Pen & Sword Aviation is one of the company's largest imprints. By teaming up with some of the worlds leading aviation experts we are able to offer an unrivalled list of aviation publications. Many of our titles include stunning colour photographs and our colour profiles are now world renowned. We cover the first flights of early aviation pioneers right through to modern day conflicts and unmanned aircraft.
"In the early 1950s it was not unusual to see the high altitude contrails of USAF B-36s over England. 385 were built and, commonly dubbed "Six Turning, Four Burning" thanks to its six piston and four jet engines. The development of the B-36 is fully described and there is considerable coverage of the political issues including competition from the Northrop flying wing. We see the B-36 into services with SAC, and we well remember al those contrails over Britain in the 1950s as the B-36s flew over. This is a readable history..."
Aviation World - Spring 2025
"In the early 1950s it was not unusual to see the high altitude contrails of USAF B-36s over England. 385 were built and, commonly dubbed "Six Turning, Four Burning" thanks to its six piston and four jet engines. The development of the B-36 is fully described and there is considerable coverage of the political issues including competition from the Northrop flying wing. We see the B-36 into services with SAC, and we well remember al those contrails over Britain in the 1950s as the B-36s flew over. This is a readable history..."
Aviation World - Spring 2025
"...this book moves on to explore in detail the tactics and practical operational techniques developed by Spitfire pilots who soon re-wrote accepted pre-war methods. Key to Spitfire success was the training which was crucial with many new pilots arriving with few hours on type and with the Germans fielding the Me.109 and then the Fw190. Liberally infused with feedback from combat pilots, this is certainly a valuable and readable volume from a most reputable author."
Aviation World - Spring 2025
"...this book moves on to explore in detail the tactics and practical operational techniques developed by Spitfire pilots who soon re-wrote accepted pre-war methods. Key to Spitfire success was the training which was crucial with many new pilots arriving with few hours on type and with the Germans fielding the Me.109 and then the Fw190. Liberally infused with feedback from combat pilots, this is certainly a valuable and readable volume from a most reputable author."
Aviation World - Spring 2025
"Colin's book is an excellent collection of individual stories, and histories of the club's they qualified for, and I highly recommend it..."
Goldfish Club Newsletter - Winter 2024
"Colin's book is an excellent collection of individual stories, and histories of the club's they qualified for, and I highly recommend it..."
Goldfish Club Newsletter - Winter 2024
Well illustrated throughout with plenty of excellent colour photographs of all sorts of Hercules variants, in use by many operators around the world. From the drab greys of many modern examples, to the bright colours of 'Fat Albert', famously used to support the Blue Angels display team. The C-130 is one of only a very small number of types to remain in service with US forces for over 50 years, and there is no immediate end in sight for it just yet. With such an incredible story, I feel that author Ben has done a really good job of fitting it all in to the constraints of this book series, and the models I am sure will inspire plenty of modellers to build their own examples.
Read the full review [link=https://www.militarymodelscenenew.com/book-reviews-1/lockheed-c-130]here[/link]
Military Model Scene
Well illustrated throughout with plenty of excellent colour photographs of all sorts of Hercules variants, in use by many operators around the world. From the drab greys of many modern examples, to the bright colours of 'Fat Albert', famously used to support the Blue Angels display team. The C-130 is one of only a very small number of types to remain in service with US forces for over 50 years, and there is no immediate end in sight for it just yet. With such an incredible story, I feel that author Ben has done a really good job of fitting it all in to the constraints of this book series, and the models I am sure will inspire plenty of modellers to build their own examples.
Read the full review [link=https://www.militarymodelscenenew.com/book-reviews-1/lockheed-c-130]here[/link]
Military Model Scene
First published in 1944 this very welcome reprint is an astonishing story of indomitable spirit overcoming adversity. A pre-war pilot on the outbreak of WW2 William Simpson was serving with the Fairey Battle-equipped 12 Squadron and flew to France as part of the Advanced Air Striking Force. When the German assault against France and the Low Countries opened with unparallelled ferocity on 10 May 1940 Simpson led four Battles of B Flight to attack a column in Luxembourg. They successfully bombed in the face of heavy fire and only one aircraft returned. Simpson had to crash land his aircraft that burst into flames being dragged clear by his gallant crew but was desperately burned. Treated for his injuries in several French hospitals, he was repatriated in 1941 and came under the care of the remarkable Archibald McIndoe who slowly rebuilt his destroyed face and hands. The story of this courageous member if the Guinea Pig Club is movingly told with humour, humility and great humanity. An aviation.. Read more
Andrew Thomas - Author and Historian
First published in 1944 this very welcome reprint is an astonishing story of indomitable spirit overcoming adversity. A pre-war pilot on the outbreak of WW2 William Simpson was serving with the Fairey Battle-equipped 12 Squadron and flew to France as part of the Advanced Air Striking Force. When the German assault against France and the Low Countries opened with unparallelled ferocity on 10 May 1940 Simpson led four Battles of B Flight to attack a column in Luxembourg. They successfully bombed in the face of heavy fire and only one aircraft returned. Simpson had to crash land his aircraft that burst into flames being dragged clear by his gallant crew but was desperately burned. Treated for his injuries in several French hospitals, he was repatriated in 1941 and came under the care of the remarkable Archibald McIndoe who slowly rebuilt his destroyed face and hands. The story of this courageous member if the Guinea Pig Club is movingly told with humour, humility and great humanity. An aviation.. Read more
Andrew Thomas - Author and Historian
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Aircraft Wrecks: A Walker's Guide
Originally published to acclaim in 2009, this paperback re-issue aims to give readers access to the tangible remains of hundreds of historic aircraft that still lie at crash sites on the moors and mountains of the British Isles, all of which can be visited. It covers almost 500 selected sites, with emphasis placed on those located within open access… Read more...
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Twin Mustang: The North American F-82 at 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… Read more...
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Daring Raids of World War Two: Heroic Land, Sea and Air Attacks
The Second World War saw a host of heroic raids enacted across the various theatres, all delivered valiantly in a variety of ways by British combatants; on land, by sea and from the air. Daring exploits such as the raid on Rommel, the endeavours of the Cockleshell Heroes and the Dam Busters have become legendary in the annals of warfare. All feature… Read more...
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Secret Wings of WWII
There are many myths and legends surrounding the advanced German aeronautical technology of the Second World War. There are also facts and proven events. Yet within these stories and behind these facts lie conspiracy theories, mistaken assumptions and denials that seem to contradict the evidence. So what really happened? How far ahead were the German… Read more...
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Air War Normandy
So much ink has been spilt and so many miles of film expended on the amphibious invasion of Normandy on 6 June, 1944, otherwise known as D-Day, and so familiar have the images become of men leaping from their landing craft and wading ashore as shells exploded all around them, that it is all too easy to forget that none of this would have been possible… Read more...
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The British Aerospace Hawk: A Photographic Tribute
Through a collection of dramatic and informative photographs, supplemented by cutaway illustrations, this book, the first in a mini series of three, highlights the agility and flexibility of this dedicated RAF and RN trainer. With the T1 and T1A versions soon to be retired from UK service (eventually to be replaced by the BAE Systems Hawk T2) this… Read more...
On 10 July 2018, exactly 100 years and 100 days after the formation of the world’s first independent air force, 103 aircraft of twenty-four types from twenty-five squadrons flew over London in the largest formation of military aircraft seen over the capital of the UK in nearly thirty years. Involving over 250 aircrew and operating out of fourteen… Read more...
The events of 1942 marked a pivotal year in the history of British air power. For more than two decades the theory that long-range bombing could win wars had dominated British defence policy. The vast majority of warplanes ordered for the RAF were designed either to bomb enemy cities or stop the enemy from bombing British cites. Conventional armies… Read more...
One moment the sky would be full of aircraft wheeling and positioning for the best shot at the enemy; a sky full of danger and menace. The next instant there would just be a clear blue empty sky with the sun shining down on a calm and beautiful landscape. Such was the phenomenon experienced by pilots who fought in the key battles of France and Britain… Read more...
Prior to World War Two, Wing Commander Guy Gibson joined the Royal Air Force. In 1944, he wrote down his experience of serving in the RAF. Aged just 25, Gibson had completed two full tours, each of 30 operations, with Bomber Command, and had led the now-famous Dam Busters raid against the dams of the Ruhr Valley in May 1943. He died aged 26 in 1944,… Read more...
We Seek the Highest has been the motto of the thousands of Officer Cadets who, over ten decades, have passed through the rigorous training regime at the Royal Air Force College, Cranwell, Lincolnshire. The words embody the College ethos: to strive to reach the tough standards demanded by the RAF, in the air and on the ground. This book tells the 100-year… Read more...
This is the story of the Arado 234, an aircraft that on one day in 1944, in the skies above Normandy, heralded the beginning of a new era in aviation: the jet era... For more than a century, the aviation industry has experienced continual change and upheaval. Many individuals have contributed to this field of developmental aviation over the course… Read more...
