a very good place on any bookshelf.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Brief History of the Jet on Air Combat, May 5, 1998

By A Customer

The introduction of the combat jet has had a profound effect on how a battle is won or lost, and Mr. Isby has done a wonderful job of capturing the history of jet air combat from its roots in WW2 to the battlefields of the near future. Each chapter focuses on a particular topic, such as Cold War aircraft development, battle strategy, introduction of the missile and other technologies, and its application in a combat environment. This isn't a book about the aviation adventure - don't expect to get pulled into the cockpit very often. What you get is a very "readable" history of air combat since WW2, including some of the lesser known skirmishes. The book is chock-full of photographs (my favorite is the photo of the Argentinian Mirage buzzing the British destroyer in the Falklands War) and is printed on glossy paper. The more I read about air combat, the more I realize how much I learned from this book. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in military history and aviation.