Over the years, the 'secret projects' books have been quite popular with readers, and while the Luftwaffe and Soviets have been major draws, little has been done for the aircraft of the US. Thankfully, that has changed.

This is the fifth volume that seeks to right this omission and is authored by Tony Buttler (who has been instrumental in the previous books).

Let me start this one out by stating that not everything in here is strictly secret, though it may well have been at the time. The book covers US fighters and Interceptors from 1950 to 1980 with the majority of the information coming earlier rather than later as technology stabilized.

Much of this is focused on the Air Force side of things as they were most interested in developing very fast aircraft. Not to say that the Navy has been left out as many of the interesting projects were of a nautical nature. I also found that as time went on, the development of numerous prototypes from different manufacturers dwindled as companies consolidated and became fewer in number.

The thing that really strikes me are the number of planes that made it into flying prototypes, most of these in the 50s and 60s. By the time the 70s and 80s came around computer design work was such that one could pretty well tell if an aircraft would be successful without having to have a physical prototype to fly.

In each case, as much information as is known is presented and that includes drawings, models or photographs. It all makes for a fascinating read and if you truly want to know what was going through the minds of American designers, then this one is very much for you. Highly recommended.

September 2026

Review book courtesy Casemate Publishers. Get yours today at this link.

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