Navigating the C-124 Globemaster
Navigating the C-124 Globemaster

Author: Billy D. Higgins

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2019-07-25

Total Pages: 220

ISBN-13: 1476637113

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The C-124 Globemaster--a U.S. military heavy-lift transport in service 1950 through 1974--barreling down a runway was an awesome sight. The aircraft's four 3800 hp piston engines (the largest ever mass-produced), mounted on its 174-foot wingspan, could carry a 69,000-pound payload of tanks, artillery or other cargo, or 200 fully equipped troops, at more than 300 mph. The flight crew, perched three stories above the landing gears in an unpressurized cockpit, relied, like Magellan, on celestial fixes to navigate over oceans. With a world-wide mission delivering troops and materials to such destinations as the Congo, Vietnam, Thule, Greenland and Antarctica, the Globemaster lived up to its name and was foundational to what Time magazine publisher Henry Luce termed the "American Century." Drawing on archives, Air Force bases, libraries and accident sites, and his own recollections as a navigator, the author details Cold War confrontations and consequent strategies that emerged after Douglas Aircraft Company delivered the first C-124A to the Military Air Transport Service in 1949.

Lockheed C-5 Galaxy
Lockheed C-5 Galaxy

Author: Chris Reed

Publisher: Schiffer Pub Limited

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 80

ISBN-13: 9780764312052

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Still the largest U.S. military aircraft more than three decades after its first flight, the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy remains an integral part of Air Mobility Command into the 21st century. Lockheed C-5 Galaxy chronicles the development and service career of this behemoth of the airways, starting with the early 1960s requirement for a larger airlifter to supplement the C-141A, through Galaxys troubled early history to the types service during the Nickel Grass, Desert Shield, and other airlift operations. Several Galaxy counterparts, such as the Antonov An-124, are also depicted. Over 140 photographs, nearly all in color and many never before published, show the C-5 and other airlifters in a variety of paint schemes, while detail shots will be of use to the scale modeler.

A Concise History of the U.S. Air Force
A Concise History of the U.S. Air Force

Author: Stephen Lee McFarland

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 96

ISBN-13:

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Except in a few instances, since World War II no American soldier or sailor has been attacked by enemy air power. Conversely, no enemy soldier orsailor has acted in combat without being attacked or at least threatened by American air power. Aviators have brought the air weapon to bear against enemies while denying them the same prerogative. This is the legacy of the U.S. AirForce, purchased at great cost in both human and material resources.More often than not, aerial pioneers had to fight technological ignorance, bureaucratic opposition, public apathy, and disagreement over purpose.Every step in the evolution of air power led into new and untrodden territory, driven by humanitarian impulses; by the search for higher, faster, and farther flight; or by the conviction that the air way was the best way. Warriors have always coveted the high ground. If technology permitted them to reach it, men, women andan air force held and exploited it-from Thomas Selfridge, first among so many who gave that "last full measure of devotion"; to Women's Airforce Service Pilot Ann Baumgartner, who broke social barriers to become the first Americanwoman to pilot a jet; to Benjamin Davis, who broke racial barriers to become the first African American to command a flying group; to Chuck Yeager, a one-time non-commissioned flight officer who was the first to exceed the speed of sound; to John Levitow, who earned the Medal of Honor by throwing himself over a live flare to save his gunship crew; to John Warden, who began a revolution in air power thought and strategy that was put to spectacular use in the Gulf War.Industrialization has brought total war and air power has brought the means to overfly an enemy's defenses and attack its sources of power directly. Americans have perceived air power from the start as a more efficient means of waging war and as a symbol of the nation's commitment to technology to master challenges, minimize casualties, and defeat adversaries.

C-141 Starlifter
C-141 Starlifter

Author: John Gourley

Publisher: Schiffer Military History

Published: 2021-06-28

Total Pages: 128

ISBN-13: 9780764361722

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The Lockheed C-141 Starlifter was a new-build design by Lockheed and proved adaptable to many roles, from carrying outsized cargo to dropping paratroops. The C-141 was used in regions as extreme as the heat and humidity of Vietnam, the deserts of the Middle East, and the frozen ice pack of Antarctica. Modification programs enabled the C-141 to make full use of its capabilities, by adding in-flight refueling plus extending the length of the fuselage. The plane was a valued and appreciated USAF asset in numerous missions, from disaster aid and humanitarian relief to doing their part in Operation Desert Shield/Storm, and in the war on terror. The aircraft were eventually retired enmasse simply as a result of wear and tear in 2006. This book covers in detail all aspects such as interior/exterior configurations, cargo capabilities, missions, and modifications made throughout its service life.

The Lockheed Plant
The Lockheed Plant

Author: Joe Kirby

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 132

ISBN-13: 9780738587967

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The Lockheed Plant in Marietta has been building many of the world's most legendary aircraft for the past 60 years--and that doesn't even count its service building B-29 bombers for the Bell Aircraft Company during World War II. Lockheed's six decades have seen the plant build jet bombers, like the B-47 Stratojet; the world's most dominant fighter jet (the F-22 Raptor); and the most vaunted cargo planes (C-130 Hercules, C-141 StarLifter, and C-5 Galaxy). In Images of America: The Lockheed Plant, readers will learn about those planes, the people who designed and assembled them, and the plant in which they were built. The striking images in this book were shared by Lockheed Martin and the Marietta Daily Journal and depict the plant from its construction through today.

Airborne
Airborne

Author: Tom Clancy

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 1997-11-01

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 1101002271

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They are America's front lines--serving proudly in forward areas around the world. Representing the very best from the Army and Air Force, the Airborne Task Force is an unstoppable combination of manpower and firepower. Now, Tom Clancy examines this elite branch of our nation's armed forces. With pinpoint accuracy and a style more compelling than any fiction, the acclaimed author of Executive Orders delivers an fascinating account of the Airborne juggernaut--the people, the technology, and Airborne's mission in an ever-changing world...*Two Tom Clancy "mini-novels"--real world scenarios involving the airborne task force*Airborne's weapons of the 21st century, including the Javelin anti-tank missile, the fiber-optically guided N-LOS fire support system, and the Joint Strike Fighter*18 weeks: Life in an Airborne Alert Brigade*Exclusive photographs, illustrations, and diagramsPLUS: An in-depth interview with the incoming commander of the 18th Airborne Corps, General John Keen

C-5 Galaxy in Action
C-5 Galaxy in Action

Author: Richard Lippincott

Publisher: MMD-Squadron Signal

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780897475044

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C-5 Galaxy first made its appearance in March 1968 it has been given such varied nicknames as 'Fat Albert', 'Big MAC', 'White Elephant', and 'FRED'. Almost as long as a football field and as high as a six-story building, the C-5 Galaxy is one of the world's largest aircraft and the only aircraft that can transport nearly every type of US Army combat equipment, including tanks and helicopters. It's front and rear cargo doors and 'kneeling' landing gear system enables fast and easy loading of bulky equipment, it's intercontinental range enables it to carry troops and material to any area in the world. Since the 1970s the Galaxy has been projecting power around the globe, taking part in dozens of major military and humanitarian operations. This reprint includes 6 all-new pages packed with color photos and additional information about the Galaxy.