Avions North American : livres - histoire et modèles

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.

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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.

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A-5 Vigilante (Pilot's Flight Operation Instructions)

North American's A-5 Vigilante served for nearly two decades as an all-weather supersonic strike aircraft and reconnaissance platform. An outgrowth of studies begun in 1953, the prototype first flew in 1958.
Originally designed to operate as a nuclear delivery system, the Vigilante was at the time of its introduction the largest and most complex aircraft to operate from a carrier.

Carrying a crew of two, the Vigilante was equipped with two General Electric J-79 turbojets, and utilized a single tailfin. It featured a high-mounted swept wing with aluminum-lithium alloy skins and no ailerons.
The Vigilante featured cutting-edge technology and was one of the first aircraft to use fly-by-wire systems and a heads-up display, as well as inertial navigation among other advanced systems. As a result of shifts within the Navy's nuclear strategy brought on by the advent of the nuclear ballistic missile submarine, the A-5 never served in a strategic role. Instead most were converted to the RA-5C reconnaissance platform.

Beginning in 1964, Vigilantes flew missions in Vietnam. Although extremely fast and maneuverable, the RA-5C's combat record was far from stellar. Difficult and expensive to maintain in the field, the Vigilante also compiled a dubious loss record. Out of 156 built, 18 aircraft were lost in combat and nine more succumbed to accidents during the Vietnam conflict.

After 1974, a phase out of the Vigilante began with smaller, less complex fighter aircraft taking on the recon role. The RA-5C was deployed for the last time in 1979.

Originally printed by the U.S. Air Force, this A-5A Vigilante 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.

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North American Aviation in the Jet Age (Vol. 1) - The California Years, 1945-1997

Dans les derniers jours de la Seconde Guerre mondiale, les forces américaines et soviétiques se sont lancées dans une course pour s'emparer de la technologie d'armement avancée allemande. Au cours des 25 années suivantes, North American Aviation (NAA) a transformé ces innovations en armes puissantes pour l'armée américaine.
Le F-86 Sabre, avec sa conception à aile en flèche, est devenu le seul chasseur allié capable de surpasser le MiG-15 soviétique pendant la guerre de Corée. L'avion-fusée X-15 a repoussé les limites du vol humain, atteignant les confins de l'espace et établissant des records de vitesse et d'altitude qui tiennent toujours.
Ce livre explore le développement de ces avions révolutionnaires et les ingénieurs qui les ont conçus, offrant un aperçu du rôle de NAA dans l'histoire de l'aviation et de l'espace aux États-Unis.

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North American Aviation in the Jet Age (Vol. 2) - The Columbus Years, 1941-1988

En 1941, alors que la Seconde Guerre mondiale menaçait les côtes américaines, le président Franklin D. Roosevelt a appelé à la création d'un "arsenal de la démocratie", exigeant la production de 50 000 avions de guerre par an. Pour atteindre cet objectif, de grandes usines d'avions étaient nécessaires, et Columbus, dans l'Ohio, est devenu un lieu clé.
L'usine de Columbus a d'abord abrité Curtiss-Wright, produisant des milliers de SB2C Helldivers. Pendant la guerre de Corée, North American Aviation (NAA) a pris le relais, fabriquant des avions de pointe, notamment les avions d'entraînement T-28 Trojan et T-2. La série FJ Fury de la Navy a complété le F-86 Sabre en combat aérien, tandis que l'OV-10 Bronco a été construit pour le soutien rapproché au Vietnam. Le Vigilante supersonique a présenté une technologie de pointe.
La production a pris fin en 1988 avec des sous-ensembles majeurs pour le bombardier stratégique Rockwell B-1B Lancer. Ce livre retrace l'histoire de l'usine de Columbus depuis sa construction en 1941 jusqu'à sa fermeture en 1988.

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North American T-28 Trojan (Pilot's Flight Operation Instructions)

Designed as a replacement for the T-6 Texan, North American's T-28 Trojan first flew in 1949 and remained in production until 1957. The T-28A was initially adopted as primary trainer by the U.S. Air Force, but it served in this capacity for less than a decade.
The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps found the T-28B/C model aircraft well suited to their needs, and continued to use it up until 1984, when it was replaced by the T-34C turboprop.

Despite its training designation, the T-28 flew in a combat role, perhaps most famously during the Vietnam conflict where Trojans performed close air support and counter-insurgency missions for the C.I.A. Modified attack trainer T-28D "Nomads" also flew for the French in Algeria.

Originally created by the U.S. Navy in 1962, this T-28B/C pilot's flight operating manual was required reading for pilots and trainees.
This high quality reproduction includes the original manual in its entirety, including information on carrier landing training and emergency procedures. It's a fascinating reference that puts you right in the cockpit of one of history's great planes.

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The B-45 Tornado - An Operational History of the First American Jet Bomber

The North American B-45 Tornado was America's first jet bomber and was used in a number of vital missions for nearly a decade. Drawing from declassified secret documents, this history explains the bomber's use in strategic reconnaissance and atomic-weapon strike missions from its 1944 development to its role in the Cold War.
The book includes numerous photographs and more than 100 interviews with pilots, navigators, and ground personnel.

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Twin Mustang: North American's P-82, F-82, and XP-82 Fighters (Legends of Warfare)

Developed during the Second World War, but too late to see combat, the Twin Mustang was created by the engineering team at North American Aviation to provide long-range escort for larger, slow bombers.
With the outbreak of the Korean Conflict, the Twin Mustangs were fortuitously positioned to provide immediate impact to the advantage of United Nations forces in the opening stages of the action.

Later, a record-breaking long-distance flight was accomplished by a single aircraft, and the type was found useful for testing numerous experimental designs, from ramjet bodies to the first air-to-air missile concepts. The plane was effective as a radar-toting night fighter, and it could also carry large bombs, rockets, extended-range fuel tanks, and an eight-gun nacelle, providing a substantial increase in machine gun firepower.

This book also details the amazing story of XP-82 44-83887, from test bed use, to a landing accident and disposal, to its discovery and restoration to flying status.

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Twin Mustang: the North America F-82 at War - Rare photographs from Wartime Archives (Images of War)

One of the most unusual and remarkable American fighter aircraft, the F-82 Twin Mustang was the last mass production propeller-driven fighter acquired by the U.S. Air Force. Originally intended as a very long-range fighter escort for the Boeing B-29 Superfortress during World War II, it arrived too late to see combat and evolved into a night and all-weather fighter during the post-war years. Combat operations in the Korean War followed, along with a host of other dynamic episodes of deployment.
This work traces the developmental, operational, and combat history of this unique American fighter and features 120 photographs and illustrations, many of which have never been published before.

Seven chapters, all extensively illustrated, cover the aircraft's development, descriptions of the variants and sub-types, details of initial entry into service, three chapters covering the F-82's service in the Korean War, and a final chapter detailing the type's removal from the Korean War Theatre in February 1952, to see out its operational days in the Alaskan Air Defence Command.
An appendix section follows, featuring tables of the different variants, an illustrated list of known nose art applied to F-82s, and an entry of losses suffered in the Korean War.

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