Sailplanes 1965 - 2000 (Volume 3)
Author: Martin Simons
Hard Cover, 270 pages, hundreds of color photos and scale line art
drawings, Copyright 2004
Dimensions: 9.61 x 11.89 x 0.79 inches
(244 x 302 x 20 mm)
Table of Contents
#1
Table of Contents
#2
Example Page 161
Example Page 162
About the Author
Back
CoverOverview from the Back
Cover
The third of the series, 'Sailplanes' brings the story up to the end of
the 20th Century. Plastic structures became orthodox. Glass
was supplemented with carbon and aramid (Kevlar) fibers as reinforcing
materials. The improved strength and accuracy of structures allow
advantage to be taken of new wing profiles. Retracting motors
became more acceptable.
Pilots, modelers and aviation enthusiasts
will find descriptions, pictures and excellent scale drawings showing
most successful designs, and some not so successful such as the tailless
and variable geometry sailplanes, and some less expensive from the
flourishing homebuilding scene in the USA and Australia.
Champion pilots have showed how the new
aircraft should be exploited. Records for distance and speeds
around closed circuits were broken time and again by some of these
outstanding sailplanes. Many of them are still available and it is
useful to have this background information.
Review by Paul Remde
I have always been a fan of the old "Wings" TV programs that document
the development and refinement of unique aircraft. It is
interesting to learn about the many failures and lessons learned during
the development process - and to see interesting film footage of the
flights of the aircraft. I find the "Sailplanes" series of books
by Martin Simons to be similar to the "Wings" programs because they
allow the reader to travel back in time to learn about the development
of sailplanes over the years. The books are created for anyone
that is interested in sailplanes. Martin created hundreds of scale
line-art drawings of the sailplanes that show the elegant lines and
design details of the aircraft. The drawings are detailed enough
to be used by modelers to create accurate scale models. I have
just finished reading all 3 'Sailplanes' books from cover to cover.
I thoroughly enjoyed every page. I thought I had previously seen
photos and details on most of the sailplanes in the world - boy was I
wrong! I learned of many obscure and interesting sailplanes from
manufacturers and private builders around the world. I especially
enjoyed the overview information found in the Preface and Introduction
sections at the beginning of each book. The books are well
organized so that they can be used as a reference when looking for
information on any rare or not-so-rare sailplane. The books are
not inexpensive, but they are worth every penny.
About the Author
Martin Simons has been involved in gliding for more than fifty years.
With the Gold C badge and two diamonds (missed the height badge by a few
hundred feet), he has flown about one hundred different types of
sailplanes, including thirty two of those described in this volume, in
ten different countries.
English by birth he lives in Adelaide,
South Australia, with dual citizenship. In addition to the
previous two volumes 'Sailplanes', (1920 - 1945, & 1945 - 1965) his
earlier books include 'Slingsby Sailplanes', on the British glider
manufacturing company, and he collaborated with Paul Schweizer to
produce 'Sailplanes by Schweizer', about the leading American
manufacturer. He is also a keen model sailplane designer, builder
and flier. He wrote 'Model Aircraft Aerodynamics', the only work
of its kind in the English language, now in its fourth edition, and a
number of other books and a great many articles, not all of them about
aviation. |
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$75
(Volume 3)or
$210
(All 3
volumes)
($15 savings)
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