Convair B 58 Hustler Pilot S Flight Operating Instructions

En instruktionsbog (Flight Manual) for B-58 Hustler.

The USAF's first jet-powered bomber capable of reaching Mach 2.0, the Convair B-58 Hustler carried a crew of three and a nuclear payload. A complex aircraft, the B-58 suffered teething problems during development and became infamous for its maintenance requirements. It also compiled a dubious safety record: out of 116 Hustlers, 26 were lost in accidents. Nevertheless, the B-58's career spanned nearly a decade between 1960-70. It might have continued even longer, but Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara believed the aircraft, which was designed for high-speed, high-altitude tactical approach, was vulnerable to air-to-air missile attack. Its replacement the F-111A Aardvark would be designed to perform a low approach attack. Originally printed by the U.S. Air Force, this B-58A flight operating manual taught pilots everything they needed to know before entering the cockpit. Originally classified "Restricted", this manual was declassified long ago and is here reprinted in book form.

The largest piston-powered airplane ever mass-produced, Convair's B-36 "Peacemaker" was also the world's first thermonuclear bomber. The genesis of this behemoth can be traced to WWII, when U.S. planners determined that if the British were defeated, a very-long-range bomber would be needed to battle the Nazis. The prototype B-36 flew in 1946 and was quickly upgraded as the need for a bomber with a large lifting capacity - the early fission and later hydrogen bombs were both large and heavy - became paramount. Yet, when it entered active service in 1949, the "aluminum overcast" was already considered obsolete due to its four jet, six Wasp radial engine power-plant configuration. Nevertheless, nearly 400 B-36s were built and flew as strategic deterrents before the plane was retired in 1959. Originally printed by the U.S. Air Force, this Flight Operating Handbook is an authentic reprint of an original. Classified "Restricted," the manual was declassified and is here reprinted in book form. This affordable facsimile has been slightly reformatted. Some color images appear in black and white. Care has been taken to preserve the integrity of the text.

En instruktionsbog (Flight Manual) for B-36 Peacemaker.

The Boeing B-29 was one of the most sophisticated aircraft of WWII. It featured many innovations including guns that could be fired by remote control and pressurized crew compartments. It was also the heaviest production plane of the war with terrific range and bomb carrying capabilities. Carrying a crew of ten, the Superfortress devastated Japan in a series of gigantic raids in 1944-45. In the end it would be the B-29s "Enola Gay" and "Bock's Car" that dropped the atomic bombs and effectively ended the conflict. Originally printed by the United States Army Air Force in January of 1944, the B-29 Bomber Pilot's Flight Operating Manual taught pilots everything they needed to know about the "Superfort" Originally classified "Restricted," the manual was declassified long ago and is here reprinted in book form. This affordable facsimile has been reformatted, and color images appear as black and white. Care has been taken however to preserve the integrity of the text.

The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress was the first mass-produced, four-engine heavy bomber. The plane earned a reputation during WWII for its toughness and versatility. Originally printed by the Army Air Force, this B-17 Bomber Pilot's Flight Operating Manual taught pilots everything they needed to know about the "Queen of the Skies."

Flown by the American Volunteer Group in China known as the "Flying Tigers," the P-40 Warhawk earned a reputation for its toughness in combat. Facing odds of 6 to 1 in most combat situations, AVG pilots relied on their skill, daring and their aircraft's superior diving speed to achieve victory. By war's end the Tigers had destroyed more than 1200 Japanese planes, with another 700 listed as probables. Their own losses came to 573 aircraft. Originally printed by the U.S. Army Air Force for pilots transitioning to the P-40, this flight manual contains detailed information about one of history's great planes. Originally classified as "restricted," the manual was declassified long ago and is here reprinted in book form. Some color images appear in black and white, and some pages have been slightly reformatted. Care has been taken however to preserve the integrity of the text.

En instruktionsbog (Flight Manual) for F-102 Delta Dagger.