Kategoria BISAC: History >> Military - Aviation & Space

The little-known American Balloon Service worked in combat to help direct artillery fire more accurately and provide essential intelligence on enemy troop movements during World War I. German use of observation balloons to direct artillery fire in August of 1914 forced the Allies to develop a similar force. With the U.S. entry into the war in 1917, the balloon service, starting from scratch, evolved into an effective, disciplined fighting unit, whose achievements are unfortunately overshadowed by those of the flying aces. Reminiscences from balloon veterans form the basis of this book, the...

"Military Aircraft, Origins to 1918: An Illustrated History of Their Impact" is a detailed, authoritative exploration of the role and development of military aviation, from its beginnings to the conclusion of World War I. Military history scholar Justin Murphy carefully illustrates the impact of aircraft on military warfare, examines the different types of aircraft, and includes a wealth of photographs and descriptions.

Organized thematically, the work covers everything from the origins of military aviation and the impact of aircraft on World War I to the role of reconnaissance...

This work analyzes the evolution of the U.S. strategic air force from 1945 to 1955. As commander of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) from 1948 through 1955, Curtis LeMay shaped U.S. strategic forces to survive the new world. He insisted that the Air Force have access to atomic energy information for strategic planning. He struggled to find, promote, and retain the most qualified pilots and support personnel in the Air Force. This work describes the evolution of Air Force strategic forces, describes the importance of personnel to the SAC mission and how LeMay addressed the problem, examines...

"Military Aircraft, 1919-1945: An Illustrated History of Their Impact" covers a crucial era in modern warfare technology. Ranging from the development of airpower doctrines in the aftermath of World War I to the aircraft and missions that put those doctrines into action during World War II, it provides an expert summing-up of the decades when the use of aircraft in battle came of age.

In chapters covering both the history of air power and specific types of aircraft (fighters, bombers, reconnaissance and auxiliary planes), "Military Aircraft, 1919-1945" introduces key theorists and...

"Helicopters: An Illustrated History of Their Impact" covers the development of helicopters from a concept in Leonardo daVinci's mind to the first successful machines in the early 1900s to the latest tilt-rotor designs. Time and again, in a story of constant innovation, designers answered the concerns of military planners with more maneuverable, more capable rotorcraft.

With expert analysis and specific details of every significant model ever used, "Helicopters" shows how these once denigrated machines became essential to a variety of missions (reconnaissance, transport, attack,...

"The United States Air Force: A Chronology" captures the sweep of U.S. Air Force history from the service's inception to present times. Concise entries, arranged by date, touch upon military events such as victories and defeats; significant political, administrative, and technological changes affecting the service; and significant events in the careers of noted leaders. Daily occurrences are described within the context of greater historical events such as wars.

The chronology covers all aspects of the U.S. Air Force and its historical antecedents (U.S. Air Service, Army Air Corps, and...

In 1960 the Republic of Congo teetered near collapse as its first government struggled to cope with civil unrest and mutinous armed forces. When the UN established what would become the largest peacekeeping operation of the Cold War, the Canadian government faced a difficult decision. Should it support the intervention?

As Kevin Spooner demonstrates, Canada's involvement in the mission was not preordained. The Diefenbaker government became enmeshed in a complex web of foreign and defence policy determinants that caused it to have immediate and ongoing reservations -- reservations...