Some Future Titles of Interest for SPF Members

hesham said:
Hi,

how we forget this idea;

Germany Secret Projects Post WWII.

There have been (at least) two Germanies after WWII. Actually - three :cool:
And we also could count works of German-borne scientists and designers in other countries of the world - from Tank in India to Baade in USSR.
And many others, talented as well, in UK, USA, France etc.
 
CJGibson said:
I can only assume:

FRG
DDR
Post-unification

Thank you, that's my point.
I would add another important item to my list - German's cooperation in European programs.
The thing, that virtually non-existent prior to 1945.
 
Hi all,

I meant the secret aircraft and Projects developed in Germany.
 
I didn't buy the Thor book, but it did look very good, but I might just have to make space on the bookshelves for this one.
 
out next month:
Blue Streak: Britain’s Medium Range Ballistic Missile (by John Boyes)
(https://www.fonthill.media/products/blue-streak-britain-s-medium-range-ballistic-missile)
the same author also wrote a book on the Thor missile.


I'm halfway through this book. It's a good overview of the history of the Blue Streak and Skybolt programs, with half the book dedicated to each. It explains the political situation, and goes into some detail on site selection, the underground silo design and the nuclear weapons development that would provide the warhead. This is well-written and informative.

What's missing is any technical detail on the missiles themselves. The rocket motors are mentioned briefly, but nothing at all about the design process, construction details, systems etc. There are a few drawings (mostly side views), but none of them are dimensioned. Drawings of the launch silo are reproduced at tiny sizes so you need a magnifier to read the captions. I had hoped for more, it feels to me part of the story is missing.
 
What is needed is a book about German research in the occupied countries during the war, and the Bohemia-Moravia Protectorate in particular. Little is known about Brno University in English.
 
out next month:
Blue Streak: Britain’s Medium Range Ballistic Missile (by John Boyes)
(https://www.fonthill.media/products/blue-streak-britain-s-medium-range-ballistic-missile)
the same author also wrote a book on the Thor missile.


I'm halfway through this book. It's a good overview of the history of the Blue Streak and Skybolt programs, with half the book dedicated to each. It explains the political situation, and goes into some detail on site selection, the underground silo design and the nuclear weapons development that would provide the warhead. This is well-written and informative.

What's missing is any technical detail on the missiles themselves. The rocket motors are mentioned briefly, but nothing at all about the design process, construction details, systems etc. There are a few drawings (mostly side views), but none of them are dimensioned. Drawings of the launch silo are reproduced at tiny sizes so you need a magnifier to read the captions. I had hoped for more, it feels to me part of the story is missing.


Thanks for the review - I have been thinking of buying as well.
 
Hi,

I hope my dear Tony Butler adopt this two ideas;

- Western Secret Projects ; Hypersonic Aircraft
- Western Secret Projects : VTOL,V/STOL & STOL Aircraft
 
9781910809402.JPG


9781906537555.JPG

 
Thank you very much for those examples, Justo, brightened up the day.
 
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soviet secret project (Bartini, Korolev, Iljushin, Tupoljev, Mikoyan, Bereznyak ..... )
 
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Some new items on Amazon.co.uk (sorry if any have already been covered) ;






And, finally, something from some "fly-by-night" ;)


.
 
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Some new items on Amazon.co.uk (sorry if any have already been covered) ;






And, finally, something from some "fly-by-night" ;)


.

I'm glad to see that Osprey's "X-Planes" series is progressing. I don't recall anything ever written specifically about the YB-40 and XB-41.
 
After a longer time in doing research in the history of science and history of economics I had the oppurtunity to do some works on avition history related themes. One "byproduct" of it is this short "book" (just 58 pages). It´s context is the transocean flight of Köhl von Hünefeld and Fitzmaurice from Ireland to America in April 1928. But it´s about the political and societal implications, which I examined on the welcome festivities, the three flyers got in New York and Berlin (tickertape Parades, welcome speeches etc.). I had the oppurtunity to use some sources, which were previously unnotice: files, fotografs and films mostly from the NYMA and the Berlin MA (but also from others too). It should be out in a few days.

Völkerverständigung_oder_Luftgeltung_U3.JPG
 
It's not a forthcoming book, rather one I stumbled across in a Half-Price Books, but Two Roads to War, Development of the French and British Air Arms From Versailles to Dunkirk is a fascinating read in that it looks not just at technological preparedness but the various political and societal forces affecting both forces development and support during this period. It is a touch dry reading, but I still found it quite interesting and very, very informative.

I should note that it is published by the Naval Institute Press if you wish to find it that way.
 
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Britain and the Bomb
Paperback – 9 Sep 2019
by W. J. Nuttall (Author), Rt Hon Lord Owen (Foreword)
Britain and the Bomb tells one of the great British stories from the Cold War - the transition of the nuclear deterrent from the Royal Air Force to the Royal Navy. The author draws upon insights from the laboratories, the military, popular culture and from politicians to make sense of a complex time and to challenge some widely-held perceptions that Britain in the 1960s lost her technical ambition and ability.

Edit: finished the book.

Overview of book contents:
chapter 1-4: development of the deterrent 1945-1960. V-force, Blue Streak, Blue Steel, and the ~1960 deterrent crisis (high-altitude bombers no longer viable, Blue Streak took too long to launch).
chapter 5-9: TSR.2 program origins, its possible role in the deterrent (despite being developed as a tactical aircraft first), and its cancellation. The F-111 option and its cancellation in 1968.
chapter 10: the deterrent from 1968: Polaris/Resolution SSBN and the Chevaline upgrade.
chapter 11-12: parallels with the current discussions on the replacement of Vanguard/Trident.

The author ties together a whole bunch of threads: The 1957 Defence White Paper, the TSR.2 cancellation, the end of the 'East of Suez' policy, and their connections to the nuclear deterrent. For instance, I hadn't realized that the 1968 cancellation of the F-111 option was to do with the cost of the Polaris/Resolution programme.

The book focuses on the political side of the story more than on the technical. You'll find many quotes from books we're familiar with (Project Cancelled, British Secret Projects and various TSR.2 books. Roland Beamont), plus info from government archives, memoirs etc.

From the first chapter:

This book is written to help the British people understand the issues involved in this important contemporary political decision...is also intended to help the British to consider their place in the world. The two issues of strategic nuclear weapons and Britain's place in the world are intimately connected, but remain separate.

Many recent government records on the deterrent are still classified. The author has looked at the 1960s situation because from that era, more unclassified material is available.
 
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This one appears to be a political broadside. Presidents come and go but national security is forever. The authors may be unaware of The Art of War by Sun Tzu, 5 B.C.
 

This one appears to be a political broadside. Presidents come and go but national security is forever. The authors may be unaware of The Art of War by Sun Tzu, 5 B.C.
I’ve corresponded with a couple of chapter authors and have always found them thoughtful in their approach and argument on the pro-modernization side.
 
I suggest: Militarizing Outer Space: Astroculture, Dystopia and the Cold War (Palgrave Studies in the History of Science and Technology), scheduled for 10 July.

 

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