| Title | USAF Interceptors - A Military Photo Logbook (1946-1979) |
| Author(s) | Marty J. Isham and David R. McLaren |
| Publisher | Specialty Press |
| ISBN | 978-1-58007-150-5 |
Specialty Press (as the name suggests) seem to specialise in unusual subjects. Their books follow a standard theme - a mixture of black & white and colour pictures with full captions, and just enough descriptive text to add interest.
This latest book in the series covers the varied range of USAF interceptors which were in service between 1945 and 1979. The name is somewhat misleading as a number of the USAF interceptors were actually operated by the ANG and AFRES.
The book is divided into seven chapters, each dealing with a separate "era" and covering the types that were predominant during that era:-
- The Formative Years - P-47 Thunderbolt, P-51 Mustang, P-61 Black Widow, F-82 Twin Mustang
- Flying in the "Blowtorch Era" - F-80 Shooting Star, F-84 Thunderjet, F-86 Sabre, F-89 Scorpion, F-94 Starfire
- Supersonic Sabres (...Only in a Dive) - F-86D Sabre Dog
- The Century Series - F-101 Voodoo, F-102 Delta Dagger, F-104 Starfighter, F-106 Delta Dart
- Icelandic Operations - F-102 Delta Dagger, F-4C Phantom II
- Support Aircraft - T-33 Shooting Star, C-54 Skymaster, C-119 Flying Boxcar, EC-121 Warning Star, B-57 Canberra
- What Might Have Been - F-106X, YF-12 Blackbird, NAA Retaliator, USAF F-14 Tomcat
An interesting selection of both subjects and photographs - and Specialty Press have also made sure that none of the pictures featured fall across the fold of the page. A lot of the pictures are new to me - all in all well recommended!!
Review by Chris St Clair
