Specialty Press
F-117 Nighthawk Stealth Fighter Photo Scrapbook
by  Yancey Mailes & Tony Landis
Reviewed By  Anthony King, IPMS# 37981
[book cover image]
ISBN: 158007099X
Format: Softbound, 108 pgs, about 250 color & 100 b/w photos.

Wreathed in the security of the looming mountains, an exotic aircraft waits to take flight. The jet has been shrouded in secrecy since its inception. Journalists have written scores of articles relating the development of stealth and it employment during combat, but what has not been told is the story of how a group of dedicated officers, NCOs, and contractors accomplished one of the most difficult tasks in aviation history. This small cadre of devoted developers, testers, pilots and maintainers built and flight tested the first operational stealth aircraft in total secrecy and total isolation. This is their story.
To call me a voracious reader would be an understatement. When the opportunity reared its head and this particular book was offered for review, I jumped at the chance like a gator to a piece of meat thrown at it. All modelers start out as curious kids who just like the "Cool" factor of a particular kit on the store shelf then anything else. As we grow older we start to seriously wonder what the history of our modeling subject was, and eventually how or what made it tick. To be called a modeler is not a complete description, for we all eventually become historians as well. Wouldn't our High School history teachers be proud?

Calling this small book a "Scrapbook" is a complete understatement! The book was written by Yancy D. Mailes and Tony R. Landis, both of whom had some part in the design, development, and production of the F-117. While reading this book, I was so taken back by the complete details of the story and photographs, I had to keep reminding myself that the men in black where not coming to get me for possessing classified material. To give you an idea as to how sensitive and classified the F-117 still is to this day, even after the veil of secrecy was lifted in 1988, Mr. Mailes and Mr. Landis had this to say in their Introduction.
In order to get Air Force approval for this manuscript to be published some concessions had to be made. Yancy Mailes is currently a historian for the U.S. Air Force so full approval had to be given, although all reference material used was from unclassified sources. The manuscript was heavily edited as the Air Force stated that the original text "connected too many dots: and the true name of the test site could not be used (although everyone knows where it is.)
The search for LO or Low Observable technology began in the mid-1950's in an effort to reduce an aircraft's radar cross section. The book chronicles the entire history from "Project Harvey" all the way to "Have Blue". The section about Project "Have Blue" is well worth its weight in gold alone. The 10 year period (1981-1991) "The Scorpion Team" worked in what was a constant learning curve for all those involved with the project all the while maintaining one of the tightest cloaks of secrecy since the "Manhattan Project." Being no stranger to top secret research projects with past aircraft such as the SR-71 and the U-2, Lockheed's "Skunk Works" was pushed farther then ever before in the Company's history with the F-117 project.

The book really fills in a lot of blanks that other publications have missed over the years. The question about this book being a good reference book for modelers is a resounding YES! The photos are all color and of high quality, and several show good details of what is under the skin of the F-117 during its construction. While there is not a lot of text to drown in, the plentiful pictures speak volumes by themselves. The flow and layout of the book is smooth and was really hard to put down once I started. The book has something for ever kind of aircraft model builder so no one should be disappointed, and I highly recommend it. In fact I recommend all of Specialty Presses titles which provide well needed subject matters and fresh perspective. This is not just a reference book, but an adventure between two book covers.
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