Out Now: The Big Book of USAF X-Bombers and X-Fighters

I hope you do have those photos of L-133. Yes, I'll include F-107A variations. Cheers! -SP

Here's the final contents:

Contents

Dedication
Acknowledgments
Foreword by Walter J. Boyne
Introduction
01 – “Fire them up!”
Bell P-59 Airacomet
XP-59A and YP-59A
Sidebar 01-1: Lockheed L-133 and L-1000
Lockheed P/F-80 Shooting Star
XP-80, XP-80A, YP-80A, XP-80B (P-80R), XFP-80 (XF-14) and XFP-80A
Convair P-81
XP-81 and YP-81
Bell P-83
XP-83
Northrop P-79
XP-79, XP-79B, MX-324 and MX-334
Sidebar 01-2: MX-324 and MX-334 Ground Runs and Flight Dates
Republic P/F-84 Thunderjet
XP-84, XP-84A and YP-84A
YF-84 (YF-96) Thundersteak
YF-84J “Thundersteak II”
YRF-84F Thunderflash
XF-84H “Thunderscreech”
Sidebar 01-3: Special F-84 Projects – Tip Tow, FICON and Tom-Tom
Douglas B-43 “Jetmaster”
XB-43
Sidebar 01-4: Douglas XB-42A
02 – Growing Pains
North American B-45 Tornado
XB-45
Convair B-46
XB-46 (XA-44)
Martin B-48
XB-48
North American P/F-86 Sabre
XP/XF-86 and YF-86A
YP-86C (YF-93A)
YF-86D (YF-95A)
YF-86H
YF-86K
Northrop B-49
YB-49 and YRB-49A
Boeing B-47 Stratojet
XB-47
YB-47C (YB-56A)
YB-47D
Curtiss P/F-87 Blackhawk
XP/XF-87 (XA-43)
Northrop P/F-89 Scorpion
XP/XF-89
YF-89A
YF-89D
YF-89E
YF-89F
YF-89H
McDonnell P/F-85 Goblin
XP/XF-85
Convair P/F-92 “Dart”
XP-92 “Dart”
XF-92A
03 – “More’s the pity”
McDonnell P/F-88 Voodoo
XP/XF-88
XF-88A
XF-88B
Lockheed F-94 Starfire
YF-94
YF-94A
YF-94B
YF-94C (YF-97)
YF-94D
Convair B-53
XB-53 (XA-44)
Republic F-91 Thunderceptor
XP/XF-91
XF-91A
XF-91B
Martin B-51
XB-51 (XA-45)
Lockheed P/F-90
XP/XF-90
XF-90A
North American F-93
YF-93A (YP-86C)
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
XB-52
YB-52
XRB-52
Boeing B-55
XB-55
Convair B-60
YB-60
Martin B-57 Canberra
B-57A
Douglas B-66 Destroyer
B-66A and RB-66A
Sidebar 3-1: The B for Bomber Missile and Rocket Fiasco
04 – Century Series
Sidebar 04-1: What Happened to the F-95, F-96, F-97, F-98 and F-99 Fighter Aircraft?
North American F-100 Super Sabre
YF-100
McDonnell F-101 Voodoo
F-101A
F-101B
Convair F-102 Delta Dagger
YF-102 and YF-102A
F-102B (F-106A)
YF-102C
F-102X
Sidebar 4-2: The MX-1554 “1954 Interceptor” Competition
Lockheed F-104 Starfighter
XF-104 and YF-104A
Sidebar 4-3: The Lockheed NF-104A
Sidebar 4-4: The Lockheed X-27 Lancer
Republic F-105 Thunderchief
YF-105A
YF-105B
Convair F-106 Delta Dart
F-106A (F-102B)
North American F-107
F-100B (F-107A)
F-107A
05 – Propulsive Systems
Aerojet Engine Corporation
XCAL-200
XCAL-2000
Allis-Chalmers
J36 (de Havilland Halford H.1B Goblin)
Allison
J31
J33
J35
J71
XT31
XT38
XT40
Curtiss-Wright
XLR27
Garrett AiResearch
F104
General Electric Aircraft Engines
I-A
J31
J33
J35
J47
J53
J73
J79
J85
J93
YJ101
F110
F118
F120
F-136
F404
Lockheed Aircraft Corporation J37
XJ37 (L-1000)
Northrop-Hendy
XT37
Packard Motor Car Company
V-1650
Pratt and Whitney Aircraft
J48
J57
J58
J75
JT15D
F-100
F119
F135
TF-30
TF33
Reaction Motors
XLR11
Westinghouse Electric
J30
J34
J40
J46
Wright Aeronautical
YJ67/XRJ55
T35
T47
T49
06 – Supersonic Wonders and Doublesonic Sensations
Martin B-68
XB-68
Convair B-58 Hustler
B-58A and RB-58A
Boeing B-59
XB-59
Bell “YF-109”
“YF-109” (D-188A)
McDonnell F-4 Phantom II
YF-4C (F-110A “Spectre”)
YRF-4C (YRF-110A)
YF-4E Phantom II
Sidebar 06-1: Northrop Fang
Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighter
N-156F
YF-5A (N-156C)
F-5A-21
YF-5B-21
General Dynamics F-111
F-111A
FB-111A Aardvark
FB-111H
Sidebar 06-2: What Happened to the F-112 to F-116 and the F-118 Designated Fighter Aircraft?
07 – Triplesonic Marvels
Republic F-103
XF-103
North American F-108 Rapier
XF-108 and F-108A
Lockheed F-12
YF-12A (AF-12)
F-12B
YF-12C
North American B-70 Valkyrie
XB-70 and XB-70A
YB-70B
XRB-70
XRS-70
Sidebar 07-1: Some Interesting Proposals
Boeing 712 LRI
Chance Vought V-371 High Performance “1954 Interceptor”
Chance Vought V-386 Strategic Fighter
Chance Vought V-391 LRI
Convair Model 8 Series
Douglas 1355 LRI
McDonnell 109A/B, 110A/B and 111A
Northrop N-132 Strategic Fighter
Northrop N-144 LRI
Northrop N-149 LRI with XJ79 engines
Northrop N-164 LRI (Preliminary Design Drawing P.D. 2689)
Northrop N-167 LRI mockup
Northrop N-167A LRI 1/10th scale wind tunnel model
Northrop N-176 MRI
Northrop N-184 MRI Lightweight
North American NAR-349 IMI “Retaliator”
Republic AP-75 LRI
08 – Advancing the State-of-the-Art
McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle
F-15A and TF-15A (F-15B) Eagle
Boeing (McDonnell Douglas) F-15E Strike Eagle
Boeing F-15SE Silent Eagle
General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon
YF-16
F-16XL
Northrop F-17 “Cobra”
YF-17
Sidebar 8-1: Lightweight Fighter Designs from Lockheed
Rockwell B-1
B-1A
Northrop F-20 Tigershark
F-20A (F-5G)
Boeing B-1 Lancer
B-1B
B-1R
09 – Stealth Bombers and Fighters
Sidebar 09-1: Lockheed Have Blue
Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk
YF-117A
Sidebar 09-2: What happened to the F-19?
Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit
B-2A
Sidebar 09-3: Northrop Tacit Blue
Lockheed/Boeing/General Dynamics F-22 “Lightning II”
YF-22
Northrop/McDonnell Douglas F-23 “Black Widow II”/“Gray Ghost”
YF-23
FB-23
Sidebar 09-4: Boeing Bird of Prey
Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
F-22A
F/A-22A
F-22B Raptor
FB-22 (X-44 MANTA)
Sidebar 09-05: Boeing’s X-32A Joint Strike Fighter Prototype
Sidebar 09-06: Lockheed’s X-35A Joint Strike Fighter Prototype
Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II
F-35A
Sidebar 09-07: What Happened to the F-24 Through F-34 Fighter Aircraft?
10 – Forthcoming Bomber and Fighter Aircraft
Forthcoming Bomber
Forthcoming Fighter
Sidebar 10-1: Occupied versus Unoccupied Bombers and Fighters
Conclusions
Timeline
Abbreviations and Acronyms
Bibliography and Sources
Index

Here's the final contents:

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Wow! Looks great.

Just a mini-question:

No FB-23 included?

A fantastic list, though I didn't see mention of the F-100B (the original designation of the F-107) or the proposed FB-111H.


But this book will definitely be worth waiting for!

Contents list has been modified to show F-100B, FB-111H, and FB-23 which will be included in the book. Thanks you two for pointing this error out to me. Somehow I had overlooked those aircraft. -SP

Steve,


I look forward to this book and don't want to muddy the waters, but are you familiar with The History of Big Safari by Bill Grimes?



Best,
Ed

First time I heard of it or him. My bad. -SP

This book looks very interesting and I will surely buy it: I have a question about it: there are three x-planes that may be relevant for fighter development and that are not there: x-31, x-36 and x-29. Even if they are purely expeerimental I would say the Bird of Prey was too. Would it be possible to still include them?

best
F_T

I can't wait!

ford_tempo said:

This book looks very interesting and I will surely buy it: I have a question about it: there are three x-planes that may be relevant for fighter development and that are not there: x-31, x-36 and x-29. Even if they are purely expeerimental I would say the Bird of Prey was too. Would it be possible to still include them?

best
F_T

Click to expand...

Bird of Prey is included as is Have Blue and Tacit Blue. I'm sorry but the X-29, X-31 and X-36 are not and will not be included. Publisher has allowed me only 100,000 words of text and I cannot include the aforementioned. -SP

What is the anticipated publication date as of now?

gatoraptor said:

What is the anticipated publication date as of now?

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My deadline is May 1, 2015 so I believe mid- to late-Summer. -SP

gatoraptor said:

What is the anticipated publication date as of now?

Click to expand...

I was just informed that the book is slated for release on 1 June 2016. -SP

We patiently

Several of you showed an interest in proof reading my manuscript. It's ready for evaluation. Please re-contact me on my regular email. -SP

The word "Complete" in the book title is mandatory since this book is in the Zenith Books' series of coffee table books entitled "The Complete Book Of".... I don't like the word "Complete" in the title because it is misleading but I cannot do anything about it. I'm under contract and I must comply. -SP

Steve Pace said:

The word "Complete" in the book title is mandatory since this book is in the Zenith Books' series of coffee table books entitled "The Complete Book Of".... I don't like the word "Complete" in the title because it is misleading but I cannot do anything about it. I'm under contract and I must comply. -SP

Click to expand...

Point well taken!!

Update:

The book has more than 600 photos/drawings and more than 128,000 words of text counting the photo captions. Most of the outstanding artworks have been provided by SPF members Giuseppe De Chiara (numerous) and Jozef Gatial. It is scheduled for release on 1 June 2016. I hope to post a cover shot and other details in the near future. -SP

Steve Pace said:

Update:

The book has more than 600 photos/drawings and more than 128,000 words of text counting the photo captions. Most of the outstanding artworks have been provided by SPF members Giuseppe De Chiara (numerous) and Jozef Gatial. It is scheduled for release on 1 June 2016. I hope to post a cover shot and other details in the near future. -SP

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I wanna to thank Steve for the opportunity to be a part of such wide and huge project.
Enclosed there is a small teaser of what all of you may find out inside the upcoming book.

You more than did your share, Giuseppe - Thank You! -SP

I have had the pleasure of reviewing the text and I will say that I am impressed and will definitely be purchasing this book when it's available. *chuckle* I learned a couple things about programs I worked on as well as a lot about programs before my time (way before my time in some cases ).

elmayerle said:

I have had the pleasure of reviewing the text and I will say that I am impressed and will definitely be purchasing this book when it's available. *chuckle* I learned a couple things about programs I worked on as well as a lot about programs before my time (way before my time in some cases ).

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Thanks so much, Evan! -SP

My argument with my publisher finally paid off. The word Complete in the title is now Big. -SP

Good for you!! That's definitely a more "honest" title. By whatever title, I'm quite looking forward to the book being available.

Steve Pace said:

My argument with my publisher finally paid off. The word Complete in the title is now Big. -SP

Click to expand...

Very good news, Steve!

Only about one-third through it and I've already learned a thing or two about programs which I thought I knew well enough...

Thanks you guys - your kind words mean everything! -SP

Another small teaser for the Steve's Big Book of USAF X Planes.


Ciao
Giuseppe

Your numerous artworks throughout the book, Giuseppe - some 60 of them, will only make it a much better aviation history reference with lots of eye candy. -SP

Steve Pace said:

Your numerous artworks throughout the book, Giuseppe - some 60 of them, will only make it a much better aviation history reference with lots of eye candy. -SP

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Thanks Steve I'm honoured to work with you as also for Zenith Press.

60 artworks of the finest calibre! Fantastic.

As someone who works in editorial at a fiction book publisher, but as a student of military aviation history as well, I'm hoping the publisher's goal was to avoid being criticized, say 6 months from now, when newly declassified, or worse, a collector of information, contacts him and says, you left out "this." And I really understand 'being under contract' for this or that reason.




Best,

Ed

It now has a cover. SP

Nice cover. Looking forward to this one.

Brilliant cover. Instant like!

Steve Pace said:

It now has a cover. SP

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Coooool.

Skyblazer said:

Brilliant cover. Instant like!

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They listened to me - the word COMPLETE has been replaced by BIG - much less suggestive of being a definitive work of which it could not be. -SP

And it's now listed on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Big-Book-X-Bombers-X-Fighters/dp/0760349509

Nice!!

Great cover

Here's the final Table of Contents:

Table of Contents
Foreword
Introduction
01: “Fire Them Up!”
Bell XP-59A, YP-59A Airacomet, and the XP-59B
Lockheed XP-80, XP-80A, YP-80A, XP-80B (P-80R), XFP-80 (XF-14), and XFP-80A Shooting Star
Convair XP-81 and YP-81 Silver Bullet
Bell XP-83
Northrop XP-79 and XP-79B
Republic XP-84, XP-84A and YP-84A Thunderjet, YF-84F (YF-96A) Thunderstreak, YF-84J Thundersteak II, YRF-84F Thunderflash, and XF-84H Thunderscreech
Douglas XB-43 and YB-43 Jetmaster
02: Trials and Tribulations
North American XB-45 Tornado
Convair XB-46 (XA-44) Needle
Martin XB-48
North American XP/XF-86, YF-86A, YP-86C, YF-86D (YF-95A), YF-86H, and YF-86K Sabre Jet
Northrop YB-49 and YRB-49A
Boeing XB-47, XB-47D, YB-47C (YB-56), YB-47F, YB-47J, YDB-47B, and YDB-47E Stratojet
Curtiss XP/XF-87 (XA-43) Blackhawk
Northrop XP/XF-89, YF-89A, YF-89D, YF-89E, YF-89F, and YF-89H Scorpion
McDonnell XP/XF-85 Goblin
Convair XP-92 and XP/XF-92A “Dart”
03: “More’s the Pity”
McDonnell XP/XF-88, XF-88A and XF-88B Voodoo
Lockheed YF-94, YF-94B, YF-94C (YF-97A) and YF-94D Starfire
Convair XB-53
Republic XP/XF-91, XF-91A and XF-91B Thunderceptor
Martin XB-51 (XA-45)
Lockheed XP/XF-90 and XF-90A
North American YF-93A (YP-86C)
Boeing XB-52, YB-52 and XRB-52 Stratofortress
Boeing XB-55
Convair YB-60
Martin B-57A Canberra
Douglas B-66A and RB-66A Destroyer
04: Century Series
North American YF-100 (“Sabre 45”), F-100B and F-100B (I) Super Sabre
McDonnell F-101A and F-101B Voodoo
Convair YF-102, YF-102A, F-102B (F-106A), YF-102C and F-102X Delta Dagger
Lockheed XF-104 and YF-104A Starfighter
Republic YF-105A and YF-105B Thunderchief
Convair F-106A Delta Dart
North American F-107A “Ultra Sabre”
05: Propulsive Systems
Aerojet Engine Corporation XCAL-200 and XCAL-2000A-1
Allis-Chalmers J36 (de Havilland Halford H.1B Goblin)
Allison J31, J33, J35, J71, XT31, XT38 and XT40
Curtiss-Wright XLR27
Garrett AiResearch F104
General Electric Aircraft Engines I-A, J31, J33, J35, J47, J53, J73, J79, J85, J87, J93, XNJ140, YJ101, F110, F118, F120, F-136, F404
Lockheed Aircraft Corporation XJ37 (TDN L-1000)
Northrop-Hendy XT37
Packard Motor Car Company V-1650
Pratt and Whitney Aircraft J48, J57, J58, J75, J91, JT15D, F-100, F119, F135, TF-30 and TF33
Reaction Motors XLR11
Westinghouse Electric J30, J34, J40 and J46
Wright Aeronautical YJ67/XRJ55, T35, T47 and T49
06: Supersonic Wonders and Doublesonic Sensations
Martin XB-68
Convair B-58A Hustler
Boeing XB-59
Convair Nuclear Powered Bomber Program
Bell “YF-109” (D-188A)
McDonnell YF-4C (F-110A “Spectre”), YRF-4C (YRF-110A) and YF-4E Phantom II
Northrop N-156F and YF-5A (N-156C) Freedom Fighter and YF-5B-21 (F-5E Tiger II)
General Dynamics F-111A, FB-111A Aardvark and FB-111H
07: Triplesonic Marvels
Republic XF-103
North American XF-108 Rapier
Lockheed YF-12A (AF-12), F-12B and YF-12C
North American XB-70 and XB-70A, YB-70B, XRB-70 and XRS-70 Valkyrie
Boeing 712 LRI
Chance Vought V-371 High Performance “1954 Interceptor”
Chance Vought V-386 Strategic Fighter
Chance Vought V-391 LRI
Convair Model 8 Series
Douglas 1355 LRI
Lockheed CL-915
Lockheed CL-1000 (F-X)
McDonnell 109A/B, 110A/B and 111A
Northrop N-132 Strategic Fighter
Northrop N-144 LRI
Northrop N-149 LRI with XJ79 engines
Northrop N-164 LRI (Preliminary Design Drawing P.D. 2689)
Northrop N-167 LRI mockup
Northrop N-167A LRI 1/10th scale wind tunnel model
Northrop N-176 MRI
Northrop N-184 MRI Lightweight
North American NAR-349 IMI “Retaliator”
Republic AP-75 LRI
08: Advancing the State-of-the-Art
McDonnell Douglas F-15A and TF-15A (F-15B) Eagle, Boeing (McDonnell Douglas) F-15E Strike Eagle and Boeing F-15SE Silent Eagle
General Dynamics YF-16 Fighting Falcon and the F-16XL
Northrop YF-17 “Cobra”
Rockwell B-1A
Northrop F-20A (F-5G) Tigershark
Boeing B-1B Lancer and the B-1R
09: Stealth Bombers and Fighters
Lockheed YF-117A Nighthawk
Northrop Grumman B-2A Spirit
Lockheed/Boeing/General Dynamics YF-22 “Lightning II”
Northrop/McDonnell Douglas YF-23 “Black Widow II”/”Gray Ghost” and the FB-23
Lockheed Martin F-22A and F/A-22A, F-22B Raptor and the FB-22 (X-44 MANTA)
Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II
10: Forthcoming Bomber and Fighter Aircraft Programs
The Long Range Strike Bomber
The Next Generation Air Dominance Fighter

Epilogue

Appendix A: Timeline
Appendix B: Abbreviations and Acronyms
Bibliography and Sources
Acknowledgments
Illustration Credits
Index