U.S. Experimental & Prototype Aircraft Projects

 Author's Summary

America's military aircraft industry was forced to grow at an incredible pace during World War II. At the beginning of the conflict, the nation's air arms were out-matched by better-performing Axis aircraft. It was the development, often in secret, and subsequent performance of America's fighter aircraft that helped turn the tide of the war. 
This book focuses on those American fighter projects of WWII that never reached combat forces, or only in a very limited manner. The book illuminates little known or minimally documented aircraft and projects that significantly advanced fighter design but never went into full-rate production and deployment. The standard types are also examined to illustrate the state of the art at the time, the American posture and capabilities, goals set by national and military leadership, and general factors affecting the course of development for classes of fighters. Hence, this work follows the overall development of American fighter aircraft, but emphasizes those little-known projects that matured to the point of significant design development such as mockups, wind-tunnel models, and especially those yielding flying prototypes. Also includes dead-end variants of service types, those only exported after US evaluation, and aircraft that entered service in only small numbers before being overcome by more advanced models or the end of hostilities.

MWSA Review

Aviation enthusiasts will find U.S. Experimental & Prototype Aircraft Projects: Fighters 1939-1945 a comprehensive look into the projects intended to provide improvements to existing fighters or projects that lead to production of new combat fighter aircraft. The author leaves investigation into fighter-like aircraft developed for "purely research and experimental purposes" to future discussions. The entry of the U.S. into World War II found the fighter aircraft of its services no match for the Axis aircraft engaged in warfare. U.S. Experimental & Prototype Aircraft Projects: Fighters 1939-1945 gives a detailed and extremely well documented lay down of the evolution of American's aircraft industry and, specifically, military aircraft that had to play "catch-up" in order to meet the Axis threat. This a valuable and highly interesting chronicle of that development which includes discussion of aircraft designs that were not pursued for one reason or another. 

U.S. Experimental & Prototype Aircraft : Fighters 1939-1945 is filled with technical data and engineer drawings as well as many photographs which gives us non-experts a better understanding of the massive efforts undertaken during this period. As the author states up front "the text presupposes the reader has a fundamental understanding of airplanes" and how they work. Not a read for the novice, but still an excellent and valuable piece of work. 

Reviewed by: Frank Evans (2009)