North American T-6 Texan / Harvard: books - history

Pilot Maker - The Incredible T6

Nort American Harvard, Texan, J-Bird, T-6, whatever name you gave the aircraft, it was the right plane, in the right place, at the right time. One of the most important aircraft to emerge from the 1930s, it proved to be an excellent training machine for fledgling pilots throughout the world.

So adaptable was the design that it was used to teach carrier landings, aerial fixed gunnery, glide bombing, flexible hand-held gunnery, aerial photography, instrument flying & advanced military flying. It was safe, reliable, challenging and a perfect machine for transition from elementary trainers to the front-line P-40s, P-51s & similar "hot ships" of the period.

For more than twenty years it taught American military pilots to fly & it still serves today with the air forces of several nations. "Pilot Maker" by Jeff Ethell & Walt Ohlrich documents for the first time, the fascinating story of this important aircraft.

North American T-6 Texan

At the beginning of the 1930s, North American Aviation designed one of the most popular aircraft of all time, the T-6 Texan. Over 24,404 planes in 260 versions and variants were produced. This WWII vintage, propeller-driven aircraft is covered in its various forms and uses, including combat and training. Detailed specifications, unit insignia, and historical and present-day photographs are provided.