Duels in the Sky: World War II Naval Aircraft in Combat
This has been done before but never by so qualified an examiner. Brown, the Royal Navy's chief test pilot during World War II, test-flew most of the planes used by the Allies and Axis. He describes their construction, flight characteristics, and tactical strengths and weaknesses, assessing their chances against each other in aerial combat, and finally summarizing the best in various categories. Along the way, he also gives a readable, competent history of the air war from the British Navy's view. This book is full of information for flying buffs, and though Brown's "From the Cockpit" series (in the British magazine Air Enthusiast/Air International in the 1970s) carried very similar material, it is so thoroughly reworked that this should command a wide aviation audience.Mel D. Lane, Sacramento, Cal.Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.