Fundamentals of Fighter Design

Rating:
Summary: The history and science of designing fighter aircraft
Review: "Fundamentals of Fighter Design" is one of two books written by aerodynamicist Ray Whitford that survey the anatomy of fighter aircraft. As in his older book "Design for Air Combat", Whitford breaks down the various areas that make up an airplane - the aerodynamics, power plants, avionics, weapons and weapons systems and control systems. (Not being an aerodynamics expert by profession or training, I have yet to complete the denser "Design" and probably will never be able to, though I find that book also a masterful survey, worth at least trying to wade through as a companion to this one.) Unlike that older book, "Fundamentals" goes to great lengths to be approachable to non-experts, though this has mixed results. Whitford tries to keep from getting bogged down in the real fundamentals of his science, but that just means that non-experts will be left clueless at some points. Though very technical, Mr. Whitford goes to great lengths in this book to explain the aerodynamic, mechanical or other underlying principles he discusses. Also, unlike "Design", "Fundamentals" provides more historical discussion about various aspects of technology (why was the centrifugal-flow turbojet so popular in the early post-WWII years? What allowed the axial-flow to emerge triumphant in the end? And why were navies so reluctant to jump on the jet bandwagon at all?). Whitford's prose, though quite technical, are refreshingly aimed at non-experts, but obviously, there's just so much about the science that you can cram into a single book while still making it accessible to anybody who doesn't work for Lockheed-Martin, BAe or MiG MAPO. Whitford backs up his "lessons" with photos and diagrams (strangely, while I'd guess that it's harder to get an F-14 to pose for you in a way that captures its variable-sweep wings responding to changing mach number, the photos sometimes do a better job telling the story than the diagrams).

"Fundamentals", being a newer book, takes some advantage of newer developments in military aviation. "Design" was published around 1989, about a year after the USAF publicly unveiled the F-117 and B-2, while the aircraft that would emerge as contestants in the ATF war were still only known by their "conceptual" drawings (later revealed to have little resemblance to the actual planes). "Desert Storm" and the rise and fall of the A-12 were still in the future - the Iraquis were our friends, the Russians were not. Consequently, there's a whole chapter on stealth, while the Su-27's famous "Cobra" maneuver gets a spotlight, plus pictures of Eurofighter, the Rafale and the F/A-18E/F that weren't available for the older book. One wonders whether Whitford might try again at breaking down the science of military flight - this time using the development of Eurofighter Typhoon to provide the context (going from the Sopwith Pup, to the Spitfire, to the Meteor, Vampire, Hunter, Lightning, Tornado to the Typhoon).

You won't understand a lot of it, maybe even most, (and even experts won't be able to head off to their workbench ready to bang together their own homemade ATF), but what comes clear is still worth the cover price and exceeds anything you'll see on "Discovery: Wings".

Rating:
Summary: The history and science of designing fighter aircraft
Review: "Fundamentals of Fighter Design" is one of two books written by aerodynamicist Ray Whitford that survey the anatomy of fighter aircraft. As in his older book "Design for Air Combat", Whitford breaks down the various areas that make up an airplane - the aerodynamics, power plants, avionics, weapons and weapons systems and control systems. (Not being an aerodynamics expert by profession or training, I have yet to complete the denser "Design" and probably will never be able to, though I find that book also a masterful survey, worth at least trying to wade through as a companion to this one.) Unlike that older book, "Fundamentals" goes to great lengths to be approachable to non-experts, though this has mixed results. Whitford tries to keep from getting bogged down in the real fundamentals of his science, but that just means that non-experts will be left clueless at some points. Though very technical, Mr. Whitford goes to great lengths in this book to explain the aerodynamic, mechanical or other underlying principles he discusses. Also, unlike "Design", "Fundamentals" provides more historical discussion about various aspects of technology (why was the centrifugal-flow turbojet so popular in the early post-WWII years? What allowed the axial-flow to emerge triumphant in the end? And why were navies so reluctant to jump on the jet bandwagon at all?). Whitford's prose, though quite technical, are refreshingly aimed at non-experts, but obviously, there's just so much about the science that you can cram into a single book while still making it accessible to anybody who doesn't work for Lockheed-Martin, BAe or MiG MAPO. Whitford backs up his "lessons" with photos and diagrams (strangely, while I'd guess that it's harder to get an F-14 to pose for you in a way that captures its variable-sweep wings responding to changing mach number, the photos sometimes do a better job telling the story than the diagrams).

"Fundamentals", being a newer book, takes some advantage of newer developments in military aviation. "Design" was published around 1989, about a year after the USAF publicly unveiled the F-117 and B-2, while the aircraft that would emerge as contestants in the ATF war were still only known by their "conceptual" drawings (later revealed to have little resemblance to the actual planes). "Desert Storm" and the rise and fall of the A-12 were still in the future - the Iraquis were our friends, the Russians were not. Consequently, there's a whole chapter on stealth, while the Su-27's famous "Cobra" maneuver gets a spotlight, plus pictures of Eurofighter, the Rafale and the F/A-18E/F that weren't available for the older book. One wonders whether Whitford might try again at breaking down the science of military flight - this time using the development of Eurofighter Typhoon to provide the context (going from the Sopwith Pup, to the Spitfire, to the Meteor, Vampire, Hunter, Lightning, Tornado to the Typhoon).

You won't understand a lot of it, maybe even most, (and even experts won't be able to head off to their workbench ready to bang together their own homemade ATF), but what comes clear is still worth the cover price and exceeds anything you'll see on "Discovery: Wings".

Rating:
Summary: Misleading title but otherwise good book
Review: A more appropriate title would have been "history of fighter design" Does not truly cover design fundamentals - more like a history of its development. Does note provide any new insights on aircraft design or an in depth look at how different tactics/ operations/ stratergy affected fighter design and how these needs and requirements were met with which design philosophy.

Rating:
Summary: Good book but rough on the edge.
Review: A very good read for the initiated but a tough book for someone who wants to begin analysing the world's fighters.Its biggest flaw is strong emphasis on history and not much on the principles underlying the development of fighters as we know them today.

Granted that there's a lot to be said on this subject.However the author only overfly very important topics like how lift works or how drag is created.He gives formulas which are known to an engineer and are not very complicated but he offer no explanation for them.Only saying with that formula and that result from it this means it's a bad or a good fighter.

However everything that needs to be crammed into a fighter is touched and explained although not as thorough as it should be.For example I totally understood what he explained regarding mechanics of flight and engines but he totally lost me with the electronics thing.Again a good book but for the initiated.It gives all the right stuff to design the perfect fighter and offer a great backward view on what previous designers thought.Good value but not the ultimate reference.

Rating:
Summary: Really pretty book
Review: This book is really pretty. Read it right now if you interested in fighter design!