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- X-Plane Crashes: Exploring Experimental, Rocket Plane, and Spycraft Incidents, Accidents and Crash Sites
Known as "The X-Hunters," authors Peter W. Merlin and Tony Moore have located more than 100 crash sites of exotic aircraft from Edwards air Force Base and Area 51. Together, they have recovered parts of supersonic rocket planes, stealthy spy craft, and vehicles that have reached the edge of space. Each story in the book profiles an unusual aircraft and the brave men who flew it. The authors examine the contributing causes of each crash and use then-and-now photographs to illustrate their findings. The stories end with The X-Hunters' search for the crash site and what they discovered. Each adventure combines C.S.I.-type skills with X-Files persistence, with a dash of Indiana Jones for adventure. Aircraft profiled include the YB-49 and a pair of N9M flying wings, X-1A, X-1D, XB-51, XB-70, SR-71, YF-12, U-2 prototype, and many more. The photos in this edition are black and white.
Pages: 160
Size: 8.5 X 11 (inches)
Format: Paperback
Illustrations: b/w
Publisher: Specialty Press
ISBN: 9781580072229
Product Code: SP121P
Reviews
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Modeling Madness
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(Posted on 10/31/2008)"It all makes for a most interesting read and is a book that I enjoyed going through. I know you will find it equally as fascinating."
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Hyperscale
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(Posted on 11/30/2008)"This is a very good book detailing the history of X-plane crashes and depicts a wealth of information associated with X-planes that very few people would be aware of."
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Air Classics
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(Posted on 11/30/2008)"All in all, this is an interesting look at the tremendous price paid in the furtherance of aeronautical science."
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IPMS
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(Posted on 11/30/2008)"I have found this book most interesting especially with the accompanying photos of not just the sites but parts of these craft that were found on their quests. I would recommend it to anyone that has even a passing interest in the X-Planes and their fates."
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Starship Modeler
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(Posted on 12/16/2008)"As a history of aviation/aerospace testing, this book is hard to beat. It's detailed, well-written and well-illustrated."
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Internet Modeler
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(Posted on 1/31/2009)"This book is well done and a very interesting read. If you are into aircraft history I would definitely recommend this book."
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FlyPast
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(Posted on 2/28/2009)"This is much more than 'X-Planes'; it's a look at all development trials through a galaxy of types."
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AAHS Newsletter
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(Posted on 1/31/2009)"Here's a must-have work by two experts in the field."
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Aviation History
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(Posted on 4/30/2009)"Well illustrated, and with an appendix of crashes at Muroc/Edwards that is worth the price of the book, X-Plane Crashes has a fascination that cannot be denied."
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Model Aircraft Monthly
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(Posted on 9/30/2009)"Take a look at this one, it may give you inspiration to trek the moors of Derbyshire in search of that elusive wreckage."
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Model Airplane International
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(Posted on 4/30/2009)"Highly informative, this title is a must for anyone interested in US flight testing in the post-war period, or in Edwards AFB in general."
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Air Power History
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(Posted on 5/31/2010)"Aviation enthusiasts of all stripes will enjoy this well-written, well-illustrated, and interesting book."
Tony Moore
Tony Moore is a museum assistant at the Air Force Flight Test Center Museum at Edwards Air Force Base. He is also a graphic artist and previously served as an audiovisual archivist at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, under contract to Analytical Services & Materials, Inc. He was born in Los Angeles, Calif., and raised in the nearby San Fernando Valley where he became interested in aviation at an early age. Moore holds an A&P technician's license from Northrop University, Inglewood, Calif. He is a founding member of the X-Hunters Aerospace Archeology Team and a member of the Flight Test Historical Foundation. He also serves as a tour guide to the historic site of Pancho Barnes' Happy Bottom Riding Club during annual festivities at Edwards. Moore has appeared on such television programs as UFO: Down To Earth - Retrieval, and Return to Area 51. He applies his artistic talents to creating emblems for NASA and USAF projects and graphic art for Web sites, including thexhunters.com and dreamlandresort.com.
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Peter W Merlin
Peter W. Merlin is an archivist and historian at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, under contract to TYBRIN Corporation. He is the author of Mach 3+: NASA/USAF YF-12 Flight Research, 1969-1979 (NASA SP-2001-4525) and co-author of Donald L. Mallick's autobiography The Smell of Kerosene: A Test Pilot's Odyssey (NASA SP-2003-4108), and Archangel to Senior Crown
